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^^^'V. 






BIOGBAPHIOAL AND PORTRAIT 



CYCLOPEDIA 



OF THE 



THIRD CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY, 

COMPRISING v5 / 'T' 

MIDDLESEX, MONMOUTH AND SOMERSET COUNTIES 



TOGETHER WITH 



AN HISTORICAL SKETCH OF EACH COUNTY. 



EDITED BY 



SAMUEL T. AVILET. 



author of histories of niagara, washington and warren counties, new york ; preston and monongalia counties, west 

vieginia; and fayette, Westmoreland, blair, Indiana, Armstrong, schuylkill, Chester, 

delaware and montgomery counties, pennsylvania. 



PHILADELPHIA: 

BIOGRAPHICAL PUBLISHING COMPANY, 

1896. 






^^^5-^1 



PRESS OF 

THE JAS. B. RODCBRS PRINTING COMPANY, 

52 k 54 NORTH SIXTH STREET, 

PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



PREFACE, 




'ISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY— the life of the nation and the story 
of the individual — are inseparably connected, for history is the 
synthesis of biography, and biography is the analysis of history ; 
and that department of history most valuable for the intelligent 
study of national life is biography, as it affords one great means 
of historical generalization. 
Biographical history is now popular because important. It secured national 
recognition in the Centennial year of the American Republic, when Con- 
gress recommended to every city, town and county of the United States 
the necessity and duty of securing for preservation and future use their local 
history and the biographies of their prominent and worthy citizens. Biography, 
teaching the highest good by presenting worthy examples, has become an indis- 
pensable element of all branches of historj', and aids largely in the study of 
the philosophy of history. In its earlier stages of growth, biography was only 
the story of the lives of heroes and great men often but partly and partially 
told, but in its later development it is the more impartial and satisfacTtor'y 
record of the great, the deserving and the useful in every walk of life. 
Biography also preserves the names of thousands remarkable for wisdom, virtue, 
intelligence, energy and ability, and who only lacked opportunity to have won 
fame and distinction. 

History and biography have ceased to be ponderous and pompous; have 
ceased to be the story of monarchy and the record of kings, and are now the 
life of the nation and the chronicles of individual effort. We have in local 
biographical history a most potent and entertaining method of instructing by 
precedent, of inciting to emulation, and of preserving the names of those who 
contributed to the transformation of the counties of this State from a primitive 
condition to their present wonderful state of development. No less important 
is a just and fitting memorial to those men and women who have impressed 
themselves upon their respective communities, whether through industrial, politi- 



~^ 



6 Preface. 

cal, professional or civic relations. The history of the past is the history of the 
few ; the liistory of the present is the history of the many " who by head or 
hand, force of character or high attainment, have made themselves centres or 
sources of influence in their respective communities." These biographies, taken 
together, make a complete history, political, social, commercial and industrial. 

The Third Congressional District of New Jersey, comprising the counties 
of Middlesex, Monmouth and Somerset, constitutes one of the important districts 
in the State, and demands the best work on the part of historian, biographer 
and publisher. Neither time, labor nor expense has been spared in the 
preparation of this volume, and it is placed before the public with the belief 
that it will be found equal to any work of similar character published in 
this country. 

Various authorities have been consulted in the compilation of the intro 
ductory sketches, as W. Woodward Clayton's history of Middlesex and Union 
counties, Franklin C. Ellis's history of Monmouth county, and James P. Snell's 
history of Somerset county. The work was specially designed to be biographical in 
its leading feature, giving much less comprehensiveness to the general historical 
matter, and, while containing some compilated material, the work is almost 
wholly devoted to new and original information. And in its preparation it 
would be presuming too much on human vigilance and ability to say that it 
is absolutely free from errors. 

The concise account given of political, judicial, medical, military, educa- 
tional and religious matters, has been compiled from various sources of reliable 
and accurate information available. 

Produced by a vast amount of labor, we believe this cyclopedia supplies a 
general and permanent want, and contains no information that will become 
obsolete through the advance of knowledge. It seeks to preserve all valuable 
in the past, and yet includes the men who are active in the district in every 
line of progress and development at the present. 

THE PUBLISHERS. 



TABLE OF ^OISTTENTS. 



GENERAL HISTORY 

CHAPTER I. 
Inteodtjction — Geography — Topography — 
South Amboy Heights— Pigeon Swamp 
— Geology — Indian Occupation .... 

CHAPTER II. 
Early Settlements— Land Claims .... 

CHAPTER III. 

Proprietary Rule— Provincial Govern- 
ment—County Formation 

CHAPTER IV. 
The Revolutionary War 

CHAPTER V. 
Internal Improvements 

CHAPTER VI. 
The Civil War 



OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY. 



CHAPTER VII. 

Later Railways— Rutgers College— New 
Industries- County Progress 



17 



20 



CHAPTER VIII. 
Cities and Townships ..... 



I CHAPTER IX. 
21 The Bench and Bar 



22 



23 



24 



CHAPTER X. 

The Medical Profession — Early Physi- 
cians — Later Physicians 



CHAPTER XL 



Churches 



26 



27 



32 



35 



37 



GENERAL HISTORY 

CHAPTER I. 
Geography — Topography — Geology. . . . 

CHAPTER II. 

Indian Occupation— Dutch Discovery— 
Monmouth Patent 

CHAPTER III. 

County Formation — English Conquest^ 
English, Scotch and Dutch Settle- 
ments 

CHAPTER IV. 

Proprietary and Royal Provincial Gov- 
ernment 



OF MONMOUTH COUNTY. 



39 



41 



43 



45 



CHAPTER V. 
Commencement of the Revolution— Pro- 
tection Papers— Battle of Monmouth 
— Pine Robbers 46 



CHAPTER VI. 



The Civil War 



CHAPTER VII. 
Townships and Towns 



CHAPTER VIII. 
The Bench and Bar 



CHAPTER IX. 

The Medical Profession . . . 



CHAPTER X. 
Religious Denominations . . . 



48 



50 



54 



56 



57 



Table of Contents. 



GENERAL HISTORY OF SOMERSET COUNTY. 



CHAPTER I. 
I^TRODucTIO^•— Geography and Geology . 58 

CHAPTER ir. 

COJtXEXCEMEXT OF THE REVOLUTION— WASH- 
INGTON'S Retreat — Weston — Heights 

OK MlDDLEBROOK — MiLITIA 60 

CHAPTER Iir. 



Commencement of the Civil War — Regi- 
mental Histories and Mortuary Lists 



62 



CHAPTER IV. 
Later Railways— Present Industries — 

County Progress 64 

CHAPTER V. 
Township Histories 65 

CHAPTER VI. 
Ihe Bench and Bar 68 

CHAPTER VIL 
I'he Medical Profession — Churches — 
Schools— Bibliography • 71 



BIOGRAPHIES. 



J^UMACK, Theodore 






100 


AiTOwsmith.EusebeusW. 136 


Acken, Thomas N 161 


Anderson, John L. . 








330 


Ackersun, Cornelius . 








331 


A'.^.vsmith, Joseph E 








188 


Anuess, Wiufield S. . 








221 


Applegate, M.D., A. T 








248 


Annable, The Misses 








252 


Antouides, John J. 








279 


.'\llaire, Edward S. . 








2S1 


Allaire, George D. . 








284 


Adam-, Robert L. . . 








291 


Applegate, Grover T, 


M 


D 




293 


AUstroin, Harold K. . 








323 


Anderson, Andrew . 








884 


Andrus, Ur. Cliarles . 








(il3 


Amcnnan, Jolin . . 








499 


Allen, .John Traflbrd 








693 


Abbott, George W. . 








558 


Anderson, William W. 






821 


Antoniiles, Ten Brook . 






836 


jVckernian, Jas. Kranklin, M.l 


. 527 


Arrow-smilli, S. V. . 








552 



Applegate, John Stillwell . . 919 

Ayers, Franklin M 745 

Allen, Nathan 770 

Armstrong, Henry K 704 

Abbott, George W 558 

Atkinson, Peter A 1015 

Atkinson, C. S 524 



gURTT, Edward (' 987 

Brown, George W- . . . 923 

Brill, John C 1022 

Bver, Jacob 1024 

Borden, Jacob P 1032 

Burt, B. L 913 

Bird, Millard F 942 

Burroughs, William C. . . 934 

Buck, Valentine P 932 

Brown, Fei-dinand 928 

Brace, Dr. H. M 907 

Burnett, Dr. Charles B. . . 901 

Bolton, A. G 900 

Browu, Marcus A 894 



Bogaard, E. M. Andrew ... 887 

Brazo, Paul F 974 

Brogger, L. C. N 973 

Brown, Capt. Charles H. . . . 963 

Brower, Alonzo 313 

Bogle, James E 464 

Bedman, William, Jr 461 

Bennett, Hudson ...... 455 

Booth, Ralph W 522 

Bedle, T. 1 851 

Biimingham, William H. . . 846 

Bach, Abraham H 845 

Brown, ElwoodR.,D.I).S. . . 834 

Bean, Rev. William Hanson . 562 

Brower, Charles W 561 

Buell, Charles E 810 

Bollscliweiler, Andrew .... 797 

Buchanan, James Henry . . . 786 

Bellis, Lewis A 729 

Burns, Patrick ...... 720 

Banker, John 715 

Brown, Oliver H 686 

Burtt, Jacob 691 

Blew, J. M 773 



Table of Contents. 



Ballantine, J. W 947 

Bowne, Capt. George J. ... 765 

Brown, James, Jr 758 

Bazley, T. D 509 j 

Borden, Dr. Eiohard F. . . . 503 

Blackwell, Dr. L. S 497 

Benbrook, F. C 593 

Beale, Fred. A 585 

Blaisdell, Edward B 582 

Brown, Arthur M 638 

Bartine, Hon. John D. . . . 628 

Brown, Hon. Albert D. . . . 627 

Butcher, Charles H. . , . . . 621 

Bonham, David 879 

Brogley, Jacob 872 

Bums, Thomas 868 

Beach, William B 865 

Brown, Thomas C 855 

Burk, Mrs. M. W 855 

Bailey, Capt. George .... 300 

Baldwin, Henry R., M. D. . . 294 

Briggs, Louis 263 

Bevin, Dr. William 260 

Bennett, Charles A 239 

Bennett, Charles A., Jr. . . . 237 

Bailey, Capt. Foreman O. . . 205 

Barr, D. Miller, M.D 202 

Burtis, W. S 177 

Berry, James E 385 

Barnes, Edwin W 368 

Brokaw, Eichard H 354 

Berry, Albion E 344 

Bissett, James 446 

Bedle, A. F 433 

Brown, Minor 431 

Brown, Benjamin F. S. . . . 408 

Bergen, James J 40J 

Brack, Joseph 403 

Borden, John W 145 

Bawden, John 139 

•Bedle, ElihuB 122 

Booream, Mr. Theodore B. . . 115 
Burroughs, Geo. Van AVagoner 608 

Blodgett, Eufus 431 

Bedford, J. 292 



QAEEOLL, Edgar, M.D. . 605 

Cooley, Dr. Justice H. . 599 i 

Crawford, James G 597 

Conklin, Edgar E 574 

Corle, Hon. Calvin 515 

Curtis, H. A 769 

Curley, William E 764 

Corle, George S 749 

Clark, David 745 

Conover, Eichard S. . / . . 740 

Coates, Charles E 663 

Clauson, Andrew 681 

Cole, Thomas C 669 

Carson, William 704 

Codington, Lewis M 701 

Clinton, George A 797 

Cooper, Dr. J. Howard . . . 793 

Cronk, Lyman 567 

Conover, Franklin Bruen . y. 551 

Cook, Charles E 842 

Carson, Garrett D 472 

Carson, William H 472 

Campion, Patrick 456 

Campbell, James 965 

Cliven, Joseph 959 

Carberry, James 972 

Conover, D. Lane . . V . . . 971 

Cook, Steward, Jr 988 

Cantwell, Eev. W. F 986 

Cartau, Lawrence 926 

Conk, E. M 945 

Colby, Eev. Frank C 938 

Clark, John 934 

Comings, Geo. T 906 

Conover, E. C _■ • • ^^^ 

Crego, Milo H 165 

^G5rriell, Abner S 154 

Crater, David S 114 

Convery, Hon. Patrick ... 91 

Chase, Hon. Daniel C 89 

Cross, Eev. Henry 448 

Cook, James E 438 

Cuddy, Eobert D 388 

Carton, James D 387 

Clark, Dr. S. V. D 384 

Campbell, Peter B 382 

Conover, Judge J. Clarence . 361 



easier, Eufus T 910 

Carson, Hon. Eobert .... 324 

Case, Prof. Eichard 232 

Cortelyou, Abram A 223 

Claytou, Charles T 207 

Crawford, Charles V 310 

Cawley, W. H 304 

Childs, Henry J 296 

Curtis, Henry H 275 

Campbell, Prof. William . . . lOU 

Campbell, Jas. Wall Schureman 266 

Chandler, E. D 265 

Corlies, W. 1 864 

Cooper, Thomas W 863 

Clinton, William 856 

i Curtis, Henry H 275 

pCoriell, Samuel C 523 

! Chandler, A 660 

Cook, Henry B 147 



"r)ANGLER, Philip .... 871 

De Witt, Peter .... 315 

Degenring, Jacob 301 

Davis, William Henry .... 280 

Damerest, David D.,D.D.,LL.D. 276 

Dunlop, William A 265 

Davis, O. E 243 

Deinzer, George H 229 

Denise, John Henry 219 - — 

De Hart, Stephen H 191 

Doughty, Joshua, Jr 372 

Dungan, Nelson Young . . . 371 

Du Bois, Eev. Benjamin . . . 370 

Du Bois, Livingston 369 

DeGraw, Hon. Frank E. . . 349 

Drake, Charles 447 

Danz, Mrs. Lena H 438 

Dalton, Frank 427 

Dunn, Jr., James 415 

Donohue, Frank M 156 

Daly, Peter Francis 146 

De Nise, Hon. David Demorest 96 

Denelsbeck, M.D , J. G. . . . 903 

Davidson, John H 936 i ^ 

Dayton, Edward E 946 

Donahue, John A. . . . 959 

Dougherty, James 1031 



// 



10 



Table of Contents. 



Dayton, Spencer 979 

Dayton, Herbert 980 

Deitche, John J 1012 

Denike, Willett 518 

Demarest, William H 493 

Dealamau, Adam 792 

Decker, Dr. Dayton E. . . . 791 

De Mott, J. K 782 

Davis, Walter W 654 

Davis, Rev. T. E 648 

Dilts, George A 732 

De GroS; Capt. William ... 636 

De Voe, August A 623 

Dally, Eev. John W 615 

Day, George William .... 754 

Duryee, William B 657 

Dickson, John 889 

Davison, Robert 898 

Dahmer, John S 640 

]g]NGLISH, M.D., David C 507 

Ely, Andrew 664 

Ellis, John 720 

Emmons, E. H 684 

Emery, Thomas J 547 

Eastburn, Lewis D 822 

Eckert, Adam 971 

Eihart, John 943 

En=ign, Samuel E 903 

Ellis, Charles 176 

Esburg, Isaac B 190 

Elkins, Charles E 278 

Elmendorf, John E 255 

Edgar, Milton A 858 

Errickson, Richard A 853 

Enright, John 313 

Euright, James, Jr 992 

Edwards, Charles L 580 

Elkins, Isaac L. F 580 

JpRELINGHUYSEN, Du- 

mont 316 

Forman, Samuel R 206 

Flynn, Dr. Thomas H. . . . 377 

Farrington, Martin Luther . . 453 

Farrington, Southwell Koyce . 102 



Fay, James 

Forman, John 

Fisher, F. Williams .... 
Francis, Charles Asa . . . 

Farrow, E. F 

Fay, George DeWitt, M.D. 
Fleidner, Randolph .... 

Farry, Edward 

Fare, A. B 

Flanagan, John P 

Field, Henry 

Fields, Houston 

Freeman, S. E., M.D. . . . 

Force, Albert L 

Freeman, M.D., Otis Russel 

Farley, Edgar W 

Fisher, Charles 

Fay, Eugene 

Fay, Thomas P 

Fick, Peter W 

Fisher, Dr. Claudius E. P . 

Fee, John, Jr 

Feihle, Abram 

Field, Benjamin M 

Furman, Edwin 



QEURIN, Claude V. 
Grove, Harry B. . 

Green, Adam 

Glenn, James M. . . . 
Gordon, James H. . . 
Green, Col. E. S. . . . 
Griggs, Benjamin E. . 
Green, Capt. George . 
Gill, Rev. William 1. 
Gulick, Alexander . . 
Green wald, Charles . . 
Giles, Howard . . . . 
Giles, Samuel S. . . . 
Gibson, Fred. .1. . . . 

Gray, Henry 

Gray, Alvah 

Getsrnger, Herman . . 

Grace, Tobias 

t Gundrum, George . . . 
Gravatt, Samuel . . . 
Garrettson, Henry S. 
Guire, John 



933 

929 
970 
969 
965 
467 
460 
835 
815 
834 
487 
1003 
■•'787 
774 
663 
731 
508 
632 
633 
729 
329 
857 
533 
652 
848 



642 
517 
756 
803 
560 
486 
477 
.557 
397 
702 
726 
793 
781 
562 
978 
444 
282 
363 
244 
872 



922 



Griffin, W^illiam 854 

Grant, Hon. William H. . . 1030 

Gallagher, Thomas 455 

JJARVEY, David, Jr. . . . 352 

Hummer, A 382 

Hunt, John Ely 398 

Hoxsie, Bismarck 179 

Hoagland, G. G., M.D. ... 194 

Hoskins, Wilmer E 208 

Hills, Daniel Henry 247 

Higgins, Dr. Archibald Alexan- 
der ... . 287 

Hagerman, Richard E. . . . 254 

Hennessey, Garrett 410 

Hamed, Isaacs 821 ' 

Hull, Henry Augustus .... 819 

Hulse, William C 1028 

Hults, A. E., M.D 457 

Harris, J. N ■WO^ 

Haynes, Prof. John S 541 

Hinds, John S 535 

Height, George M 931 

Homsby, Capt. Samuel W. . . 891 

Hanson, John 548 

Hartman, Robert 906 

Hardenburg, W^arren .... 141 

Hall, W'illiam 131 

Herbert, Hon. Charles Biddle . 215 

Herbert, George B 1004 

Herbert, John Warren, Jr. . . 119 

Herbert, Dr. Ralph Willis . . 666 

Howel, Lewis T 86 

Howell, Hon. Benjamin T. . . 1010 

Howell, Stephen 750 

Hubbard, John V 852 

Hulsizer, Sidney 878 

Houston, Charles A 495 

Hopper, Rulef F 608 

Harrison, A. C 566 

Hanison, John 648 

Hill, Rev. Charles E 480 

Harkins, Hon. William F. . . 477 

Hart, Rev. John 559 

Hommann, Charles Chauncey . 802 

Herson Brothers 804 

Hamed, Dr. S. P 784 

Hegeman, Benjamin A. .<'. . 1035 



^v^ 



OHAPTEE III. 



PROPRIETARY RULE — PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT — COUNTY FORMATION. 




URING the period of proprie- 
tary control the settlers were 
engaged in making roads, and 
had two absorbing topics for 
discussion : land claims, and 
the East and West Jersey 
partition line. 

The Dutch were the first road builders 
in the county, and their main highway, 
although but a narrow road, was from 
Elizabethtown, through Woodbridge and 
Piscataway, to Inian's Ferry, now New 
Brunswick, and known as the Upper 
Road. The next road was the Lower 
Road, leaving the Upper Road west of 
New Brunswick, but finally running 
from that city through Cranbui'y to Bur- 
lington, on the Delaware. All others, 
except the Raritan road, from Piscataway 
to Somerset county, were mere cart-ways. 
Provincial Government. — The change from 
the rule of the proprietors to that of the 
crown brought no blessings to the people, 
who, with increasing numbers, grew more 
restless under arbitrary invasions of their 
liberties. In 1712 two additional roads 
of importance were laid out, a road along 
the Minisink Indian path, and the Mid- 
dlebush road, from New Brunswick to 
Middlebush, and pi'obably to Millstone, in 
Somerset county. Numerous local roads 
were opened and Middlesex count}^, about 
1776, had become one of the wealthiest 
counties of New Jersey. 



County Formation. — The territory of the 
county under the Dutch in 1661 was 
placed within the jurisdiction of the town 
of Bergen, and in 1675 the legislature 
declared that " Woodbridge and Piscata- 
qua be a county," but they failed to give 
the new county a name. This nameless 
state of county existence came to an end 
in 1682, when the general assembly of 
East Jersey divided their whole province 
into four counties : Bergen, Essex, Mid- 
dlesexand Monmouth. Middlesex county 
was " to begin from the parting line be- 
tween Essex county and Woodbridge 
line, containing Woodbridge and Piscata- 
way, and all the plantations on both sides 
of the Raritan river as far as Chesquake 
harbor eastward, extending southwest to 
the division line of the province and 
northwest to the utmost bounds of the 
province." In March, 1688, Somerset 
was set off from Middlesex county, and 
in 1838 a part of the county was taken 
to help form Mercer, while in 1860 a part 
of Woodbridge township was given to the 
city of Rahway and Union county. 
Against these losses of territory but one 
accession is to be recorded, and that was a 
small portion of Plainfield township, 
Union county, which was given to Pis- 
cataway township in 1871. The bound- 
ary lines of the county have been defined 
and changed by acts of legislature in the 
years 1710, '13, '90, 1822, '55 and '58. 

21 



CHAPTER lY. 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR. 




LTHOUGH the Revolution- 
ary period properly com- 
menced in Middlesex county, 
upon receipt of the news of 
the battle of Lexington by 
the general committee of cor- 
^ respondence, appointed by the 

repi'esentative convention, which met at 
New Brunswick, July 21, 1774, yet 
for nearly a hundred years the education 
of the people for that event had been 
progressing under parliamentary task- 
masters. The second colonial conven- 
tion, under the name of the Provincial 
Congress of New Jersey, met at Trenton 
in 1775, and appointed a committee or 
council of safety to act during the recess 
of its sessions. The second Provincial 
Congress, met at New Brunswick, in 
Feb., 1776, deposed the royal governor, 
and formed an independent state govern- 
ment. Middlesex, from the May days 
of 1775, had borne well her part in the 
great struggle, and Washington, after his 
reverses on Long Island and at New 
York, retreated, on Nov. 28, 1776, to 
New Brunswick, which he was compelled 
to evacuate, Dec. 2, 1776, just as the 
British appeared in sight of the place. 

The British occupied New Brunswick 
from Dec. 2, 1776, till June 22, 1777, 
and, during their period of occupation, 
spoliated six hundred and fifty persons, 
burned one hundred dwellings and mills, 
and destroyed property in Middlesex 
22 



county to the value of $646,605. The 
population of the county did not exceed 
twelve thousand, and the householders, 
on whom this loss fell, did not number 
over two thousand. A record of these 
damages is preserved in the state library 
at Trenton. A bright tribute to the pa- 
triotism of the county, during this period 
when it was being ravaged and plundered 
by the British, is recorded in the state- 
ment that among the names of one thou- 
sand disaffected New Jerseymen returned 
to the council of safety, but twenty-six 
were inhabitants of Middlesex. 

Soldiers from the county served bravely 
from Long Island to Yorktown, and we 
have record of two generals, Nathaniel 
Heard and John Neilson ; and four col- 
onels, Jacob Hyer, John Taylor, Robert 
Taylor, and John Wetherill, who were 
from Middlesex county. The county 
also furnished eight lieutenant-colonels, 
nine majors, sixty-one captains, seventy- 
two other officers, and nine hundred and 
seventy-four privates. Besides these, 
there were others who served whose 
names have not been preserved. 

Of the people of Middlesex county 
during the Revolutionaiy war, Charles 
D. Deshler says : " In all the qualities 
which constitute manhood they were rich 
bej'ond precedent, and they remain at this 
(lay the best models for our imitation, in all 
those solid and unobtrusive virtues which 
make a vigorous and great people." 



CHAPTEE Y. 



INTERNA-!, IMPROVEMENTS. 




(HE Revolutionary war in- 
terrupted colonial growth 
in New Jersey, and at 
that time no county in 
the state was in a more 
prosperous condition th an 
Middlesex. After the 
close of that great strug- 
gle no county in the commonwealth was 
in worse condition from British ravages 
than Middlesex, yet her people went to 
work manfully to retrieve their wrecked 
farms and shattered fortunes, and in less 
than ten years were so far successful that 
old farms were repaired and improved, 
new ones cleared out, and the population 
had increased nearly five thousand. 

Old roads were Avidened and new ones 
made, and turnpikes were projected about 
the time that the subject of a canal was 
discussed. The Delaware and Raritan 
canal was completed from Bordentown 
to New Brunswick in 18-34, and an im- 
mense tide of travel from Philadelphia 
set in through the county to reach New 
York city. The Camden and South Am- 
boy railroad, also finished in 1834, helped 
in transporting passengers and freight, 
and furnished an outlet to the inhabi- 
tants of the county and their products. 
Succeeding the construction of the canal 
came the building of the early railroads, 
and the development of the marl beds 



and clay pits. The county was holding 
well its own in growth and wealth among 
the other counties of the state, had been 
but little affected by the war of 1812, 
although its coast was subject to invasion 
from British vessels that sought to de- 
stroy its commerce, but received a tem- 
porary check in the great financial panic 
of 1857. 

Next came the political agitation of 
1860, and the great rising war-storm of 
the succeeding year checked in Middle- 
sex, as in every other county of the 
state, all growth and progress, and shat- 
tei'ed alike sober calculation and gilded 
day-dream. The latter part of this pike, 
canal and railroad period, stretching 
for nearly three quarters of a century 
through peaceful times, was now to be 
succeeded by the civil war period, whose 
results were to work wonderful changes 
in the political and civil institutions of 
the nation. But the close of the latter 
period was followed by a renewed spirit 
of business and commercial activity, and 
this gave rise to enterprises of various 
magnitude, especially in the line of manu- 
facturing and agricultural industries, until 
the internal improvements developed to 
the present time, and the material resour- 
ces so largely augmented since, have made 
Middlesex second to none of her sister 

counties. 

23 



CHAPTER YI. 



THE CIVIL WAR. 




EAUREGARD'S circling bat- 
teries opened fire on the walls 
of Fort Sumter, aroused a 
storm of indignation through- 
out the north, and when 
Lincoln issued his pi'ocla- 
mation for seventj-five thou- 
sand men, no state responded 
more heartily than did New Jersey. Un- 
der this call Middlesex county had no 
organized company, but many of her sons 
served in companies from other counties. 
Under the second call Companies C, E, 
F, and G, of the First New Jersey infan- 
try, were from Middlesex county. The 
First regiment was drilled and trained 
under the dauntless Kearney, and on a 
score of hard-fought battle-fields did credit 
to that knightly soldier. It fought bril- 
liantly from Manassas Gap to Appomat- 
tox and made an imperishable record for 
bravery. Those of Company C who gave 
their lives were : Corporals John Faller, 
John J. Perry, and Henry Hallman ; pri- 
vates, Thomas Conover, James Cox, Wil- 
liam Hamilton, John G'Neil, C. H. Rob- 
erts, Joseph Stafford, and David B. Tap- 
pan. 

The mortuary list of Company F was : 
Corporals Miles Garrigan and B. F. Mof- 
fett; privates, P. P. Blake, Richard 
Bari'y, James Burns, Ambrose Boyce, 
George A. Dunn, Patrick Dunn, Alexan- 
der Dobson, George W. Hooker, John 
24 



Morris, D. B. S. Prall, and George Wil- 
son. 

The death-roll of Company G was : 
Privates George R. Buzzee, John Buck- 
'< ley, William Mesrole, T. F. Phillips, and 
Peter Rausch. 

Companies A and B, of the Ninth 
infantry, were recruited in Middlesex 
county. The Ninth regiment partici- 
pated in forty-two battles and engage- 
ments, and is one of the regiments of 
which New Jersey will always be proud. 
The mortuary roll of Company A was : 
Privates William Clayton, Thomas Du- 
gan, John Scully, Salter S. Stults, and 
William H. Silvers. 

The mortuary list of Company B was : 
Sergeant E. M. Hoyes; privates, Ferdi- 
nand Disbrow, and Thomas B. Moore. 

The Fourteenth regiment was raised 
largely outside of Middlesex county. 
The full companies from this county were 
I C, D, E, I, and K. The Fourteenth 
fought with great bravery in many bat- 
tles under Grant and Sheridan, and 
helped to save Washington city at the 
battle of Monocacy. The mortuary list 
of Company D was : Captains J. W. Con- 
over and Henry D. Bookstover; Lieu- 
tenant Henry J. Conine ; jirivates, 
William Addison, J. J. Armstrong, Rob- 
ert Barker, W. H. Bills, Peter Brown, 
William Church, George H. Camp, An- 
drew J. Estell, James Estell, William 



Historical Sketch. 



25 



Gorman, James Hawkins, Edward Ha- 
vens, W. H. Lewis, Levi Martin, Robert 
H. Runyon, W. A. N. Shores, D. P. So- 
den, and Jeremiah Van Dusen, and Cor- 
poral Henry Van Kirk. 

Company E lost Cornelius Bayard, 
John B. Dunham, and Elmer Noe. 

The loss of Company I was : Joseph 
Bruce, Abraham V. Pardun, Jefferson H. 
Rogers, Samuel B. States, Henry Smith, 
and Jacob Wilson. 

The mortuary list of Company K was : 
Coi'porals Isaac W. Meyers and David 
Ryno ; privates, Daniel Carver, William 
Culver, J. T. Disbrow, Henry Daly, David 
Galligan, J. M. Hagaman, Luke Stout, A. 
P. Schenk, Van R. Ten Broeck, John 
Ten Eick, Stephen Voorhees, William 
Van Duyn, and James Wessell. 

The Twenty-eighth regiment was large- 
ly recruited in Middlesex county. The 
following companies — B, C, D, F, I, and 
K — were entirely raised in the county. 
The Twenty-eighth regiment, although 
serving but nine months, acquitted itself 
with honor, fighting bravely at Fred- 
ericksburg and Chancellorsville. The 
regiment was mustered into the service 
at Freehold, New Jersey, Sept. 22, 1862. 
Its field officers were as follows : Colonel, 
Moses N. Wisewell ; Lieutenant-Colonel, 
E. A. L. Roberts ; Major, S. K. Wilson ; 
Adjutant, William A. Gulick; Chaplain, 
C. J. Page ; Surgeon, William D. Newell; 
Assistant Surgeon, Benjamin N. Baker. 

The regiment, nine hundred and forty 
strong, left Freehold on Oct. 4, 1862, and 
reaching Washington on the night of the 
5th, encamped on Capitol Hill. On the 
morning of the 13th it crossed into Vir- 
ginia and was attached to General Aber- 
crombie's command. On the first of De- 
cember it again broke camp, and crossing 
into Maryland, marched to Liverpool 



Point, on the lower Potomac, whence, on 
the 5th, it crossed to Acquia creek, and 
in the midst of a driving snow storm, 
went into camp until the 8th, when it 
proceeded to Falmouth. Here it was at- 
tached to the First Brigade (General Kim- 
ball's), Third Division (General French's), 
Second Army Corps. 

During the whole time that the regi- 
ment was attached to the Army of the 
Potomac it held a position in the imme- 
diate front, within a short distance of the 
Rappahannock, and was, consequently, at 
all times exposed to attack by raiding 
parties of the enemy. 

At the battle of Fredericksburg this 
regiment signally distinguished itself by 
exceptional gallantry, and Colonel Wise- 
well was severely wounded and carried 
from the field. 

The casualties of the regiment were as 
follows : — Company. B : Corporals W. 
R. Herron and W. V. P. Davison; pri- 
vates E. P. Gavitt, Thomas Jolly, W. H. 
Rogers, and John Thompson. 

The mortuary list of Company C was : 
Sergeant Henry Brantingham ; Corporal 
J. R. Field ; privates George D. Boice, 
C. D. Green, Aaron H. Lane, J. F. Lang- 
staff, W. C. Merrell, Martin McCray, Au- 
gustus Ryno, P. F. Runj^on, David S. 
Smith, and Charles W. Toupet. 

The loss of Company D was : Benja- 
min P. Combs, George W. Cummins, 
John French, T. M. Holcomb, William 
Marsh, Francis Oliver, Henry Quinn, 
John Reed, and C. B. Wilson. 

Company F lost the following men: 
Ulrich Brobell, Joseph Cutter, John C. 
De Witt, Charles D. Gilman, Patrick 
McGrail, and David G. Welsh. 

The loss of Company K was: Abra-- 
liam Arose, John Durham, Thomas Dunn, 
Isaac McGraw, and Charles Smith. 



CHAPTER Til. 



LATER RAILWAYS — RUTGERS COLLEGE — NEW INDUSTRIES — COUNTY PROGRESS. 




OON after the war, railroad 
building was resumed 
with increased activity 
throughout the coun- 
try, and Middlesex 
county was not neg- 
lected". With the build- 
ing of the later rail- 
waj^s, the county was placed in easy and 
rapid communication with all sections of 
the country. Including the earlier rail- 
roads, the principal railways now are : 
the Camden and Amboy, New Jersey, 
Central of New Jersey, Bound Brook 
and Easton, Perth Amboy and Eliza- 
beth. Rocky Hill, and Freehold Exten- 
sion. 

Rutgers College. — Although chartered 
in 1770, and one of the older colleges of 
the United States, yet Rutgers College, 
known as Queen's College up to 1825, 
did not prosper in the interests of the 
Dutch Reformed church as was expected 
by its founders. In 1865, the State Col- 
lege of New Jersey was organized as a 
department of Rutgers College, and from 
that year, Rutgers has taken high rank 
among the colleges of the United States. 
The college was named for Col. Henry 
Rutgers and an interesting history of it 
is given by Dr. T. S. Doolittle in the 
" History of Union and Middlesex Coun- 
ties." 

26 



New Industries. — Since the late civil 
war, many old industries have attained a 
new lease of life, and some new ones 
have come into existence. Of the older 
industries having a great development, 
may be named those using the plastic 
clays, the others manufacturing rubber 
goods, and the marl business. Of later 
industries, are the many new manufac- 
tures established within twenty years ; 
cranberry cultivation, and the manufac- 
tories of electric machinery by the " Wiz- 
ard of Menlo Park." Among the great 
manufacturing centres of the state are : 
New Brunswick, noted for India-rubber 
goods ; Perth Amboy, celebrated for 
stone-ware and fire-brick ; and South Am- 
boy, well known as a leading shipping 
point for coal. 

County Progress. — The progress of the 
county has been slow, but steady and 
substantial. With great resources not 
yet fully developed, the future wealth of 
Middlesex county will come fi'om farm 
and mine, from shop and factory, and 
from clay-pit and marl-bed. The educa- 
tional progress and moral growth of the 
people have kept pace with the wonder- 
ful development of material resources, 
and the rapid up-building of manufac- 
turing industries, and future power and 
greatness seem assured from present 
wealth and ititelligence. 



CHAPTEE Till. 



CITIES AND TOWNSHIPS. 




"he city of Perth Amboy, 
whose Indian name was 
OmbOjOr Ompoye (mean- 
ing an elbow), and whose 
early designations by the 
colonists were Amboyle 
and Emboyle, has the 
honor of being the second seat of govern- 
ment for East Jersey. It was laid out 
in 1683, incorporated as a city in 1718, 
and has increased in population from 
815 in 1810, to over 8,000 in 1896. 
While not fulfilling the extravagant ex- 
pectations of its founders in surpassing 
New York city and becoming the metrop- 
olis of the new world, yet being healthy, 
and possessing a fine harbor, it has be- 
come a leading city and a great railroad 
centre of the state, with large stoneware 
and fire-brick industries. 

Of the early settlers but little account 
can be found, and of the two hundred 
Scotch that came over in the " Henry 
and Francis," in 1685, but few remained 
in the place. Churches were established 
at an early day, but the earliest record 
of a school is in 1765, and it was in con- 
nection with St. Peter's church. Thomas 
Johnston taught in the court-house in 
1774, and his assistant, a Mr. Garrick, 
succeeded him. Nearly a hundred years 
afterwards, in 1870, the board of educa- 
tion was organized, and since then an 
excellent system of public schools has 



grown up, and reflects credit on the city. 
The first court-house was burned in 1766, 
and its successor was finally sold, while 
the first jail was burned and the second 
torn down when the county seat was 
removed to New Brunswick. The stocks 
and pillory accompanjdng the early court- 
house are gone, but the military barracks 
built in 1758 were confiscated to the 
United States in 1783. The post-office 
was established about 1694, the Middle- 
sex County State Bank was organized 
March 14, 1872, and the custom-house 
dates back to Aug. 14, 1687, Avhile the 
fire department was not effectively or- 
ganized until after the Revolution. Three 
great railways give Perth Amboy trans- 
portation to all the inland cities of the 
United States and Canada, and it has 
communication by water with all the 
ports and markets of the world. 

New Brunswick City. — The site of the 
city was originally known as Pridmore's 
Swamp, where Daniel Cooper, by tradi- 
tion, was the first settler. John Inian 
came in 1681, and established a ferry 
whose name was soon applied to the up- 
springing hamlet. The name of Inian's 
Ferry clung to the place after it had 
grown to some size, and the first mention 
of the name of New Brunswick in con- 
nection with the town was in 1724. Six 
years later there was a Dutch emigration 
from Albany, N. Y., of several families, 

27 



28 



Historical Sketch. 



who built up Albany street. New Bruns- 
wick was incorporated as a city in 1784, 
and in 1801 a new charter was obtained. 
In 1828 New Brunswick had but 5,000 
population, and in 1830 was a great 
depot for the wholesale grain trade, and 
since the coming of the first railwa}' 
train in 1836, has grown wonderfully in 
importance and wealth. 

New Brunswick has good land and 
water communications, possesses large 
manufactories of India-rubber goods, wall 
paper, msichinerj^, buttons and hosiery, 
and is the seat of Rutgers College, one 
of the oldest institutions of higher learn- 
ing in the United States. The city is 
well provided with churches. Of its 
early schools before 1800 but little is 
known. The Lancasterian school was 
established in 1803, and since 1855 the 
public schools have advanced rapidly 
under the management of the "board of 
education. Rutgers College was estab- 
lished in 1766, the Theological Semi- 
nary was projected in 1755, and in later 
years two young ladies' seminaries, a 
grammar school and a conservatory of 
music were among the educational ad- 
vantages added to the city. New Bruns- 
wick has an efficient fire department, 
banks, insurance companies, water-woi'ks, 
and all the conveniences of a modern 
city. 

Woodbridge Township. — This township 
was chartered June 1, 1669, and named 
after Rev. John Woodbridge, of New- 
bury, Mass. Sandy, pipe, and laminated 
clays, and micaceous and laminated sands 
are found. Clay-pits and feldspar and 
kaolin mines are operated. Obadiah 
Ayers, Jonathan Haynes, and Ephraim 
Andrews settled in the township in 1673, 
and by 1680 quite a number of families 
were settled. In 1682 a hundred acres 



of school land were ordered to be laid out, 
but no teacher is mentioned until 1689, 
when James Fullerton was to be enter- 
tained as school-master. John Brown 
and John Backer were next mentioned 
as teachers. Woodbridge Academy was 
built in 1793, and Elm Tree Institute 
was opened in 1822, while the Barron 
Library, containing over 3000 books, was 
dedicated in 1877. The towns and ham- 
lets are : Woodbridge, Uniontown, Ford's 
Corners, Houghtonville, East Wood- 
bridge, Edgar, and Leestown, of whose 
history there is but little mention. Wash- 
ington visited Woodbridge in 1789, and 
Lafayette passed through in 1824. 

Piscataway Township. — This township 
was incorporated in 1798, while its records 
date back to 1695. The name was given 
1)y associate purchasers, who were natives 
along the Piscataqua river, in New Eng- 
land. In course of time the spelling was 
changed to the present form. Among 
the early settlers were the Gilmans, 
in 1665 ; the Blackshaws, Black wells, 
Drakes and Hendricks, in 1677; and the 
Dotys and Wolfs, in 1678. The principal 
villages are : New Market, once called 
Quibbletown ; Dunellen, a neat and tasty 
place with pictui'esque scenery surround- 
ing; and New Brooklyn a,nd Samptown. 
The first school Avas taught at " Piscata- 
way town," in 1682, and the first two 
teachers were a Mr. Gordon and James 
Fullerton, who taught in the New Brook- 
lyn district. The Dunellen school dates 
back to 1800, when it was taught by 
Ransom Downs, a Yankee peddler. The 
township is well supplied with churches. 

North Brunswick Township. — North 
Brunswick was taken from Piscataway 
toAvnship soon after the erection of the 
county. The earliest centre of settle- 
ment seems to have been at Three Mile 



Historical Sketch. 



29 



Run, where an ancient Reformed Dutch 
church stood in pioneer days. The soil 
of the township is productive, and grist- 
and saw-mills were built at an early day. 
The Parson's Brookford snuff-mills, near 
Milltown, were started prior to 1856, the 
Meyer rubber-shoe plant was commenced 
at Milltown in 1843, and the Voorhees 
Station tannery was in existence before 
1806. The township poor farm was 
bought in 1817, and in 1860 went to the 
city of New Brunswick. Milltown was, 
prior to 1843, known as Bergen's Mills, 
and is now a prosperous place. Living- 
ston Park is a hamlet north of the centre 
of the township. Three old taverns 
built before 1800 were the Red Lion, 
Black Horse, and Brunson. Thei'e is but 
little to be found about the early schools, 
and their teachers or masters. The first 
appropriation for poor children was in 
1827, when |500 was voted for that 
purpose. 

East Brunswick Township. — East Bruns- 
wick was formed February 28, 1860, from 
Monroe and North Brunswick townships, 
and but little is on record of its early 
settlers. Hartshorne Willett came in 
1720, and for the next twenty years set- 
tlement was very slowly made. Sand, 
clay and kaolin beds are in different 
parts, and have been operated for many 
years. The fruit culture and trade, intro- 
duced by Samuel Whitehead, was at its 
height in 1850, while ship-building was 
commenced in 1824 by Jonathan Boora- 
men, at Washington, where schooners of 
three hundred and fifty tons have been 
launched. James Perry, Peter Corrae, 
and Thomas Hays formed the Forge com- 
pany, which had a forge in 1750, near 
the site of the De Voe snuff factory, and 
snuff manufacture was introduced about 
1830, by Daniel Snowhill and William 



Dill. Washington, the most populous 
village in the township, was founded in 
1720 by Hartshorne Willett, and for many 
years was a great wool, grain, and ship- 
building centre, while to-day its leading 
industries are ship-building, brick-makmg 
and shirt-manufacturing. Spottswood, 
on account of its excellent water-power, 
was a manufacturing centre as early as 
1750, when the Forge company had their 
works there, and to-day is one of the 
most important of the snuff manufactur- 
ing towns in the United States. The 
other villages of the township are Old 
Bridge, or Herbertsville, once a ship- 
building centre ; Milltown, mostly in 
North Brunswick; Bloomfield's Mills and 
Dunham's Cornei's. Nothing seems to 
have been preserved of early schools and 
teachers. Spottswood for some years 
was an educational centre, with Ward's 
Academy and a branch of Rutgers Col- 
lege established there. 

South Brunswick Township. — South Bruns- 
wick, the largest township in the county, 
was one of the earliest townships formed. 
Crossed by pikes, railways, and a canal, 
its people are well provided with out- 
lets to markets. Of its early settlers 
but little information can be obtained. 
Jediah Higgins was here in 1700, but 
undoubtedly settlers had come some years 
before him. The principal villages are 
Kingston, where a church and school 
were organized in 1723 ; Mapletown, 
named for the Maple family ; Dayton, 
named in honor of William L. Dayton ; 
Dean's Station, named for Abraham 
Dean; Plainsboro, dating back of 1800; 
Gray's Mills, named for Alexander Gray; 
and Monmouth Junction, Franklin Park, 
Fresh Ponds, and Rhode Hall. The 
earliest school was at Kingston, as early 
as 1723, but nothing has been preserved 



30 



HisTORiCAi. Sketch. 



of its history, or the histories of the other 
early schools of the township. 

Monroe Township.— On Feb. 23, 1838, 
Monroe was taken from South Ambo}' 
township. Among the early settlers 
were : James Johnstone, who settled in 
1685, on the Manalapan ; William David- 
son, about 1686; the Mounts, and James 
Perrine. There were distilleries at an 
early period, and of the later industrial 
enterprises the most important are the 
Downs & Finch fancy shirt manufactory, 
founded in 1871, at Jamesburg, and the 
Magee & Buckalew foundry, built in 
1878, at Upper Jamesburg. The villages 
and hamlets of the township are : James- 
burg, founded in 1792, as Endsley's Mills, 
successively known as Mount's Mills, 
Gordon's Mills, and Buckalew's Mills, 
and given its present name, in 1847, in 
honor of James Buckalew ; Union Valley, 
founded in 1855; Half-Acre, named from 
the old Half-Acre tavern ; Red Tavern, 
founded before 1800 ; Prospect Plains, 
and Hoffman's and Tracey's stations. Of 
the pioneer and early schools no definite 
information can be obtained, and the 
academic school known as Jamesburg 
Institute was opened in 1873. In 1867 
the New Jersey State reform school was 
opened near Jamesburg, on a farm of 
four hundred and ninety acres that had 
been purchased for that purpose. 

Madison Township. — This township was 
foi'med from South Amboy, March 2, 
1869. The first land-owners were not 
settlei's, and the Browntown neighbor- 
hood seems to have been first settled, but 
there is no account of who they were 
or when they settled. The wood and 
timber trade was important in early 
days, and then came the clay industry, 
with its numerous pits and mines, which 
are operated now on a large scale. Snuff 



manufacture commenced about 1825. 
Dill snuft' mill was built in 1830, and 
the Tecumseh snuff mills were erected in 
1854. The Bloomfield Mill Company 
was organized in 1872, and commenced 
the manufacture of licorice, using an- 
nually 5,000,000 pounds of licorice-root, 
imported from Spain and Asia Minor. 
The villages of Madison township are : 
Jacksonville, once called Cheesquake ; 
and Browntown, which has hardly out- 
grown the proportions of a hamlet. The 
earliest schools were at Jacksonville and 
Browntown, but neither local history nor 
ti'aditions give time or teacher. 

South Amboy Township. — South Amboy, 
originally a part of Piscataway township, 
was organized about 1685, and from its 
territory have been taken Monroe, Madi- 
son, and Sayreville townships. One of 
the earliest settlers was Lazarus Wil- 
murt. Clay pits and potteries are ope- 
rated at different points, but the progress 
of the township has depended largely 
upon the growth and prosperity of the 
village of South Ambo}', which, in 1806, 
contained only three houses, and the old 
Rattoone tavern was one of them. The 
growth of South Amboy village com- 
menced in 1806, when Samuel Gordon, 
Sr., established a line of sloops between 
the village and New York, and placed 
a hue of stages on the road between 
South Amboy and Bordentown. Daniel 
Wilmurt the next j'ear bought a half 
interest in Gordon's hotel property, that 
was owned by the Herberts, Avhich he 
afterwards sold to Gordon, and then 
started an opposition hotel and sloop and 
stage lines. The railroad came in 1833, 
and twenty years later building loans 
were formed, and were the factors of the 
present substantial progress of South 
Amboy, which is now an important rail- 



Historical Sketch. 



31 



way centre and the leading coal-shipping 
port in New Jersey. The earliest school 
in the township, of which there is any 
account, was opened in the old Union 
chapel in 1841, and the present public 
schools compare favorably with those of 
any other township in the county. 

Raritan Township. — This township was 
formed from parts of Woodbridge and 
Piscataway townships, March 17, 1870. 
Of the early settlers, were the Fitz-Ran- 
dolph and Stelle families, and John Mol- 
leson, Robert Webster, Henry Lang- 
staff, Hopewell Hull, Benjamin Hull and 
Samuel Walker. Very fine fire-clay beds 
are in the township, and have been mined 
for several years. A copper mine near 
the site of Menlo Park was discovered 
in 1784, and worked for but a few years. 
About 1880, Thomas A. Edison cleaned 
the mine out and commenced working it 
to procure copper for his factory. The 
villages of Raritan township are : Bon- 
hamton, named for Nicholas Bonhamton, 
who settled there in 1682; Piscataway, 
dating back to 1668 ; Metuchen, named 
for the Indian chief Metuchen, and 
founded before 1 701 ; Menlo Park, founded 
by the celebrated Thomas A. Edison, 
who has his great factory there; and 
Pord's Corners, New Durham, New Dover 
and Stelton. Schools were established 
early, the Piscataway town school-house 
being built in 1695, and since then the 
educational interests of the township 
have kept pace with those of the adjoin- 
ing townships. 

Sayreville Township. — Sayreville town- 
ship was formed from South Amboy, 
April 6, 1876. Lands were taken up as 
early as 1683 in this township, yet local 
writers place the first settlement as being 



made in 1770, and name Elijah Disbrow 
as one of the earliest settlers. Extensive 
clay and sand beds abound, and quite a 
number of clay pits and sand banks have 
been opened. The villages of Sayreville 
township are : Sayreville (once Rounda- 
bout), named for James R. Sayre, Jr., 
and growing up under the influence of 
an extensive brick industry carried on 
there ; Burt's Creek, famous for George 
Such's great green-houses ; and Mechan- 
icsville. Nothing definite is on record 
of the early schools, and the township 
now contains two school districts. 

Cranbury Township. — This township was 
formed from South Brunswick and Mon- 
roe townships, March 7, 1872, and was 
named from Cranbury brook. Thomas 
Grubbs was one of the early settlers, and 
built a grist-mill before 1741, a Presby- 
terian congregation being organized prior 
to 1739. Prominent members of this 
congregation were : Coert Van Voorhees, 
Thomas Storey, James Rochead, Nicho- 
las Stevens, Peter Perrine, John Brown 
and William Magee. The leading in- 
dustrial establishments of the township 
are : the Bergen carriage and wagon fac- 
tory, the American steam coffee and spice 
mills, and the Cranbury shirt factories. 
The villages are : Cranbury, taking its 
name from Cranbury brook, and founded 
prior to the Revolutionary war; Cran- 
bury Station, on the Camden and Amboy 
division of the Pennsylvania railroad ; 
and Plainsboro, founded about 1800. The 
first schools in the township were kept 
at Cranbury village, and the earliest re- 
membered teachers were John Campbell, 
in 1805, and John Van Kirk, in 1805. 
The township now has five well-sup- 
ported public schools. 



OHAPTEE IX. 



BENCH AND BAR OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY. 




'N the 19th of June, 1683, 
the first county court of 
Middlesex, was held at 
Piscataway. The second 
county court was held at 
Woodbi'idge, Sept. 18, 
1683, and thereafter was 
held alternately at Pis- 
cataway and Woodbridge, until June 28. 
1688, when a session was held for the 
first time at Perth Amboy, and thereafter 
until 1699 the courts were held altern- 
ately at Woodbridge, Piscataway and 
Amboy. From 1708 and long after, 
courts were held at Amboy onl3^ The 
first court-house and jail was built at 
Perth Amboy between the j^ears 1717 
and 1720. The courts were then trans- 
ferred to New Brunswick in January, 
1778, and mention is made in July of 
the same year of a court-house there, 
which' was the British barrack building. 
It was a stone structure, sixty by one 
hundred and forty feet, and answered as 
court-house and jail until 1796, when it 
Avas burned. A portion of the stones 
were taken the next year to build a jail 
on Paterson sti'eet. 

The first record we have of the names 
of counselloi's being called in the courts 
of this county was at the General Quar- 
ter Sessions of the Peace, held at Perth 
Amboy, in Sept., 1708. They may have 
practiced at an earlier date even than this, 
32 



perhaps, beginning soon after the opening 
of the courts in the reign of Queen Anne, 
but the records being missing from the 
close of the proprietary government till 
the year 1708, there are no means of as- 
certaining whether there were law3'ers or 
not in the courts prior to the latter year. 
Among those that appeared after this 
date, were Francis Sites, John Lofton, 
Corse Froam (probably Vroom), and An- 
drew Gordon. 

From 1741 to the commencement of 
the Revolution we find the following 
lawyers practicing in the courts of the 
county: — Philip Kearney, 1741; John 
Smyth, 1741; Francis Costigin, Richard 
Williams, John Price, John Lawrence, 
and Messrs. Rosevelt and Patrick McEw- 
ers, 1741-42; Cortland Skinner, Lewis 
Morris and David Ogden, 1742 ; Messrs. 
Lyne, Lurtin and Anthony White, 1743; 
Barnardus Lagrange, 1745 ; Elisha Park- 
er, 1746 ; Messrs. Lewis M. Ashfield and 
Coxe, 1748: Peter Kimble and Anthony 
Waters, 1749; Messrs. Kelley, William 
Pidgeon, R. Lawrence, Jacob De Hart, 
Abraham Cottman, from 1750 to 1753 ; 
Thomas Kennedy, 1754 ; Richard Stock- 
ton, 1755 ; James Hude, Jr., 1760 ; Cor- 
nelius Low, 1760; William Thompson, 
Jonathan De Deare, G. Ross, Elias Bou- 
dinot, Ravand Kearney, 1762-63; Jas- 
per Smith, Ephriam Anderson, James 
Graham, Mr. Wardell, 1763-64. 



Historical Sketch. 



33 



Judges of the Common Pleas since 1683. 

— Samuel Dennis, John Palmer, 1683 ; 
Samuel Dennis, 1684-87 ; Samuel Win- 
der, 1688; Andrew Hamilton, 1688-93; 
John Imians, 1693-97 ; John Boyce, 
1697; Samuel Dennis, 1698-99; Peter 
Sonmans, 1708-9 ; Thomas Farmar, 1710 ; 
Elisha Parker, 1711-14; Adam Hude, 
1715-20; Michael Veghte, 1718; Wil- 
liam Eyer, 1719 ; Robert Hude, James 
Thompson, Henry Freeman, Ezekiel 
Bloomfield, Benjamin Hall, Samuel 
Nevil, James Hude, John Heard, James 
Smith, Jeremiah Field, Richard Cutter, 
1741; Pontius Steele, 1742; Stephen 
Warne, 1743; John Nevill, Nicholas 
Everson, Runie Runyon, Thomas Gach, 
1746 ; William Hutchinson, 1747 ; . Wil- 
liam Cheesman, Jedediah Higgins, 1748 ; 
James Nelson, Josiah Davidson, John 
Batley, 1749 ; Abraham Lane, Jonathan 
Frazee, 1751; William Heard, 1754; 
Nehemiah Dunham, William Crawford, 
1760; James Parker, Thomas Walker, 
1761; Samuel Barren, 1762; Evert Van 
Wickle, Esq., 1796-1803; Jonathan 
Combs, 1796-1801; Ercuries Beatty, 
Jonathan Bloomfield, 1796 ; Ezekiel 
Smith, 1797; Elijah Philips, 1798; 
Henry Marsh, Esq., Thomas Stelle, Sam- 
uel Randolph, 1799 ; John Rattoone, 
Daniel Agnew, John Dey, Ichabod Pot- 
ter, 1801 ; Benjamin Lindsay, John 
James, 1803; Samuel Randolph, Na- 
thaniel Hunt, Thomas Hill, 1804 ; An- 
drew Rowan, Thomas Hance, Henry 
Freeman, William Tindell, Asa Runyon, 
David Durham, 1806; Ichabod Potter, 
John Rattoone, John F. Randolph, John 
L. Anderson, 1807 ; John Lewis, Robert 
McChesney, Jacob Van Wickle, 1808; 
John James, Samuel F. Randolph, 1809 ; 
William Tindell, Asa Runyon, Joseph 
McChesney, Andrew Rowan, Henry Free- 



man, Thomas Hance, Benjamin Mundy, 
John Anhalt, Ephraim Harriott, 1811 ; 
John Vhit, George Boice, Jr., Andrew 
Elston, Nathaniel Hunt, 1812; David 
Chambers, Jacob Van Wickle, Robert 
McChesney, John James, 1813 ; John 
Fitz Randolph, 1814 ; William Tindell, 
Robert Arnold, John Smith, 1815; Asa 
Runyon, Joseph McChesney, Thomas 
Hance, Benjamin Mundy, 1816 ; George 
Boice, 1817 ; Nathaniel Hunt, Robert 
McChesney, 1818 ; John N. Simpson, 
1819 ; John Gillman, John Smith, James 
Harriott, Joseph McChesney, 1820 ; Ben- 
jamin Mundy, N. Booream, Jr., Bedford 
Job, Jacob Van Wickle, 1821; Nathaniel 
Hunt, 1822; R. McChesney, 1823; Sam- 
uel Stelle, John Gillman, 1824; John M. 
Cheney, James Harriott, Ichabod Potter, 
1825 ; Jacob Van Wickle, Joseph Ford, 
N. Booream, Thomas Hance, William B. 
Manning, 1826; Robert McChesney, 
1828; N. Booream, John B. Mount, 
James Harriott, John S. Van Dyke, 1829; 
Simeon Mundy, Joseph McChesney, Wil- 
liam B. Manning, Ichabod Potter, 1830 ; 
Joseph Ford, Thomas Hance, 1831; John 
Van Wickle, 1832; Peter P. Runyon, 
Simeon Mundy, M. Mundy, 1833; A. 
W. Brown, William B. Manning, James 
Harriott, Samuel C. Johnes, 1834 ; Jared 
I. Dunn, John S. Van Dyke, Ichabod 
Potter, Joseph McChesney, 1835; F. 
Hardenburgh, Joseph Ford, John La 
Tourrette, C. M. Campbell, John Perrine, 
Jr., 1837; Jonathan Booream, Jacob 
Van Wickle, D. W. Vail, 1838; Peter 
Duncan, John B. Mount, Edgar Free- 
man, 1837; Peter P. Runyon, Simeon 
Mundy, Peter P. Measserell, 1838 ; Isaac 
Story, A. D. Titsworth, 1839; Joseph 
Ford, Ichabod Potter, 1840; Charles 
Abrahams, 1841 ; Ellis I. Thompson, 
John La Tourrette, Edgar Freeman, 



34 



Historical Sketch. 



Haley Fisk, John Perrine, Jr., Peter 
Duncan, 1842 ; Jonathan Booream, 
Thomas Potts, Peter D. Messerell, Sim- 
eon Mundy, Peter P. Runyon, D. Fitz 
Randolph, Jacob Van Wickle, Bergan 
Scott, James Harriott, James Conover, 
Andrew Agnew, Joseph McChesney, 
Matthias Brown, Alanson Newton, 1843; 
John S. Cruser, M. Mundy, F. Stults, 
Peter Cortelyou, Asher Martin, S. G. 
Delth, James N. Warn, Francis Huffman, 
John Van Breeke, 1844 ; John Perrine, 
1846; A. D. Titsworth, 1847; Edgar 
Freeman, 1848; D. Fitz Randolph, 1849; 
Peter D. Runyon, 1850; Alanson New- 
ton, 1851 ; A. P. Droast, 1852 ; Bethel 
Ward, 1853; James C. Goble, 1854; 
Abram P. Punost, 1857 ; Joel B. Laing, 
1858 ; John Perrine, 1859 ; A. P. Speere, 
Dayton Decker, 1862 ; Charles T. Cowen- 
hoven, H. H. Brown, 1869 ; Elihu Cook, 
1872; A. D. Brown, 1873; Woodbridge 
Strong, Andrew J. Disbrow, 1874 ; 
Charles S. Scott, 1877 ; Charles F. New- ' 
ton, 1878; Andrew K. Cogswell, 1879- 
82; Chas. T. Cowenhoven, 1885; J. Kear- 
ney Rice, 1890 ; Woodbridge Strong, 1896. 
Members of the Bar since 1800. — Joseph 
Warren Scott, 1801-1804 ; Jacob R. Har- 
denburg, 1805 ; Cornelius L. Harden- 
burg, 1812; John S. Nevius, 1819; Lit^ 
tleton Kirkpatrick, 1821 ; John S. Blau- 
velt, 1825; George Richmond, 1825; 
William H. Leupp, 1827 ; George P. Mol- 
leson, 1828; Robert Adrain, Jr., 1830; 
Benson Milledoler, 1830; George H. 
Vroom, 1833 ; Henry V. Speer, 1834 ; 
John Van Dyke, 1836 ; Jolm C. Elmdorf, 
1837; Edward S. Vail, 1842; Abraham 
V. Schenck, 1843; John G. McDowell, 
1838; Charles S. Scott, 1844; Warren- 
burg, 1848; William Hartough, 1849; 
Alexander C. Stark, 1850; Benjamin R. 
W. Strong, 1852; George C. Ludlow, 



1853; George R. Dutton, 1857; J. Elmer 
Stout, 1857; Charles I. Rutgers, 1866 
Charles Morgan Herbert, 1860 ; Charles 
Morgan, 1860; Joseph J. Ely, 1860 
Herbert Stout, 1861 ; Theodore Strong 
Jr., 1861 ; J. Randolph Appleby, 1862 
Henry L. Van Dyke, 1862 ; Samuel M 
Schenck, 1862; Jonathan Dixon, Jr. 
1862-65; Oliver E. Gordon, 1864-67 
Chas. T. Cowenhoven, 1865 ; Jas. H. Van 
Cleef, 1867; Beasley Mercer, Jr., 1865 
Edward Wood,Wm. Disborough, Alpheus 
Freman, George W. Atherton, George 
Berdiue, 1875; Daniel B. Boice, 1870- 
73; A. K. Cogswell, 1870-75; J. V. 
DeMott, 1877 ; Silas D. Grimsted, 1872 ; 
Howard McSherry, James Nielson, 1871- 
74 ; William Reiley, Jr., 1869 ; Charles 
H. Runyon, 1876 ; J. Kearney Rice, 
1876; William Stoddard, 1877 ; David 

A. Storer, 1877; Edward W. Strong, 
1875; Allen H. Strong, 1877; Willard 
P. Voorhees, 1874 ; M. Bedell Vail, 1879 ; 
H. Brewster Willis, 1881 ; J. W. Beek- 
man, 1875-78; J. M. Chapman, 1846; 
William Patterson, 1838; Ephraim Cut- 
ter, 1877; Charles Morgan, 1860; A. S. 
Cloke, 1862; John S. Voorhees, Theodore 
Booream, Fred. Weigle, John E. Elraen- 
dorf, Freeman Woodbridge, Chas. Herbert, 
Chas. C. Hommann, Adrian Lyon, Henry 

B. Cook, J. P. Keenahan, Ed. W. Hicks. 
Surrogates. — J. Phineas Manning, 1804 ; 

John Heard, 1806-26 ; Chai-les Carson, 
1826; David Menenan, 1826-31; Little- 
ton Kirkpatrick, 1831-36; James C. 
Kabriskle, 1836-41 ; Josiah Ford, 1841- 
46; James C. McDowell, 1846-51; 
Theophilus M. Holcombs, 1851-64; 
Robert Adrain, 1864-66 ; William Dun- 
ham, 1866-67 ; F. Shurerman Holcombs, 
1867-72 ; A^illiam Reiley, Jr., 1872-82 ; 
Benjamin F. Howell, 1882-92 ; Leonard 
Freeman, 1892. 



CHAPTEE X. 



THE MEDICAL PROFESSION — EARLY PHYSICIANS — LATER PHYSICIANS. 




[N the first Tuesday of May, 
1816, the following physicians 
and surgeons of the county 
met at New Brunswick and 
organized " The Medical So- 
ciety of the State of New Jer- 
sey :" Drs. J. Van Cleve, Lewis 
Dunham, Augustus R. Tayloi", Jacob 
Dunham, Enoch Wilson, Nathaniel Man- 
ning, Ralph P. Lott, Ephraim Smith, 
James Elmdorf, Charles Pierson, Ferdi- 
nand Schenck, Joseph Quinbj^, William 
D. McKissack, Matthias Freeman, John 
Reynolds, Samuel Foreman and Wil- 
liam McKissack. Of this meeting, 
Dr. John Van Cleve was unanimously 
elected chairman, and William McKis- 
sack secretary, and the following were 
named as managers : Drs. Augustus R. 
Taylor, Lewis Dunham, John Van Cleve, 
Jacob Dunham, Nicholas Belleville, Wil- 
liam McKissack, Nathaniel Manning, 
Enoch Wilson, Charles Smith, Peter J. 
Stryker, Matthias Freeman, Ralph P. 
Lott, Moses Scott, Charles Pierson and 
Ephraim Smith. 

It was resolved that- county or dis- 
trict societies be appointed in the coun- 
ties of Middlesex, Somerset, Monmouth, 
Essex and Morris. The following phy- 
sicians were appointed : Lewis Dunham, 
Joseph Dunham, Enoch Wilson, Matthias 
Freeman, Charles Smith, Nathaniel Man- 
ning, Ralph P. Lott and John Van Cleve. 



They were to hold their first meeting on 
the second Tuesday of June next, at ten 
o'clock A. M., at New Brunswick. The 
next at the time and place specified, and 
organized the first medical society of the 
county. Dr. Charles Smith was elected 
president, Matthias Freeman, vice-presi- 
dent; Jacob Dunham, treasurer, and 
John Van Cleve, secretary. A committee 
appointed for the purpose reported a set 
of by-laws, which were adopted, and the 
society was on a firm foundation. Among 
the first presidents of the society, we 
note the following : Charles Smith, Mat- 
thias Freeman, Nathaniel Manning, Ja- 
cob Dunham, William Van Deursen, 
Josiah B. Andrews and Charles Smith. 
Others followed, and the society flourished 
and did much towards building up the 
profession of medicine in the county until 
1846, when it ceased as an organization. 
In 1857 it was, however, reorganized. 
An account of this reorganization, taken 
from the minutes, is appended : " New 
Brunswick, Jan. 21, 1857. A meeting 
of physicians of Middlesex county hav- 

^ ing been called for the purpose of organ- 
izing a medical society. Dr. Augustus F. 
Taylor was appointed chairman, and Dr. 

j Henry R. Baldwin secretary. It was 
unanimously resolved that we, the phy- 

, sicians of Middlesex county, do hereby 

i organize the ' District Medical Society of 
this county and adopt its constitution 

35 



36 



HisTORicAi, Sketch. 



and b3"-laws.' " A committee was ap- 
pointed to meet the State Medical Societj^ 
at Trenton. Among the first presidents 
of the reorganized society were the fol- 
lowing : Augustus F. Taylor, Clifford 
Morrough, J. T. B. Skillman, H. M Stone 
and Henry R. Baldwin. 

Early Physicians. — Henry Greenland, 
Moses Bloomfield, John Cochran, Edward 
Carroll, Henry Drake, Lewis Dunham, 
Jacob Dunham, Melancthon Freeman, 
Isaac Harris, Adam Hay, John John- 
stone, Lewis Johnstone, John Lawrence, 
Nehemiah Ludlon, Nathaniel Manning, 
Rev. Robert McKane, Alexander Ross, 
Moses Scott, Hezekiah Stiles, Augustus 
F. Taylor, Augustus Fitz Randolph 
Taylor, John Van Harlingen, Cornelius 
Johnson, Henry Dubois Lefferts, Ralph 
P. Lott, Selah Gulick, Henry B. Poole, 
Chas. McKnight Smith, E. Fitz Randolph 
Smith, John T. B. Skillman, William 
Van Deursen, Samuel Abernethy. 

Later Pfiysicians. — Charles Smith, Mat- 
thias Freeman, Nathaniel Manning, 
Jacob Dunham, William Van Deursen, 
Josiah B. Andrews, Charles Smith, Jacob 
Dunham, Lewis A. Hall, J. T. B. Skill- 
man, James Clark, F. R. Smith, Charles 
Smith, Lewis Drake, F. R. Smith, Samuel 
Abernethy, Ellis B. Freeman, John H. 
Van Deursen, A. D. Newell, Ellis B. 
Freeman, Augustus F. Taylor, Henry R. 
Baldwin, Clifibrd Morrogh, H. M. Stone, 



Ezra M. Hunt, A. Fregernowan, Charles 
Dunham, Jr., Charles H. Voorhees, S. St. 
John Smith, D. C. English, Rush Van 
Dyke, C. M. Slack, W. E. Mattison, 
Nicholas Williamson, T. T. Deven, P. A. 
Shannon, C. H. Andrews, J. W. Rice, 
John Van Cleve, L. F. Baker, J. S. Mar- 
tin, S. E. Freeman, George W. Stout, 
J. W. Meeker, David Stephens, George 
G. Clark, John A. Poole, Garrett P. Voor- 
hees, F. R. Smith, Henry M. Stone, J. C. 
Thompson, Joseph S. Martin, F. S. Bar- 
barin, Chas. Dunham, Jr., T. T. Deven, 
Solomon Andrews, George McLean, 
Lewis Drake, Ellis B. Freeman, William 
Forman, H. D. B. Leflferty, S. Abernethy, 
G. J. Janeway, J. 0. Thompson, H. M. 
Stone, J. S. Martin, Ezra M. Hunt, R. I. 
Benjamin, J. J. Demotte, C. H. Voorhees, 
J. W. Meeker, John Helme, A. P. Knap- 
pen, D. C. English, S. V. D. Clark, R. 
Vandyke, H. T. Pierce, William H. Wil- 
son, C. M. Slack, T. L. Janeway, H. B. 
Garner, J. B. Wainwright, Clifford Steele, 
Dr. Rush, J. F. M. Donahoe, John S. 
Van Marter, G. T. Applegate, T. V. 
Meacham, Edgard Carroll, Samuel Long, 
Henry Baldwin, John G. Wilson, F. M. 
Brace, S. D. Blackwell, J. E. Riva, R. 0. 
B. Burnett, Caroline Marsh, William 
Knight, I. T. Spencer, Da3ton E. Decker, 
S. P. Harned, J. D. Ten Eyck, J. How- 
ard Cooper. 



CHAPTEE XI. 



CHURCHES. 




E give the following list 
of churches with the 
name of the city or 
township in whichthey 
are located, and the 
year of their organiza- 
tion since 1669 : 

Presbyterian. — Wood- 
bridge, 1669 ; First New Brunswick, 
1726 ; First Cranbury, 1739 ; Metuchen 
at Earitan, prior to 1790; Second Cran- 
bury, 1838 ; Jamesburg, Monroe, 1854 ; 
First South Amboy, at South Aniboy, 
1864; Dayton at South New Brunswick, 
1869 ; Piscataway at Piscataway, 1870. 
Baptist. — Stelton at Raritan, 1689 ; 
Hightstown at Cranbury, 1749 ; First 
New Brunswick at New Brunswick, 
prior to 1783 ; New Brooklyn at Piscata- 
way, 1792 ; Perth Amboy at Perth Am- 
boy, 1818 ; Washington at East Bruns- 
wick, about 1843; George's Road at North 
Brunswick, 1843; Independent Bethel 
at East Brunswick, 1844; Piscataway at 
Piscataway, 1852 ; First South Ambo}^ 
at South Amboy, 1871 ; Second New 
Brunswick at New Brunswick, 1872; 
New Brunswick (colored) at New Bruns- 
wick, 1876. 

Episcopalian. — St. Peter's, Perth Am- 
boy, 1698 ; Trinity, Woodbridge, 1711 ; 
St. James', Raritan, before 1717 ; Christ, 
New Brunswick, before 1744; St. Peter's 
East Brunswick, 1757; Christ, South 



Amboy, 1853; St. John's (Evangelical), 
New Brunswick, 1860; Holy Trinity, 
Sayreville, 1860 ; Doan Memorial Chapel, 
South Amboy, 1866 ; St. Luke's, Raritan, 
1866; Holy Innocent, Piscataway, 1872; 
Holy Cross, Perth Amboy, 1878. 

Friends. — Woodbridge at Woodbridge, 
.1686-1769; Raritan at Raritan, 1731. 

Seventh Day Baptist. — Piscataway at 
Piscataway, 1705. 

Reformed Dutch. — First New Brunswick, 
New Brunswick, 1717 ; Spottswood, East 
Brunswick, 1821; Third New Bruns- 
wick, 1851 ; First Metuchen, Raritan, 
1857; St. Paul's, East Brunswick, 1872. 

0/d Church. — Plainsboro', South Bruns- 
wick, 1779. 

Methodist Episcopal. — Shiloh at New 
Brunswick, 1799 ; Woodbridge at Wood- 
bridge, before 1820 ; Bethel, South Bruns- 
wick, 1812 ; Perth Amboy at Perth Am- 
boy, 1813; Mount Zion (colored), New 
Brunswick, 1827 ; South Amboy at South 
Amboy, 1832 ; Sayreville at Sayreville, 
before 1842; Milltown, North Bruns- 
wick, 1844 ; Cranbury at Cranbury, 1847; 
Madison at Madison, before 1850 ; New 
Dover, Raritan, before 1850; Washing- 
ton, East New Brunswick, before 1860 ; 
Raritan, New Brunswick, 1853 ; Simp- 
son, East Brunswick, 1860 ; St. James, 
New Brunswick, 1860 ; Centenary, Rari- 
tan, 1866; Newtown, Piscataway, 1866; 
Spottswood, East New Brunswick, 1873. 

37 



38 



Historical Sketch. 



Catholic. — St. Peter's, New Brunswick, 
before 1825 ; , Perth Amboy, be- 
fore 1844 ; St. Mary's, South Amboy, be- 
fore 1849; St. John the Baptist, New 
Bi'unswick, 1865 ; St. James the Minor, 
Woodbridge, before 1867; St. Francis, 
Raritan, 1873; St. John the Evangelist, 
Piscataway, before 1880. 

Jewish. — Anshe Emet Synagogue, New 
Brunswick, 1861. 



Methodist Protestant. — South Amboy at 
South Amboy, 1866 ; Fresh Ponds, South 
Brunswick, 1880. 

Lutheran. — Perth Amboy at Perth Am- 
boy, 1869; Emanuel, New Brunswick, 
1878. 

Danish Methodist. — Perth Amboy at 
Perth Amboy, 1868 ; St. Stephens, Perth 
Amboy, 1871. 



HiSTOEiCAL Sketch 



o^ 



Monmouth County, IsTew Jersey. 



OHAPTEE I. 



GEOGRAPHY — TOPOGRAPHY — GEOLOGY. 




' RREGULAR in shape and 
most northern of the sea- 
board counties of New 
Jersey is Monmouth coun- 
ty, which is bounded on 
the north by Raritan bay; 
on the east by the Atlan- 
tic ocean ; on the south 
by Ocean county ; on the south-west by 
Burlington county, and on the north-west 
by Mercer and Middlesex counties. It 
is situated between seventy-three degrees 
and fifty-five minutes and seventy-four 
degrees and thirty-five minutes west 
longitude from Greenwich, England ; and 
forty degrees and three minutes and forty 
degrees and thirty minutes north lati- 
tude. The geographical centre of the 
county is northeast of Freehold and near 
the boundary line of Atlantic township, 
in whose central part it is supposed to be 
the centre of population. 

Topography. — The county is marked by 
a variety of surface ; hills from three to 



four hundred feet in height occupy the 
northern part, while a high-rolling up- 
land constitutes the south-westei'n part; 
a vast area of barren land called the 
" Pines " region comprises the south- 
western part. Isolated hills are in vari- 
ous elevated parts of the county. 

The drainage of Monmouth county is 
principally to the east and into the At- 
lantic ocean by the Navesink, Shrews- 
bury, Shark and Manasquan rivers and 
their tributaries, while in the southwest 
the Metedeconk river has its headwaters, 
and in the south-west, west and north are 
several creeks, that flow respectively 
into the Delaware river, the Millstone 
river and Raritan and Sandy Hook bays. 
Professor Cook says these rivers •' have 
no apparent connection with the geologi- 
cal structure of the country," and are 
merely channels worn in the surface and 
" following lines of most rapid descent to 
the tide-water." Many of these rivers 
for some distance from their mouths are 

39 



40 



Historical Sketch. 



" broad and lake-like sheets of navigable 
water." 

Geology. — Monmouth county, except- 
ing a small area in its south-eastern part, 
lies in the cretaceous formation, which in 
New Jersey consists of a series of strata 
having a south-east dip, and " lying 
smooth and parallel like the leaves of a 
book." The lowest strata of the creta- 
ceous formation in Monmouth county 
is the plastic clays that have their out- 
ci'op chiefly north-west of the county. 
The next strata, the clay marls, have 
their outcrop along the north-western 
border-line of the county. The lower 
marl-bed is a stratum of green sand marl, 
well exposed in Middletown, Marlboro', 
Holmdel, Freehold and other townships, 
and its extensive and profitable use in 
farming has led to its development at 
many places in the county. The middle 
marl-bed extends as a belt of varying 
width from Long Branch to the south 
corner of Upper Freehold township, the 
upper marl-bed or highest strata consist- 
ing of green sand and separated from the 
middle marl-bed by a layer of yellow 
sand, and extends in a belt of regular 
width across the south-eastern part of the 
county. 

The extreme south-eastern part of the 
county is the Tertiary formation. 

To give a better idea of the geological 
structure of Monmouth county, we give 
the following outline of the five geologi- 
cal ages : 



Groups of Rocks. 
IV. Neozoic (new life). 



III. Mesozoic (middle life). 



Systems of Sxrata. 

2. Quarternary. 

1. Tertiary. 

3. Cretaceous. 

2. Jurassic. 

1. Triassic. 

II. Palsezoic (ancient life). 5. Carboniferous. 

4. Devonian. 

3. Upper Silurian. 

2. Lower Silurian. 

1. Cambrian. 

2. Huronian. 
1. Laurentian. 



I. Arcbsean (beginning). 



When used as divisions of time, group 
names designate eras of time and system 
names designate geological ages. 

Pre-historic time has been divided by 
De Mortillet mto three ages: stone, bronze 
and iron, and the first or stone age em- 
braces three periods : 

1. Etholithic, or fired stone. 

2. Palaeolithic, or chipped stone. 

3. Neolithic, or polished stone. 

The archasology of Monmouth county 
lies wholly within the age of stone as con- 
fined to the palaeolithic and molithic 
periods, and the art products of its ab- 
oi'iginal inhabitants are represented by 
articles in stone, clay, bone and shell, 
which are mute witnesses of a period of 
human existence back of the scope of 
written records, and supply a means of 
tracing the pre-historic man in his con- 
quests over nature along the northern 
New Jersey sea-coast until the time when 
history takes up the thread of his career in 
a race with tradition, but no civilization. 



CHAPTER II. 



INDIAN OCCUPATION — DUTCH DISCOVERY — MONMOUTH PATENT. 




F the Indian occupation of 
Monmouth county, after 
the coming of the white 
man, but httle can be 
learned at this late date, 
as the early historians 
of New Jersey failed to 
preserve much knowl- 
edge of camp and trail, and of hunting- 
ground and village, while tradition has 
not supplied what history neglected. 
Monmouth county was occupied by sev- 
eral tribes of the Turtle and Tui'key 
branches of the Delaware nation. Of 
these tribes were the Assanpinks, Matas, 
Shackamaxons, Chichequaas, Raritans, 
Nanticokes, and Tutelos ; but the Rari- 
tans were by far the most numerous in 
the county, and their chiefs or leaders 
were called " the Raritan Kings." South- 
ern and other Indians from a distance 
came to the sea-shore to get oysters, 
clams, sea-fish, fowls, and shells for the 
mamxfacture of wampum or Indian money, 
that was circulated as far west as the 
Rocky Mountains. These tribes, with 
the remainder of the Delaware nation, 
were tenants-at-will of the noted Huron- 
Iroquois, or Six Nations, of central New 
York. Scarcity of game had driven the 
Raritan Indians to the sea-coast at the 
time when white settlements were com- 
menced in the county. 

There were two main Indian paths 
and quite a number of villages in Mon- 
mouth county. The Minisink path came 



from Minisink on the upper Delaware? 
crossed the Raritan three miles above its 
mouth, and ran by Middletown and Clay 
Pit creek to the mouth of the Navesink 
river. The other path was known as 
the Burlington path. It came by two 
branches to Crosswicks, passing through 
the southwestern townships to Freehold, 
and from thence passed to Middletown, 
where it united with the Minisink path. 
A branch left the Burlington path below 
Freehold and ran to Long Branch, while 
several small paths, whose names are not 
preserved, led to different places on tide- 
water. There were several small Indian 
towns or villages in the county, of which 
the name of one has been preserved, 
while all other sites remain unknown. 
Seapeckameck Indian town, the one pre- 
served in name only from oblivion, was 
mentioned in county records in 1676, but 
no reference was given of its location. 

The New Jersey authorities always re- 
quired the fair purchase of the Indian 
title before settlement was made, and by 
1758 the Indians had sold all the lands 
in the county, reserving only some hunt- 
ing and fishing privileges, which were 
bought in 1832 by the New Jersey legis- 
lature for two thousand dollars from 
forty Indians in Wisconsin, who were 
the only descendants living of all Rari- 
tans in Monmouth county. Among the 
last Indians in the county were Indian 
Peter and Queen Bathsheba, the latter of, 
whom was here as late as 1802, when 

41 



42 



Historical Sketch. 



the New Jersey Indians were removed to 
New York. 

Dutch Z?/scoi'e/'/.— Although Cabot sailed 
alons; the sea-coast line of Monmouth 
county in 1497, and Verrazani in the ! 
"Dolphin" passed in sight of the shore 1 
in 1524, yet it remained for Henry Hud- 
son in the "Half Moon," on Sept. 5, 
1609, to land a boat crew and become 

' i 

the first real discoverer of the county. 
Three days previous, his underchipper, 
Robert Juet, on sight of the Navesink 
highlands, wrote in the log-book : " This 
is very good land to fall in with, and a 
pleasant land to see ; " and a day later, 
John Colman was slain in a fight with 
Indians, and his remains interred at a 
place they named Colman's Point, in 
honor of his memory. By the virtue of 
Hudson's discovery, the Dutch claimed 
the territory of New Jersey as a part of 
New Netherlands, but never made any 
settlement in Monmouth county, only 
coming there to trade with the Indians. 

The right of the Dutch to New Jer- 
sey was contested by the English, who 
made their first attempt to take posses- 
sion, on June 21, 1634, when the " Pro- 
vince of New Albion," comprising New i 
Jersey, and parts of New York, Penn- 
sylvania, Delaware and Maryland, were ! 
granted to Sir Edmund Ployden on con- 
dition that he settled three thousand able 
trained men in said province. Ployden 
was made Lord Palatine, with power to 
grant manors and confer titles, a scheme 
of government resembling the " Grand 
Model " of the Carolinas. Ployden, in 
1640, came to New Jersey and built a 
block-house called Fort Erewomee, at the 
mouth of Salem creek on the Delaware 
river, but his infant colony, although re- 
inforced by some New Haven men, was 
broken up and scattered by the Dutch in 



1642. Ployden was unable to effect any 
settlements, and New Albion met its fate 
at Fort Erewomee, on the " great manor 
of Watcessit," the residence of the Lord 
Palatine. 

Monmouth Patent. — Before the conquest 
of New Netherlands, English residents 
at Gravesend, L. I., and Newport, R. I., 
in Dec, 1663, had visited the territory of 
the county, and commenced negotiations 
with the Indians for the purchase of 
land. The Dutch interfered, and the 
matter rested until after the English 
conquest, when, on April 8, 1665, Gov- 
ernor Richard Nicolls granted the Mon- 
mouth patent, embracing all the territory 
of the present county of Monmouth, ex- 
cept Upper Freehold and a part of Mill- 
stone township, besides parts of Ocean 
and Middlesex counties, to William 
Goulding, Samuel Spicer, Richard Gib- 
bons, Richard Stout, James Grover, John 
Bown, John Tilton, Nathaniel Silvester, 
William Reape, Walter Clark, Nicholas 
Davies and Obadiah Holmes, who were 
English, Quaker and Baptist residents of 
Long Island and New England. These 
patentees, by the terms of the patent, 
were to defend their lands against all 
enemies, and were to " have free liberty 
of conscience without any molestation or 
disturbance whatsoever in their way of 
worship." The patentees were required 
to purchase the land from the Indian 
sachems, and had purchased three necks 
of land on the sea-coast from Popomora 
and other Indian sachems, who were 
brought to the hall of the old State 
House in New York city, to signify their 
assent to the purchase before Governor 
Nicolls would sign the patent. " This 
patent granting," Salter says, " was a 
memorable scene, well worthy of the 
efforts of a painter." 



OHAPTEE III. 



COUNTY FORMATION — ENGLISH CONQUEST — ENGLISH, SCOTCH AND DUTCH 

SETTLEMENTS. 




HE settlements of Middle- 
town and Shrewsbury 
had grown to such a size 
that on Nov. 13, 1875, 
they were combined and 
temporarily made a 
county for judicial pur- 
poses, and given the 
name of Nevasink, although in some 
instances it was designated as the county 
of Middletown. 

Eight years later, in March, 1783, 
Monmouth county was erected as one of 
the four original counties of New Jersey, 
the other three being Bergen, Essex, and 
Middlesex. Monmouth county was so 
named at the request of Col. Lewis Mor- 
ris, then the most influential citizen within 
its boundaries, and who had come from 
Monmouthshire, a rich and beautiful 
county in the west of England. The 
boundaries of Monmouth county, as stated 
in 1783, enclosed a large area of terri- 
tory, but were very vague. Subsequent 
acts of the legislature, passed in 1709, 
1714, and 1822, contained provisions in 
connection with the adjustment of the 
boundary lines. 

In territory Monmouth county has lost 
largely since 1683. A large part of Mon- 
roe township was added to Middlesex 
county in 1844, given back the next year, 
and in 1847 a small triangular piece 
was transferred permanently to Millstone 



township. After this slight addition the 
county remained unchanged in boundary 
lines until 1850, when the southern part, 
containing more than one-half of the total 
area, was set off as Ocean county. 

The creations of townships have been 
as follows, from the three parent town- 
ships of Middletown, Shrewsbury, and 
Freehold, which were erected Oct. 31, 
1693 : Upper Freehold was taken from 
Freehold and ShrcAvsbury prior to 1730. 
In 1749 and 1767, Stafford and Dover 
townships, now a part of Ocean county, 
were taken from Shrewsbury. Howell 
township was carved out of Shrewsbury, 
Feb. 23, 1801 ; Jackson, now in Ocean 
county, was taken from Freehold, Upper 
Freehold, and Dover, in 1844 ; and Plum- 
stead and Union, formed in 1845 and 
1846, are now parts of Ocean county. In 
1848 Marlborough and Manalapan town- 
ships were taken from Middletown, and 
Raritan was set off from Freehold. Three 
years later, in 1851, Wall township was 
taken from Howell ; and in 1857, Mata- 
wan and Holmdel were set off from 
Raritan. 

The next township erected was Lin- 
coln, which was formed in 1867, from 
Ocean, but whose territory was restored 
in 1868, and Lincoln is the lost township 
of the county. The youngest townships 
of Monmouth county are Eatontown and 
Neptune, which were formed from Ocean 

43 



44 



Historical Sketch. 



township, respectively, in the years 1873 
and 1879. 

English Conquest — After the failure of 
Ployclen and his self-instituted order of 
knighthood — " the Albion Knights of the 
Conversion of the Twenty-three Kings " 
— to settle New Jersey, the English made 
no further attempt in that direction, and 
in 1664 won by arms what they had j 
failed to secure by settlement. In Sept., ' 
1664, the Duke of York granted the 
country between the Hudson and the ; 
Delaware to Lord Berkeley and Sir 
George Carteret, after which the country 
was named New Jersey, because he had 
defended the island of Jersey during the 
civil war in England. Cartei'et's share 
of the grant was East Jersey, and in- 
cluded all the territory of Monmouth 
county. 

English, Scotch, and Dutch Settlements. — 
Prior to 1664 a Dutch vessel was stranded 
on Sandy Hook, and a Dutch woman, Pen- 
elope Princess, stayed with her sick hus- 
band while the other passengers started 
by land to New Amsterdam. The sick 
man was killed by the Indians, who left 
the woman for dead, but she recovered 
under the hands of a compassionate In- 
dian, and afterwards became the wife of 
Richard Stout, one of the patentees and 
also one of the earliest settlers. The 
twelve patentees purchased the three 



necks of Nevasink, Namarumsunk, and 
Pootapeck from the Indians, and founded 
English settlements, in 1665, at Middle- 
town, in Nevasink, and Shrewsbury in 
Namarumsunk, which in five years had 
increased to over one hundred families. 

The Scotch in 1682 commenced set- 
tling Freehold township, the northwestern 
part of the county, and founded Matawan 
under the name of New Aberdeen. In 
1685 these refugee Scotch Quakers and 
Scotch presbyterians received an acces- 
sion of persecuted covenanters, and by 
1700 the Scottish settlements had in- 
creased to such an extent in population 
that the Scotch exercised considerable 
power in the county. Their early leaders 
were John Reid, George Keith, Thomas 
Lawrie, and John Barclay, and came into 
the county principally by the way of 
Perth Amboy. 

The third and last element of popula- 
tion, of any size, that came into Mon- 
mouth county, was the Dutch, who came 
about 1690 from the western towns of 
Long Island, and confined their settle- 
ments to no particular section. They 
had splendid farms and large barns, and 
Ellis says : " They were the descendants 
of the only people who were free wlien 
they colonized New York and New Jer- 
sey, and were the only original republi- 
cans and democrats of America." 



CHAPTER lY. 



PROPRIETARY AND ROYAL PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT. 




'WNERSHIP of the soil 
and right of govern- 
ment were subjects of 
contention in East Jer- 
sey from 1664 to 1775. 
The whole trouble arose 
from the unwise and un- 
just course pursued by 
the Duke of York, afterwards James II. 
The people settled under the Nicolls 
patent, and paid the Indians for the land. 
They opposed and resisted Carteret's 
proprietary claim of government as well 
as of soil ownership. Monmouth and 
Essex counties were particularly aggres- 
sive in this contest. Under the Nicolls 
patent, a legislature was called and met 
from 1667 to 1670 or '71, at Portland 
Point, being composed of members from 
Middletown. Shrewsbury and Portland 
Point. In 1673 the Dutch captured New 
York, and held rule over New Jersey for 
a few months. When the English came 
into control again James IT. tried to force 
the proprietors of both West and East 
Jersey to surrender their provinces to the 
Crown, and had about succeeded, when 
the Prince of Orange drove him from the 
throne of England, and the proprietors 
held on to their authority for some years 
longer. Monmouth county sent dele- 
gates to the proprietary assemblies of 
East Jersey, but they never would take 
that part of the oath recognizing the pro- 
prietors as owners of the soil. 

After Sir George Carteret's death, in 



1681, William Penn and eleven others 
purchased East Jersey. Some years later 
the new owners sold one-half of their 
interest to twelve others, and these 
twenty-four found the government so dif- 
ficult and unsatisfactory, that in 1702 
they resigned all rights to the Crown. 
East and West Jersey then became New 
Jersey, and its succeeding chapter of his- 
tory is to be told as a royal province. 

Royal Provincial Government — The first 
royal governor was Lord Cornbury, whose 
rule was one of weakness, and he had as 
one of his principal opponents Col. Lewis 
Morris, of Monmouth. Lord Cornbury 
was succeeded in 1708 by Lord John 
Lovelace, whose successors were : Gen. 
Robert Hunter (1710), William Burnett 
(1720), John Montgomerie (1728), Col. 
Lewis Morris, acting (1731), and Col. 
William Cosby. In 1738 New Jersey 
was separated entirely from "New York, 
and its royal governors were : Col. 
Lewis Morris, John Hamilton, acting 
(1746), Jonathan Belcher (1747), Fran- 
cis Bernard (1758), Thomas Boone 
(1760), Josiah Hardy (1761), and Wil- 
liam Franklin, from 1762 until 1776. 
The royal governors were but little more 
successful than the proprietary executives 
in quelling the provincial revolt in Mon- 
mouth county and eastern New Jersey, 
where an additional source of strife was 
the contest between the English and 
Scotch settlers for civil supremacy and 
political power. 

45 



GHAPTEE Y. 



COMMENCEMENT OF THE REVOLUTION — PROTECTION PAPERS — BATTLE OF 

MONMOUTH — PINE ROBBERS. 




LTHOUGH New Jersey had 
her committee of corre- 
■spondence in regard to parlia- 
mentary usurpation as early 
as 1774, 3?et it required the 
news of Lexington and Bun- 
ker Hill to rouse the state 
into armed opposition. Local patriot 
committees were formed early in 1775 in 
all the Monmouth townships except 
Shrewsbury, where the tory and quaker 
peace elements prevented an organization 
for over five months. Monmouth county 
raised her full quota of militia, under 
continental and state calls in 1775 and 

1776, and when Washington retreated 
from New York, across the " Jerseys " in 

1777, manjr of the New Jersey troops, 
whose time had expired, returned home, 
the state then coming under British 
control. 

Protection Papers. — Howe issued pro- 
tection papers to all loyal subjects, and 
those others who would renounce alle- 
giance to the Continental Congress, but 
his Hessian mercenaries could not read 
English, and plundered tory and protec- 
tioner the same as whig and rebel. By 
their depredations and atrocities com- 
mitted in Monmouth, and all other coun- 
ties of the state, the Hessians and British 
soldier}^ caused a second rousing of the 
spirit of national independence. Wash- 
46 



ington, after his successful Trenton and 
Princeton campaign, took position at 
Morristown, and reclaimed nearly all of 
the state. He also issued a proclamation 
for all protectioners to swear allegiance to 
the United States, or else retii'e within 
the British lines ; an excellent measure, 
which ridded Monmouth county of many 
tories. During Washington's Brandy- 
wine campaign, and Valley Forge winter 
of suflfering and privation, the New Jer- 
sey militia was sufficient to hold the 
state, and keep in check British and tory 
raids from Staten Island. 

Battle of Monmouth. — The battle of Mon- 
mouth, on June 28, 1778, which was 
fought on the soil of this county, was 
one of the hottest and most closely con- 
tested battles of the Revolutionary war. 
The coming of the French fleet and army 
in 1778 rendered Clinton's evacuation of 
Philadelphia a necessity, and he retreated 
leisurely across New Jersej% lying two 
days at Monmouth, now Freehold, to rest 
and recruit his troops from fatigue and 
the excessive heat. Hearing before that 
Gates was marching to join Washington, 
Clinton abandoned his contemplated 
march by New Brunswick, and started 
for Sandy Hook bay, by the way of Mon- 
mouth. On the morning of the 28th 
Clinton started his long baggage trains in 
advance, and protected them by the fin- 



Historical Sketch. 



47 



est troops of his army. Washington, 
against the advice of General Charles 
Lee and a few other officers, proposed to 
attack the British at some point on their 
line of retreat, and sent Lee forward to 
commence an attack at Monmouth. Lee's 
troops attacked Clinton and threatened 
his trains, which caused the latter to at- 
tack the Americans, in order that his 
baggage might reach a safe distance. 
Lee, in direct opposition to his orders, 
fell back before the British advance, until 
Washington came up and re-formed the 
retreating American columns, which then 
repulsed all the British attacks. With 
the approach of darkness Washington 
was loth to stop the battle, which was 
now in favor of the Americans, and pro- 
posed to renew it at daylight ; but dur- 
ing the night Clinton and Cornwallis 
stole off, and made the heights of Middle- 
town. 

General Lee, whom the Indians called 
" Boiling Water," deserved the terrible 
reprimand given him by Washington on 
the battle-field. If it had not been for 
Lee's insubordination, either from motives 
of jealousy or treachery, the battle of 
Monmouth would have been a decisive 
victory for the Continental army. Dur- 
ing his retreat through the county Clin- 
ton laid waste and ravaged quite a strip 
of country. 

Pine Robbers. — While many tories, who 
fled to the English, took up arms for 
England, yet there was another body of 
refugees, who likewise took shelter on 
Staten Island and Sandy Hook, where 
they were protected by the guns of the 
British fleet. This latter body of refugees 
were outlaws and murderers, known by 
the name of " Pine Wood Robbers," from 
hiding in the pine woods and swamps of 
Monmouth county. When a proper op- 



portunity offered they robbed tory as 
quick as whig. They plundered the 
whigs, and carried their stolen goods and 
property to New York, where they were 
purchased by the English. Among the 
worst of this terrible gang of desperadoes 
were : Jacob Fagan, Lewis Fenton, Ezek. 
Williams, Richard Bird, John Giberson, 
John Wood, John Farnham, Jonathan 
and Stephen West, Thomas and Stephen 
Burke, Debou, and Dav- 
enport, of whom several were killed by 
the militia. 

Monmouth Soldiers. — Soldiers from Mon- 
mouth sei-ved in different battles of the 
Revolution from Long Island to Mon- 
mouth. The following list of officers 
from the county is from an official regis- 
ter : Brigadier-general, David Foreman ; 
colonels, David Brearley, Samuel Breeze, 
John Covenhoven, Richard Poole, Samuel 
Forman, Daniel Hendrickson, Asher 
Holmes, Elisha Laurence, Nathaniel 
Scudder, John Smock; lieutenant-col- 
onels, Jonathan Foreman, Thomas Hen- 
derson, Elisha Lawrence, Jr., Joseph Sal- 
ter, David Rhea, Thomas Seabrook and 
Auke Wikoff"; majors, John Bui'rowes, 
John Cook, Dennis Denise, Thomas 
Hunn, James H. Imlay, William Mont- 
gomery, James Mott, John Polhemus, 
Hendrick Van Brunt, Elisha Walton and 
James Whitlock; captains, David Ander- 
son, George Anderson, David Baird, 

Brewer, Andrew Brown, James 

Bruere, John Buckalew, John Burrowes, 
John Burrowes, Jr., Samuel Carhart, 
Thomas Chadwick, John Colaton, John 
Conover, Joseph Cowperthwaite, John 
Dennis, Samuel Dennis, John Downie, 
Stephen Fleming, Jacob Cohover, David 
Gordon, Peter Gordon, James Green, 
Guisbert Guisbertson, Kenneth Hankin- 
son, and Daniel Hendrickson. 



OHAPTEE TI. 



THE CIVIL WAR. 




ONMOUTH county, in the 
great war for the Union, 
bore an honorable and 
patriotic part, and her 
sons fought and fell on 
a hundred different ba1> 
tie-fields. 

Under Lincoln's first 
call Monmouth men were numerous in 
Companies A and G, Third New Jersey 
three months' men, and did good service 
in covering the retreat from Bull Run. 

Under Lincoln's second call, in 1861, 
Company K, Fifth New Jersey three 
years' men, was raised in Monmouth 
county by Capt. Vincent W. Mount, 
Charles P. Layton, Peter Layton, David 
Le Compte, J. H. Llewellyn, Joseph Orr, 
J. IL Osborn, Charles Parker, T. P. Eey- 
near, Peter Soden, William Stillwell, Bar- 
zillai Tajdor, Samuel Taylor, White Van 
Buren, Thomas J. Wilson. 

The mortuary list of Company D was 
as follows : Sergeant William Church, 
Corporal Henry Van Kirk, and privates 
William Addison, J. L.Armstrong, Robert 
Barker, W. H. Bills, Peter Brown, G. H. 
Camp, A. J. Estell, W. H. Estell, David 
Gorham, William Gorman, James Haw- 
kins, Edward Havens, W. H. Lewis, Levi 
Martin, Robert Runyon, W. A. N. Shores, 
D. P. Soden, Joseph Strickland, and Jere- 
miah Vandusen. 

Those who gave their lives in Com- 
pany G were : corporals J. D. Griffin, S. 
48 



I R. Jackson ; privates I. L. Anderson, W. 
H. Arrants, John B. Cottrell, Alonzo 
Emily, Jonathan Erickson, Elliott Fields, 
George Haley, Josiah Hires, Samuel Hol- 
loway, D. H. McClain, Asher Pearce, 
William Reynolds, R. C. Tilton, Benja- 
min Van Brunt, and John H. White. 

The Twenty-ninth New Jersey in- 
fantry, commanded by Cols. Edwin F. 
Applegate and William R. Taylor, was 
raised, excepting Company H, in Mon- 
mouth county, and served from Sept. 20, 
1862, to June 30, 1863. It fought gal- 
lantly at Fredericksburg and Chancellors- 
ville. The mortuary list was as follows : 

Company A : Siclnej" Sumack, Joseph 
Tallman, James West, Elliott Wolcott, 
and John B. Wolcott. 

Company B : Corporals W. J. Devoe 
and Andrew J. Wilson. 

The battle record of this company and 
regiment was the battle record of the 
army of the Potomac from Yorktown to 
Fort Morton, Nov. 5, 1864, and com- 
prised a list of over thirty battles and 
engagements. The loss of the company 
was heavy. Those who gave their lives 
were : sergeants, Thomas H. Estell, B. 
H. Estell, I. G. Dubois, Samuel Shackel- 
ton ; corporals, Henry Stalil, John B. 
Clayton ; privates, W. W. Applegate, Al- 
fred Blake, J. H. Brewer, W. J. Button, 
Alexander Chapman, G. W. Cook, James 
Donaldson, John Easch, Joseph R. Gol- 
den, G. M. Headden, Frederick Liger- 



Historical Sketch. 



49 



man, George F. James, John Lockerson, 
Lewis McBride, Philip Michael, William 
Moss, Andrew J. Remsen, Peter Rey- 
nolds, and James H. Rhodes. 

In the Fourteenth New Jersey infantry, 
commanded by Col. William S. Truex, 
were three companies. A, D, and G, 
raised in Monmouth county respectively 
by Capts. A. H. Patterson, J. W. Conover, 
and J. V. Alstrom. The regiment was 
mustered in Aug. 26, ] 862, and served 
until June 18, 1865, participating in most 
all of the battles of the army of the 
Potomac from Mine Run, and in all the 
hard battles of the army of the Shenan- 
doah. Major Peter Vredenburgh, a gal- 
lant officer, and native of Monmouth 
county, was killed at Opequan. 

The death-roll of Company A was : 
sergeants, W. B. Cottrell, D. A. Carhart, 
C. H. Stokey ; corporals, Joseph Lake, C. 
M. Potter, J. V. Magee; privates, Abijah 
Applegate, Henry Borden, Brindlej' 
Brand, William Brown, Isaac Clayton, 
John Cowell, Allen Dangler, Isaac H. 
Gibson, N. W. Hankinson. 

Company C : J. J. Asay, Elias Brewer, 
Samuel Cromwell, Ephraim Down and 
Andrew J. Reynolds. 

Company D: E. T. Burdge, G. W. 
Covert, George W. Field, Joseph Marks, 

4 



John H. Sherman, John E. Tunis and 
Benjamin F. Udell. 

Company E : Corporal Adams P. 
Combs and Private Samuel Powelson. 

Company F ; J. L. Atkinson, William 
Dennis, George Hankins and George New- 
man. 

Company G : Samuel Beers, James H. 
Kipp and Leonard Sickles. 

Company I : D. A. Herbert, John H. 
Chasey, Hugh Coffee, Joseph Morgan 
and Robert Tice. 

Company K : James Tilton, Theodore 
Huff and Joseph A. Morton. 

Monmouth men were in the Tenth, 
Eleventh, Thirteenth, Twenty - third, 
Twenty -fifth, Twenty - eighth. Thirty- 
fourth and Thirty-fifth infantry regi- 
ments; Second and Third cavalry, and 
batteries A, B and D of artillery. Also, 
of the three thoiisand New Jersey men 
in the naval, service the county con- 
tributed more than her quota according 
to population. 

Of those who served in other states 
we have but little record. One of that 
number, never to be forgotten, is Lieut.- 
Col. George W. Arrowsmith, who fell at 
Gettysburg while leading- his regiment, 
the One Hundred and Fifty-seventh New 
York volunteers. 



CHAPTER YII. 



TOWNSHIPS AND TOWNS. 




^^REEHOLD township is one of 
the three original townships 
of the count}- by the legisla- 
tive act of 1693. Reductions 
of its territory to form other 
townships have been as fol- 
lows : Upper Freehold prior 
to 1730; Millstone, 1844; Atlantic, 1847; 
Marlboi'ough and Manalapan, 1848. 

Tlie pioneer settler of Freehold was 
George Keith, a quaker, from Scotland, 
who came prior to 1687. With Keith 
came a number of Scotch, who were 
mainly Presbyterians. The villages of 
the township are : East Freehold, founded 
about 1839 ; West Freehold, or Mount's 
Corners, 1800; Smithburg, 1800; Si- 
loam, 1860; Clayton's Corners, 1858. 
The earliest mention of a school-house 
is in 1705, and Henry Perrine advertised 
in 1778 that he would open a Latin 
school, but of which we have no account. 
Monmouth battle monument, a splendid 
piece of costly work, was erected in 
1884. 

Middletown Township. — Middletown is 
one of the " Two towns of Navesink," 
and one of the three original townships 
of the county. The first settlement was 
in 1664, when John Bowne, Richard 
Stout and three others came with their 
families. A block-house was built at the 
site of the village of Middletown, and a 
" towne " mill was erected before 1669. 
50 



The village of Middletown is mentioned 
prior to 1670, and its churches are Bap- 
tist, Episcopal, Presbyterian and Re- 
formed. The first settlement on the east 
side of the Highlands of Navesink was 
before 1812 by Nimrod Woodward, who 
built a hotel, and the fishing village of 
Parkertown was built at the head of 
Sandy Hook bay. The first beacon on 
the Navesink Highlands was put up in 
1746, and the twin light-houses were 
erected by the United States government 
in 1826. Navesink village, once Rice- 
ville, is west of the Highlands, was 
founded in 1820 by Rice Hatsell, and 
contains a Methodist church, a Baptist 
church, an All Saints' Memorial chapel. 
The Atlantic Highland camp-meeting 
grounds and Navesink park are on Sandy 
Hook bay. Leonardsville is on the bay. 
Port Monmouth is on Shoal harbor, and 
Leedsville is in the southern part of the 
township. The remaining villages are : 
New Monmouth or Chanceville, Morris- 
ville or Scott's Corners and Chapel Hill. 
" Refugees' town " was on Sandy Hook 
point during the Revolution, where Tories 
and robbers were protected by British 
soldiers and vessels. The oldest light- 
house in the United States was erected 
in 1762, on the point which was bought 
by the government in 1790. The east 
and west beacon lights were established 
in 1842, the Sandy Hook light-ship lies 



Historical Sketch. 



51 



east, and Sandy Hook is used for heavy 
gun practice by the government. At 
Middletown village the first English 
school in New Jersey was taught by John 
Smith, and the old Middletown Academy 
was built prior to 1851. 

Shrewsbury Township. — This is one of 
the " two Navesink towns," and parts of 
its territory have been taken to form Staf- 
ford and Dover townships, Ocean county, 
and Upper Freehold, Ocean, Atlantic, 
Eaton town and Howell townships, this 
county. The early settlers were from 
Rhode Island, New York, Massachusetts 
and Connecticut. Samuel Breeze and Dr. 
Samuel Finley, of this township, were 
ancestors of Prof. S. P. B. Morse, and 
Theodosia Bartow, daughter of Theodo- 
sius Bartow and wife of Aaron Burr, was 
born in Shrewsbury. Tinton Falls is 
celebrated as the site of the first iron 
furnace in New Jersey, which was built 
by James Grover in 1674, and operated 
by Col. Lewis Morris as late as 1714, but 
the neighboring bog iron ore was not in 
sufficient quantities to pay for working. 
Parkerville was founded about 1845, and 
Fair Haven came into existence in 1825. 
The earliest schools of the township were 
church schools at old Shrewsbury village 
before 1720. The friends, presbyterians 
and episcopalians conducted them. 

Upper Freehold Township. — An assess- 
ment roll of the township for the year 
1731 is still in existence, but the date of 
the original formation of Upper Free- 
hold cannot be ascertained. Much of 
the land was patented in large tracts be- 
tween 1680 and 1690. Allentown, the 
largest place in the township, was founded 
by Nathan Allen, who settled there in 
1706, and built a grist-mill the same 
year. Stores, churches, a tilt-mill and a 
cotton factory were erected in later 



years, and Allentown became prosperous, 
as well as noted for being the birth- 
place of many prominent political men. 
The other villages of Upper Freehold 
are : Arneytown, founded by Friends ; 
Ellisdale, once Gibbstown, ifounded in 
1838; Cream Ridge; Hornerstown, be- 
fore 1800; Wrightsville, 1738; Imlays- 
town, before 1800; Canton, once Cab- 
bagetown ; and ProspertoAvn, 1881. 
Schools were opened soon after the first 
settlements were made. 

Howell Township. — Howell township was 
formed Feb. 28, 1801, from territory 
taken from Shrewsbury, and the history 
of its early settlements falls in the nar- 
rative of the first settlements of the lat- 
ter township. Farmingdale, the princi- 
pal village, was known as late as 1815 
as " Marsh's Bog," and as Upper Squan- 
kum from 1819 to 1854. The other vil- 
lages of Howell township are : Lower 
Squankum, founded in 1820 ; West 
Farms, or New Bargaintown, 1830; Blue 
Ball, about 1800; Bethel, 1872; and 
Jerseyville, or Green Grove, before 1840. 
There is no record obtainable of the first 
school or teacher. 

Millstone Township. — Millstone town- 
ship was erected in 1844 from Freehold 
and Upper Freehold, and from Monroe 
township of Middlesex county. The 
village of Perrineville was founded be- 
fore 1825 by a man from New England, 
and in a few years became a place of 
note. Clarksburg dates back to 1820, 
and was then spoken of as being near 
the old Willow Tree tavern. Berksville 
is named after John Berke, who settled 
there nearly three-quarters of a century 
ago. Churches and schools came shortly 
after settlements whose history is inter- 
woven with that of the Freehold town- 
ships. 



52 



Historical Sketch. 



Atlantic Township. — This, one of the 
younger townships, was erected in 1847 
from parts of Freehold, Shrewsbury and 
Middletown, the earliest townships of the 
county. The principal village is Colts 
Neck, the origin of whose name cannot 
be obtained, although it is spoken of in 
1778. The other villages and hamlets 
are : Scobeyville, founded by Charles 
Scobey in 1848, and Edinburgh, founded 
in 1882 by the name of Vanderburg 
post-office. The North American Pha- 
lanx Society of nearly two hundred 
people, lived on an experimental farm of 
673 acres in this township from 1844 to 
1855. This community or colony, which 
prospered for a time, was founded to 
carry out the co-operation ideas of the 
French philosopher, Fourier. 

Manalapan Township. — Manalapan, with- 
in whose borders is the "Old Tennent 
Church " of Revolutionary fame and as- 
sociations, was taken from Freehold town- 
ship in 1848. Englishtown, the principal 
village, was founded before the Revolu- 
tion, and received its name from James 
English, who owned the village site. The 
other villages and hamlets in Manalapan 
are : Black's Mills, founded before 1823 ; 
Manalapanville, about 1825; and Africa, 
founded prior to 1840, by colored people. 
In addition to the early grist mills was 
Preston's woolen factory, that has been 
remodelled of late years, and Comb's dis- 
tillery, built in 1805, and now a part of 
Perrine's mills. 

Raritan Township. — This township was 
taken from Middletown in 1848. Richard 
Hartshorne and John Hawes were among 
the early residents, the former being at 
Wahake in 1670. The principal villages 
are: Union city, founded in 1846, with 
great expectations which have not ma^ 
terialized ; Granville, with a post-office 



named Keansburg ; and Hazlett station, 
which dates back to 1876. There are 
tile and brick works, and a fertilizer 
factory in the township. 

Marlborough Township. — The township 
of Marlborough was taken from Freehold 
in 1848. The first settlement was at 
Topanemus, and made bj^ quakers, about 
1685. The villages of Marlborough are : 
Marlborough, once Bucktown, the largest 
village; Robertsville, founded about 1830; 
Hillside, or Hulsetown, 1825 ; and Mor- 
ganville, 1853. 

Ocean Township. — This township was 
erected from Shrewsbury in 1849, and 
from its area were taken Eatontown and 
Neptune townships. The main place is 
Long Branch, the great seaside resort. 

Wall Township. — Wall township, named 
after Hon. Garret D. Wall, was erected 
from Howell in 1851. Purchases of land 
were made from the Indians in 1685 ; 
but settlements seem to have been made 
some years later. Manasquan, the most 
important village, was founded about 
1818. Other villages are : New Bedford, 
Hopeville, and Bailey's and Hurley's Cor- 
ners. The celebrated summer resorts in 
the township are : Spring Lake, Ocean 
Beach, and Sea Plain. 

Holmdel Township. — The territory of this 

township was taken from Raritan, in 

1857, and it is named for the numerous 

Holmes family, which are descendants of 

' Rev. Obadiah Holmes, one of the Mon- 

1 mouth patentees. The only village in 

the township is Holmdel, once known as 

Baptisttown, yet its original name was 

Freehold, as marked on survey's made in 

1769. The Holmdel Baptist church is 

I a branch, and one of the centres of the 

[ original Baptish church of Middletown, 

' organized with two centres and two 

houses for worship in 1668. 



Historical Sketch. 



53 



Matawan Township. — This township was 
taken from. Raritan in 1857. The village 
of Matawan was known in early times as 
Middletown Point and Middletown Point 
Landing. A Tory raid was once made 
on it, and for many years it served as 
a great market point for an extensive 
section of country. Mount Pleasant 
lies near Matawan, and Cliffwood is at 
Matawan Point. Mount Pleasant is re- 
ferred to as early as 1768, and probably 
had a much earlier origin, but is noted 
beyond great age as being the residence 
of Philip Freneau, " the popular poet of 
the days of the Revolution." 

Neptune Township.— On Feb. 28, 1879, 
Neptune township was taken from the 
territorj^ of Ocean. It is a sea-coast 
township, and from its southern to north- 
ern limit on the ocean lie the following- 
named places and villages : Key East, 
Bradley Beach, Ocean Grove, and Asbury 
Park. Key East was laid out in 1883, 
on a blviflf at the mouth of Shark river, 
and Avest of it is the village of Neptune. 
Ocean Grove was projected as a resort 
for religious men, and to be free from the 
follies of fashionable dissipation, and the 
grounds were first oj)ened in July, 1869. 
Asbury Park was laid out in 1871, and 
incorporated in 1874. 

Eatontown Township. — This township 
was formed from Ocean and Shrewsbury 
townships in 1873. Eatontown is the 
principal village, and was named for 
Thomas Eaton, who settled near its site 
about 1670. Oceanport village was 
founded before 1839, and Branchburg 
was founded about 1809, by Alexander 
McGregor, being known in early years as 
Hoppertown or Mechanicsville. 

Town of Freehold. — In 1715 the loca- 
tion and erection of the first court-house 
of the county at the site of Freehold as- 



sured the growth of a village there. The 
place was known for many years as Mon- 
mouth Court-House, and in 1778 had 
less than one hundred inhabitants. The 
name Freehold came in use, the post-office 
was established in 1795, a newspaper was 
set up, and the place grew steadily, and 
was incorporated as a town in 1869. It 
is now poj)ulous and prosperous. 

Town of Red Bank. — Red Bank, one of 
the most important towns of Monmouth 
county, is at the head of navigation on 
the Navesink or Shrewsbury river, and 
received its name from the red color of 
the soil of the river-banks at its site. 
About 1809 the erection of buildings 
commenced, and in 1833 the post-office 
was established. Since 1833 the place 
has grown steadily, and in 1870 became 
an incorporated town. It has a fire de- 
partment, gas works, and water-works. 
Red Bank is in a fine agricultural region, 
has excellent facilities for navigation, 
and is near first-class oyster beds, and 
crab fishing grounds. 

Town of Keyport — Keyport is on Rari- 
tan bay, and between the mouths of Mat- 
awan and Chiogarora creeks. The site 
was divided into lots and sold in 1830, 
and four years later the place contained 
two hotels, a good landing, three stores, 
and twelve houses. Since then Keyport 
has grown wonderfully. It now has a 
fine coast and ocean trade, is largely en- 
gaged in oyster-raising, clam-raking, and 
fishing, and has a large canning factory. 
Long Branch. — Long Branch, one of the 
world's most famous sea-side resorts, was 
really founded in 1788 byElliston Perot, 
of Philadelphia, and, from a single board- 
ing-house then, has grown to a large in- 
corporated town, and a score of modern 
hotels. In 1834 the place contained only 
one hotel, two stores and fifteen houses. 



OHAPTEE Till. 



THE BENCH AND BAR OF MONMOUTH COUNTY. 




f HE " Monmouth Patent," 
conferred by Governor 
Nicolls, gave to Mon- 
mouth county the ear- 
liest courts within its 
territory. This patent 
provided for the enact- 
ment of prudential laws 
by the people and the establishment of 
courts. The town meetings at first passed 
the laws of local application, whilst those 
of a more general character were within 
the scope of the general assembly, the 
representatives of which convened at 
Portland Point, now the Highlands of 
Navesink. The first courts, in what is 
now the county of Monmouth, were held 
under the authority of the Nicolls patent 
in 1667. This authority, however, was 
interfered with by the Lords Proprietors 
of east New Jersey, as these local courts 
had proven themselves unable to quell 
the disturbances and disorders, and the 
power of Governor Carteret soon brought 
about their discontinuance. In 1675, 
when the Second Proprietary Assembly' 
met, one of its first acts provided for the 
establishment and maintenance of courts 
of justice throughout the province. These 
courts continued to be held in Monmouth 
county, at Middletown and Shrewsbury 
alternately, until 1713; for about two 
years afterwards at Shrewsbury only; 
and from Nov., 1715, at Freehold, where 
51 



they have ever since been held. They 
first convened them on the fourth Tues- 
day of November, 1715, with Judge John 
Reid presiding. The first ordinance for 
the establishment of courts of judicature 
in the province of New Jersey, says Field, 
I was that of Lord Cornbury in 1704. By 
: the provisions of this ordinance a supreme 
court of judicature was to be held alter- 
nately at Perth Amboy and Burlington, 
and circuit courts were to be held at 
Shrewsbury in May of each year. These 
courts provided for by Cornbury's ordin- 
ance continued until the Revolution, 
when the same regime was tacitly ad- 
opted by the Constitution of 1776. 
Shortly after the adoption of the Consti- 
tution, in 1789, the legislature enacted 
that the several courts of law and equity 
of this state shall be confirmed and estab- 
lished, and continued to be held with the 
like powers, under the present govern- 
ment, as they were held at and before the 
Declaration of Independence. The Con- 
stitution of 1844 made but slight changes 
in the character of the coui'ts of the state. 
The first lawyer in Monmouth county 
was Richard Hartshorne, and since him, 
among those who have practiced at the 
bar, are the following : 

Jonathan Rhea, 1784; Joseph Scurlder, 1784; 
Caleb Lloyd, 1791 ; Corlies Lloyd, 1791 ; James 
H. Imlay, 1791 ; Henry Handinson, 1794; Gar- 
rett D. Wall, 1804; Joseph R. Philips, 1807; 



Historical Sketch. 



55 



Richard H. Stockton, 1814 ; Daniel B. Ryall, 
1820 ; Henry D. Polheraus, 1821 ; Joseph F. 
Randolph, 1825; Peter Vredenburgh, 1829; 
William L. Dayton, 1830 ; Thomas C. Ryall, 
1830; James M. Hartshorne, 1833; John C. 
TenEyck, 1835; Craig Moffett, 1836; Ran- 
dolph D. Smock, 1836 ; Joseph Combs, 1836 ; 
William A. Bowne, 1838 ; William L. Ter- 
hune, 1838 ; George S. Woodhull, 1838 ; Ben- 
nington F. Randolph, 1839 ; Aaron R.Throck- 
morton, 1841 ; Joel Parker, 1842; Henry I. 
Mills, 1843; Jehu Patterson, Jr., 1843; Amzi 
C. McLean, 1844; Caleb L. Ryall, 1846; 
Thomas Moffett, 1846; Asa Cottrell, 1847; 
Charles A. Bennett, 1847 ; Egbert H. Grandin, 
1847; Henry S. Little, 1848 ; William Haight, 
1848; Robert Allen, Jr., 1848; Edmund M. 
Throckmorton, 1848; Gilbert Combs, 1849; 
Joseph D. Bedle, 1853 ; Jonathan Longstreet, 
1854; Denise A. Smock, 1855; Philip S. Sco- 
vel, 1857; Philip J. Ryall, 1857; Joseph B. 
Coward, 1858; Peter Vredenburgh, Jr., 1859; 
Charles Morgan, Herbert, 1860; Joseph J. Ely, 
1860; D. V. Conover, 1860; Charles Haight, 
1861; John S. Applegate, 1861; Albert S. 
Cloke, 1862; William T.Hoffman, 1862; Wil- 
liam H.Vredenburgh; 1862 ; Samuel M. Schank, 
George C. Beekman, 1863; William H. Cono- 
ver, Jr., 1863 ; John E. Lanning, 1863 ; Henry 
Moffett, 1864 ; John J. Ely, 1865 ; Marcus B. 
Taylor, 1865; Harry G. Clayton, 1865; Elijah 
T. Paxson, 1866 ; William V. D. Perrine, 1866 ; 
Rensselaer W. Dayton, 1866 ; Ghilion Robbins, 
1866; John L. Howell, 1867; Ten Broeck S. 
Crawford, 1868 ; Charles H. Trafford, 1868 ; 



C. Ewing Patterson, 1870; Acton C. Harts- 
horne, 1870 ; John W. Swartz, 1870 ; Henry 
S. White, 1872; Henry M. Nevius, 1873; 
Charles J. Parker, 1873; Alfred Walling, Jr., 
Holmes W. Murphy, 1874 ; John E. Schroeder, 
1874; George M. Troutmen, 1874; James 
Steen, 1874; David Harvey, Jr., 1874; Wil- 
liam H. Foreman, 1875 ; Frank P. McDermott, 
1875; Charles L Gordon, 1876; J. Clarence 
Conover, 1876; Charles P. Dorance, 1876; 
Daniel H. Applegate, 1877; Jehu P. Apple- 
gate, 1877; John B. Conover, 1878; Charles 
A. Bennett, Jr., 1878 ; R. Ten Broeck Stout, 
1878 ; Halstead H, Wainright, 1878 ; Wilbur 
A. Heisler, 1879 ; William H. Chamberlain, 
1879 ; Charles H. Butcher, 1879 ; Samuel C. 
Cowart, 1879 ; Davis S. Crater, Joseph McDer- 
mott, 1879 ; Frederick Parker, 1879 ; John T. 
Rosell, 1879 ; Benjamin B. Ogden, 1879 ; John 
L. Conover, 1880 ; William S. Throckmorton, 
1880; John P. Hawkins, 1880; John L. 
Wheeler, 1880; Delancy W. Wilgus, 1880; 
Richard S. Bartine, 1881 ; William D. Camp- 
bell, 1881 ; Isaac C. Kennedy, 1881 ; Henry 
W. Longstreet, 1881 ; H. S. Buchanan, 1882 ; 
Daniel S. Schank, 1882; Frank Durand, 1882; 
A. A. Chambers, 1882; Frederick W. Hope, 
1882; Wesley B. Stout, 1883; Benjamin B. 
Dorrance, 1883 ; Samuel A. Patterson, 1883 ; 
Jacob C. Lawrence, 1883; Alfred D. Bailey, 
1883; Charles H. Ivins, 1884; Aaron E. John- 
son, 1884; Houston Fields, James S. Degnan, 
William V. Guerin, Charles E. Cook, 1893; 
Edwin Pierce Longstreet, 1893. 



OHAPTEE IX. 



THE MEDICAL PROFESSION. 



D^ 




[PON the second Tuesday of 
May, 1816, the State Medi- 
cal Society of New Jersey 
assembled at New Brims- 
wick for the purpose of re- 
organizing itself after the dis- 
tractions caused by the then 
recent war with Great Britain, and also 
for the purpose of establishing district 
medical societies throughout the state, 
under authority of an act of incorpora- 
tion by the legislature, bearing date of 
February 15th of the preceding year- 
On the 24th of July of the same year, 
Drs. Edward Taylor, William G. Rey- 
nolds, Samuel Forman and Jacobus Hub- 
bard, Jr., met at Freehold for the pur- 
pose of forming a district society for the 
county of Monmouth. They formed a 
code of laws, under which they acted 
until the year 1820, prior to which time 
the State Society made some alterations 
and amendments to their constitution, 
which required a revision and change of 
that of the Monmouth County Society? 
for which purpose a committee was ap" 
pointed at the annual meeting held June 
7, 1819, the committee being composed | 
of Drs. Reynolds, Woodhull and For- 
man. They reported an amended con- j 
stitution of twenty-five sections, which \ 
was adopted entire on April 24, 1820. ; 
From the latter date to 1828, two meet- 
ings a year were held, and from that 
time the society has flourished. The fol- 
lowing is a list of regular physicians who 
have practiced in the county : 
56 



Edward Taylor, Samuel Forman, "William Gr. 
Reynolds, Jacobus Hubbard, Jr., Edmund W. 
Allen, David Forman, Sr., Gilbert S. Wood- 
liull, John P. Lewis, William Forman, James 
H. Baldwin, David Forman, Jr., William 
Davis, James English, James P. Kearney, John 
B. Throckmorton, Robert W. Cooke, David C 
English, John Morford, J. S. English, Edward 
Taylor, Cliarles G. Patterson, Daniel Polhenius, 
Charles G. English, Arthur V. Conover, J. C. 
Thompson, C. C. Blauvelt, H. Green, A. B. 
Dayton, William A. Newell, A. Bergen, Grau- 
(lin Lloyd, John T, W^oodhull, John Gregg, 
William L. Debow, John Vought, De Witt W. 
Barkclav, Robert Laird, Selah Gulick, W. H. 
Hubbard, A. T. Pettit, R. R. Conover, J. E. 
Arrowsmith, T. J. Thomason, J. B. Goode- 
nough, AVilliam C. Lewis, E. W. Owen, J. C. 
Thompson, A. A. Howell, S. M. Disbrow, Wil- 
liam D. Newell, H. G. Cooke, Claudius R. 
Prall, A. A. Higgins, John Cook, Charles E. 
Hall, W. W. Palmer, I. S. Long, C. F. Desh- 
ler, William S. Combs, James S. Conover, John 
H. Forman, D. McLean Foreman, F. K. Trav- 
ers, Francis A. Davis, Asher T. Applegate, P. 
B. Pumyea, S. H. Hunt, C. C. Vanderbeek, C. 
A. Conover, Samuel Johnson, J. A. Beegle, 
Charles A. Laird, George T. Welch, James 
Holmes, James E. Cooper, Wilmer Hodgson, 
W. R. Kinmouth, James H. Patterson, Edward 
Field, J. G. Shackleton, E. B. Laird, A. J. 
.Jackson, Henry Hughes, N. J. Hepburn, W. 
W. Palmer, C. D. W. Van Dyke, Harry Neafie, 
Henry Mitchell, H. G. Norton, S. A. Disbrow, 
Daniel G. Hendrickson, George H. Hutchinson, 
D. Eflgar Roberts, Henry B. Costill, Charles 
H. Thompson, G. F. Wilbur, James E. Cooper, 
Fred. V. Thompson, James A. Ackerman, 
Geo. B. Herbert, J. W. Bennett, D. M. Barr, 
Margaret Currie, William Johnston, D. E. 
Roberts, F. D. Thoms, G, G. Hoagland, Wil- 
liam W. Trout. 



CHAPTEE X. 




RELIGIOUS DENOMINATIONS. 



PACE cannot be accorded 
to the interesting history 
of the different churches 
and so the name, town- 
ship and year of the or- 
ganization of each is 
given since 1684, a -per- 
iod of two hundred years. 
Presbyterian. — Old Tennent, Manaplan, 
before 1692 ; Middletown, Middletown, before 
1706 ; Allentown, Upper Freehold, about 1722 ; 
Shrewsbury, Shrewsbury, before 1727 ; Mata- 
wan, Matawan, 1766 ; First Millstone, MilU 
stone, 1785; Fairfield, Howell, before 1828; 
First Freehold, Freehold, 1836; First Long 
Branch, Ocean, 1840 ; Manasquan, Wall, about 
1842; Red Bank, Shrewsbury, 1852; Manaplan, 
Millstone, 1856; Port Washington, Shrews- 
bury, 1861 ; Cream Ridge, Upper Freehold, 
1864; Farming-dale, Howell, 1870; First 
Ocean Beach, Wall, 1877 ; Keyport, Raritan, 
1878; Wesmiuster Chapel, Wall, 1880. 

Baptist— Rolmdel, Holmdel, 1668 ; 
Middletown, Middletown, 1668 ; Upper Free- 
port, Upper Freeport, 1766 ; Manasquan, Wall, 
1804; Chapel Hill, Middletown, 1809; First 
Keyport, Raritan, 1840 ; First Shrewsbury, 
Shrewsbury, 1844; Leedsville, Middletown, 
1846; Eatontown, Eatontown, 1852; Nave- 
sink, Middletown, 1853; Chanceville, Middle- 
town, 1854; First Howell, Howell, 1859; 
Marlborough, Marlborough, 1869; Allentown, 
Upper Freeport, 1874 ; Long Branch, Ocean, 
1882. 

Reformed. — Freehold and Middletown, 
Marlborough, 1699-1825 ; Holmdel, Holmdel, 
1719; First Freehold, Marlborough, 1825; 
Middletown, Middletown, 1836 ; Second Free- 
hold, Freehold, 1842 ; Keyport, Raritan, 1847 ; 
Colt's Neck, Atlantic, 1856; Second Ocean, 
Ocean, 1878. 



Friends. — Shrewsbury, Shrewsbury, 
about 1672. 

Episcopal. — Christ's, Shrewsbury, about 
1700; Allentown, Upper Freehold, 1730; 
Christ's, Freehold, before 1745; St. Peter's, 
Freehold, 1745; Trinity, Matawan, 1850; 
^TrinUy, Shrewsbury, 1851 ; St. James', Ocean, 
1853; St. John," Manalapan, 1860; All Saints' 
Memorial, Middletown, 1863; St. Mary's, 
Raritan, 1864; St. James' Memorial, Eaton- 
town, 1866 ; St. George, Shrewsbury, before 
1874; St. John, Shrewsbury, before 1878. 

Meffiodist Episcopal. — Bethesda, Howell, 
1780; Imlay Hill, Upper Freeport, 1790; 
First Long Branch, Eatontown, 1790; St. 
John's, Raritan, about 1800; Allentown, Upper 
Freeport, 1810; Matawan, Matawan, 1826; 
Harmony, Middletown, 1830 ; Calvary, Rari- 
tan, 1835; Englishtown, Manalapan, 1842; 
Farmingdale, Howell, 1844 ; Clarksburg, Mill- 
stone, before 1845 ; Red Bank, Shrewsbury, 
1844; Manasquan, Wall, 1850; St. Luke's, 
Ocean, 1860; Navesink, Middletown, 1866; 
Granville, Raritan, 1866; Oceauport, Eaton- 
town, 1868; Asbury, Ocean, 1869; Ocean 
Beach, Wall, 1872; St. Paul, Neptune, 1874; 
Tabernacle, Ocean, 1875; Good Will, Shrews- 
bury, 1875; FirstAsbury Park,Neptune, 1880; 
Centreville, Ocean, 1881 ; Simpson, Ocean, 
1882. 

Second Advent. — Eaton ville, Eatontown, 
about 1840. 

Catholic. — , Upper Freehold, 

1853; St. James', Shrewsbury, about 1854; 
Our Lady Star of the Sea, Ocean, 1854; St. 
Joseph's, Raritan, 1854; St. John's, Upper 

Freehold, 1869; , Millstone, 1871; St. 

Mary's, Atlantic, 1871; St. Gabriel's, Marl- 
borough, 1871. 

Methodist Protestant. — Fair Haven, 
Shrewsbury, 1854; Ocean Beach, Wall, 1884. 

57 



Historical Sketch 



OF 



Somerset County, ~N^w Jersey. 



OHAPTEE I. 



INTRODUCTION — GEOGRAPHY — GEOLOGY. 




/ 



EARING a noble and time- 
honored English name, to 
whose old-world history 
cling a thousand glories, and 
midway between the " Ocean 
of Storms " and the beauti- 
ful and well-loved Indian 
stream, whose waters meet 
the tide a hundred miles from the sea, 
lies the rich and prosperous county of 
Somerset, the garden spot of the " Gar- 
den State " of the Union. 

It is the purpose to write briefly on the 
pages that follow of the history of Somer- 
set county. 

In attempting to some extent the dif- 
ficult but pleasant task of tracing this 
history from pioneer days down to pres- 
ent times, we shall seek to trace the two 
great elements of early population — the 
Dutch and the Scotch — the one predomi- 
nant in the western part of the county 
planting the Reformed church of their 
58 



fathers, and the other supreme in the 
valley of the Raritan founding the Pres- 
byterian church of their ancestors. Yield- 
ing passing notice to the German Lu- 
therans and the French Huguenots at 
Pluckamin, we pass rapidly over the set- 
tlement period and come to the Revolu- 
tionary- struggle, when Somei'set county 
in 1777 was the resting-ground of the 
Continental army, and note the masterly 
policy of inaction on Middletown Heights, 
by which the American Fabius foiled the 
British in the valley of the Raritan. 
Passing from the Revolution we shall 
trace the record of county progress 
through pike, canal and railroad periods, 
and then make mention of the sons of 
Somerset who fought and fell in the late 
civil war. After the war we shall chroni- 
cle material and commercial develop- 
ment, and speak of the high position the 
county holds for the morality, virtue and 
intelligence of her people. 



Historical Sketch. 



59 



Geography — Somerset county, New Jer- 
sey, lying north of the geographical cen- 
tre of the state, and largely in the beau- 
tiful valley of the Raritan, is situated 
between forty degrees and twenty-two 
minutes and forty degrees and forty-five 
minutes north latitude ; and seventy-four 
degrees and twenty-seven minutes and 
seventy-four degrees and forty-seven min- 
utes west longitude from Greenwich, Eng- 
land, or two degrees and thirteen minutes 
and two degrees and thirty-three minutes 
east longitude from Washington. As a 
political division of the state Somerset 
county is bounded on the north by Mor- 
ris and Union counties, on the east by 
Union and Middlesex, on the south by 
Middlesex and Mercer, and on the west 
by Mercer and Hunterdon counties. The 
computed area of the county is three 
hundred and six square miles, or nearly 
one hundred and ninety-six thousand 
acres. 

Geology. — We condense briefly the fol- 
lowing account of the geology of the 
county from the geological description 
given by Rev. Abram Messier, D. D., in 
the " History of Hunterdon and Somer- 
set Counties." Geologically the area of 
Somerset county is almost made up of 
five distinct formations. The first and 
largest is the red sand-stone, and red 
shale. The second is the variegated 
conglomerate, upon which the red shale 
rests in an unformable manner, along its 
north-west line. The third embraces the 
trap ranges protruded from it; and fourth 
the older gneiss rocks underlying the 
conglomerate. The fifth is the blue lime- 
stone, existing in limited areas, but very 
valuable. The red sand-stone and red 
shale rocks are regularly stratified, have a 
uniform range of five to twenty degrees to 
the north-west, and derive their 'prevail- 



ing red hue from containing red oxide of 
iron. Tn different degrees of solidity 
and usefulness, they extend over the 
county, have a disputed thickness from 
several hundred to twenty-seven thou- 
sand feet, and were deposited as a sedi- 
mentary rock in fresh water, as their 
analysis shows but little trace of salt 
water. 

The fossil plants would indicate the 
lower series of the Devonian period, and 
the sand-stone variety of the Triassic 
formation weathers well and makes a 
fine building stone. The varied con- 
glomerate formation is a rock composed 
of fragments, or pebbles, of other rocks, 
united by different soft and cementing 
substances. It overlies, and is of a later 
origin than, the red sand-stone or shale, 
while its water-worn elements indicate 
an aqueous formation. Trap is of igneous 
or volcanic origin, has a greenish-gray 
color, varies in aspect from that of a fine- 
grained compact basalt to that of a 
coai'sely-crystallized green-stone, and in 
its purer state consists mostly of feldspar. 
Geologically trap is older than sand-stone, 
and was forced up through the latter, 
which it also elevated, and caused the 
waters to rush to lower levels, carrying 
rock fragments into comglomerate beds. 
The blue lime-stone when pure consists 
of fifty-four per cent, of carbonate of 
lime and forty-six per cent, of carbonate 
of magnesia, hence it is often called mag- 
nesian lime-stone. This lime-stone is 
above the Potsdam sand-stone, and at 
Peapack has been extensively used with 
beneficial results in farming. With the 
lime-stone are the older gneiss rocks, con- 
sisting of quartz, feldspar, and mica. 
Gneiss is the only Azoic rock in the 
county, and constitutes Bernard town- 
ship. 



OHAPTEE II. 

COMMENCEMENT OF THE REVOLUTION — WASHINGTON'S RETREAT — WESTON 
HEIGHTS OF MIDDLEBROOK — MILITIA. 




^'0 unusual or exciting event 
occurred from the real or- 
ganization of Somerset county ; 
in 1 7 1 4 up to 1775, the growth ' 
of population and wealth hav- 
ing been slow — merely a set- 
tlement period. 
The news of Lexington kindled the Re- 
volution ary flame in Somerset county, and 
her sons, led by Stirling, Frelinghuj'sen, 
and other distinguished officers, fought 
gallantly from Long Island to Yorktown. 
On May 3, 1775, four militia companies 
were organized at Hillsborough, and com- 
manded as follows : Hillsborough com- 
pany, commanded by Capt. John Ten 
Eyck ; Millstone company, Capt. Hen- 
drick Probasco; Shannick company, Capt. 
William Ver Bruck ; and Grenadier com- j 
pany, Capt. Cornelius Lott. The Pro- 
vincial Congress of New Jersey, in Aug., 
1775, ordered two regiments of militia 
and one battalion of five companies of 
minute men to be organized in Somerset. ; 
The next year many Somerset men en- j 
listed in the two New Jersey battalions 
raised for the Continental army, and 
three companies were called from the 
county to join General Heard's New Jer- 
sey brigade. 

Washington's Retreat. — After the battle 
of Long Island Washington fell back 
from position to position until he arrived 
tiO 



at New Brunswick, which he was com- 
pelled to evacuate on Dec. 1, 1776. He 
retreated through the southern part of 
Somerset county by the way of Six Mile 
Run and Rocky Hill. On the 12th Gen. 
Charles Lee, who had leisurely retreated 
from New York, stopped with a small 
guard at Basking Ridge, and was captured 
by Col. Harcourt, with a -detachment of 
British cavalry. 

Weston. — When Washington went into 
winter-quarters at Morristown, he left 
Gen. Philemon Dickenson with four hun- 
dred and fifty men at Millstone, where 
the latter was to keep a watch on British 
foraging expeditions. On Jan. 20, 1777, 
a force of four hundred British, Avith 
three pieces of artillery and a number of 
pillaged cattle, came to Weston, in Frank- 
lin township, to take a quantity of flour 
stored in a mill there. General Dicken- 
son could not cross the bridge there for 
their artillery, but his men waded the 
river where the water was waist deep, 
and routed the British, whose loss was 
thirty men, while Dickenson lost but 
five. Dickenson's force was half raw 
militia, and their bravery in charging 
veteran troops Avas warmly commended 
by Washington. The spoils of the fight 
were forty-three wagons, one hundred 
and eighteen cattle, seventy sheep and 
twelve prisoners. 



HiSTORiCAi. Ske;tch. 



61 



Heights of Middlebrook. — The British 
foraged the " heart of the Jerseys," and 
Howe's "protection papers" were little 
regarded by his brutal soldiery, who, by 
their excesses, sent many neutrals, as 
soldiers, into Washington's army. During 
April, 1778, the British army was rein- 
forced until it numbered about seventeen 
thousand men, and Washington, with but 
five thousand effective men, could not ven- 
ture battle ; so he entered upon a mas- 
terly defensive policy by taking position 
on the Heights of Middlebrook, where 
he could watch every movement of the 
British at New Brunswick, in the valley 
below him, and at the same time be safe 
from any attack that could be made on 
him. 

On June 13th the British army, in 
two divisions, marched to the Millstone 
and Middlebrook, and lay by five days, 
but Washington was too good a military 
tactician to accept the offer of battle in 
the plain, and the foiled enemy returned 
to New Brunswick. Howe, on June 23d, 
evacuated New Brunswick and retreated 
toward New York. Washington followed 
cautiously as far as Quibbletown, when 
Howe suddenly turned about, and, by a 
forced march, attempted to precipitate a 
battle at Quibbletown, but Washington 
was too wary, and fell back, in good 
time, to his fortified position on Middle- 
brook Heights, where he remained until 



Howe went to New York. Then Wash- 
ington marched to the Hudson, and when 
Howe sailed for Philadelphia he marched 
through Somerset for that city. 

Militia. — Somerset county answered 
every call upon her for men, and her 
sons fought bravely at Long Island, 
Trenton, Pi'inceton, Germantown and 
Monmouth, besides being in a hundred 
skirmishes and engagements. The First 
battalion of Somerset county was organ- 
ized with Lord Stirling as colonel; 
Abraham Ten Eyck, lieutenant-colonel; 
Derrick Middah, major, and Stephen 
Hunt, Frederick Frelinghuysen, James 
Linn, Richard McDonald, Thomas Hall, 
Benjamin Corey, John Craig, David De 
Groot, Simon Duryea, Andrew Kirk- 
patrick, Francis Lock, William Logan, 
Garen McCoy, William Moffat, John 
Parker, Peter Schenck, Ruloff Sebring, 
Richard Stites and Philip Van Ardalen 
were captains at different times. 

The Second battalion had as colonels 
Abraham Quick and Hendrick Van 
Dyke; lieutenant -colonels, Benjamin 
Baird and Peter D. Vroom ; majors, 
William Verbryck, William Baird, Enos 
Kelsey and Abraham Nevius ; captains, 
Joseph Babcock, John Carr, Peter Du- 
mont, Philip Fulkerson, William C. 
Houston, William Jones, James Moore, 
Henry Probasco, Peter Pumyea, Jacobus 
Quick, James Quick. 



OHAPTEE III. 




COMMENCEMENT OF THE CIVIL WAR — REGIMENTAL HISTORIES AND MORTUARY 

LISTS. 



Sergeant Theo. McCoy, killed at Cramp- 
ton's Pass ; Sergeant John S. Judd, died 
of wounds ; Corporal Jacob Crater, died 
of wounds ; Corporal C. Hoagland, killed 
at Spottsylvania ; Corporal William Ful- 
ler, John Burkmeyer (musician), and 
Martin Blanchard (wagoner), died ; John 
V. Bennett, died ; John J. Deitz, Adam 
Job and John Lederman, killed at Gaines' 
Mill ; John Y. Bennett, Joseph Durham, 
Michael Kaley and David Young, died ; 
Joseph McNear and William Steinka, 
killed at Salem Heights ; John Keiser 
and William Littell, died of wounds ; and 
Caleb Woodruff was killed at Manassas. 
Fifteenth New Jersey Infantry. — This 
regiment was mustered into the service 
Aug. 25, 1862, under command of Col. 
Samuel Fowler. It fought gallantly at 
Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, was 
at Gettysburg, and saw its most despe- 
rate fighting in the Wilderness campaign. 
It served with distinction under Sheri- 
dan in his battles in the valley of Vir^ 
ginia, was then engaged in the siege of 
Petersburg, and ended its battle record at 
Appomattox. " The Fifteenth New Jer- 
sey was always found where the fire was 
hottest, the charge most impetuous, the 
resistance most stubborn, and the carnage 
most fearful." It was in thirtj'-five 
battles and lost three hundred and sixty- 
one men by disease and from wounds, 
besides the large number killed in battle. 



^ UITE rudely was the peace ; 
dream of half a century 

^*rS^ broken when Beaui-egard's 
-^^^f^^ circling batteries opened on 
the walls of Fort Sumter. 
The nation was wild with excitement, 
the tramp of marching armies was 
throughout the land, and the greatest 
civil war of modern times had burst upon 
the world. New Jersey promptly re- 
sponded to Lincoln's call for troops, and 
men from Somerset were among the first 
to volunteer for the preservation of the 
Union. 

Regimental Histories and Mortuary Lists. 
— The Third New Jersey infantry was 
organized for three years, and mustered 
into the Federal service in May, 1861, 
under command of Col. George W. Tay- 
lor, who afterwards became a brigadier- 
general and fell mortally wounded at 
Second Bull Run. The regiment fought 
with great bravery at Gaines' Mill, where 
it lost one hundred and seventy killed 
and wounded, and then maintained its 
record in every great battle of the Army 
of the Potomac up to Cold Harbor. 
After that battle it was mustered out, and 
disbanded at Trenton on July 7, 1864. 

Company G, of this regiment, was 
from Somerset county, where it was re- 
cruited by Capt. Peter F. Roberts, and 
its mortuary list was as follows : Lieut. 
W. C. Barnard, killed at Williamsburg ; 
62 



Historical Sketch. 



63 



Company E, of this regiment, was 
raised in Somerset county by Capt. John 
H. Vanderveer. Sergeant Joseph Vand- 
erveer died of fever; Sergeants T. D. 
Johnson and S. W. Nevius, died of 
wounds; Sergeants B. 0. Scudder and 
W. C. E. Gulick, and Corporal Daniel 
Richardson, were killed at Spottsylvania, 
M'hile Corporal J. B. Hutchinson fell at 
Salem. A. M. Cornell, W. S. Cuthbert, 
John Garrettson, John Johnson, L. M. 
Moore, Francis Musshea, H. C. Ogborn, 
J. A. Saums, Robert Sylvester and C. S. 
Williamson died of disease. Nicholas 
Conover, Peter Demens, James McKin- 
sey and W. H. Rose, were killed at Spott- 
sylvania, while Jonathan Brewster and 
W. N. Therp fell at Salem, and James 
Dow went down at Cold Harbor. James 
Langdon was drowned. W. W. Conk- 
lin, W. K. Dow, George Hendrickson, J. 
H. Jones, Christian Koenig, James Nolan 
and J, W. Priestly, died of wounds. 

Thirteenth New Jersey Infantry. — This 
regiment, with ten others, was raised in 

1862, to prevent a draft. It was raised 
for a term of nine months, under com- 
mand of Col. Alex. E. Donaldson. It 
served in the Army of the Potomac, was 
held at Falmouth, opposite Fredericks- 
burg, during that battle and lay under 
heavy fire at Chancellorsville, although 
not brought into action. The regiment 
made a good record for efl&ciency and 
bravery. It was mustered into the ser- 
vice Sept. 17, 1862, and served until July, 

1863, when it was discharged at Flem- 
ington. New Jersey. 

The five companies of this regiment 
recruited in Somerset county were as fol- 
lows : Co. A, recruited in North Branch, 
Capt. A. S. Ten Eyck; Co. E, recruited 
in Somerville, Capt. C. T. Cox; Co. F, 
recruited in Neshanic, Capt. 0. A. Kibbe ; 



Co. I, recruited in Basking Ridge, Capt. 
J. C. Bloom ; Co. K, recruited in Middle- 
bush, Capt. B. S. Totten. 

Company A lost by disease : Sergeant, 
T. S. Smith; Corporals, J. P. Dunham, 
G. S. Woodruff and David Van Camp, 
and privates, J. K. Bangham, Jacob 
Karns, J. P. Krymer, Gideon Linsley, 
R. J. Runyon, Joseph Van Doren, and 
P. J. Van Zandt. 

Company E lost the following by dis- 
ease : Corporal Dennis Cox, and privates, 
J. H. Cavaleer, G. V. C. Polhemus, Peter 
Van Arsdale, and A. G. Van Nest. 

Company F lost by disease seven men : 
W. R. Bigley, A. U. D. Brearly, C. A. 
Cruser, Dennis Hagaman, B. C. Piggott, 
J.B.Van Dyke, and Stephen Voorhees, Jr. 

Company I lost by disease three offi- 
cers and eight men : Corporals, Jacob 
Bars, Nicholas Blank and E. S. Day, and 
privates, Abraham Bush, Peter Dough- 
erty, Stephen Harvey, Louis Linden- 
berger, Morris Levi, George Opie, Henry 
Todd, and Isaac Wingert. 

Company K suffered a loss of one offi- 
cer and four privates by disease : Lieut. 
Theodore Strong, Jr., and privates, J. T. 
B. Cruser, John Dessinger, G. E. Gulick, 
and James Parker. 

When Lincoln made his first call for 
troops in 1861, Somerset county contrib- 
uted a large number of men to the Third 
regiment of three months' men, which 
aided in checking the fleeing troops of 
McDowell from the Bull Run battle- 
ground. Many Somerset county men 
served in other regiments of this state 
besides the ones already named, and also 
enlisted in the regiments of other states. 
Difficult to secure the names of those 
who returned, it is impossible to make up 
the full roster of the fallen, who gave 
their lives that the Union might live. 



CJHAPTEE IT. 



LATER RAILWAYS — PRESENT INDUSTRIES — COUNTY PROGRESS. 




AYS of peace brought with 
them a business revival, and 
manufactures and agricul- 
ture once more went forward 
in the county as they had 
prior to the war. The early 
railroad was stayed by the 
war, and the war in turn was succeeded 
by a development-period in which canal 
and old and new railways were leading 
factors, while the telegraph and other 
useful inventions came into prominence 
and use throughout the county. The 
Central railroad of New Jersey was in- 
creasing its connections and its train and 
station service. The South Branch rail- 
road, from Somerville to Flemington, was 
completed in 1870, and in the last-named 
year the Mercer and Somerset, the Mill- 
stone and New Brunswick, the West 
Line and the Rocky Hill railways. After 
a wonderful legal struggle with the Penn- 
sylvania Railroad Co., Henry M. Hamil- 
ton, of New York city, was successful, in 
1874, in putting under construction the 
Delaware and Bound Brook railway, or 
the New York and Philadelphia new 
line. 

The Easton and Amboy or Packer 
road was completed about 1874. Two 
years later came the Centennial exhibition 
64 



at Philadelphia, and hundreds of visitors 
were there from Somerset county to view 
the labor-saving machinery collected from 
all parts of the civilized world, and to 
become acquainted with the wonderful 
inventions of Edison, and a hundred 
other American inventors. Returning 
home, they were not satisfied with the 
development then in progress, but intro- 
duced labor-saving appliances and labor- 
saving machinery on farm, and in shop, 
and in mine. 

Present Industries. — While the manu- 
factui'ing interests are respectable in 
number, yet being so near the great cities 
of Philadelphia and New York, the great 
source of wealth should be in the agri- 
cultural products, embracing farm, dairy 
and market garden. 

With a fertile soil and considerable 
water power, and lying on the great sea- 
board route of commerce and in the great 
eastern manufacturing district, Somerset 
county should be noted for the prosperity 
of her present industries, and her fine 
facilities for future enterprises. 

County Progress. — The growth of the 

' county has been slow and gradual for 

j over two hundred years, and its history 

1 since actual white settlement commenced, 

in 1681, lias been almost unprecedented 



CHAPTER Y. 



TOWNSHIP HISTORIES. 




ITH a land area of 25,- 
651 acres, aiid centrally 
located, Bridgewater is 
the third in size of the 
townships of Somerset 
county. The surface 
is level in the south, 
undulating in the cen- 
tre, and hilly or mountainous in the 
north, where the celebrated " Chimney 
Rock" and "Round Top" stand like giant 
sentinels. The drainage is by the Rari- 
tan river and a part of its branches. 
The territory of the township was bought 
in 1681 from the Indians, in four sepa- 
rate purchases, or Indian titles, but sales 
by the proprietors were not made until 
the succeeding year. Thomas Codring- 
ton and John Royce, in 1681, became the 
first settlers. The township was formed 
by letters-patent from George II., dated 
April 4, 1749, and the present poor-farm 
purchased in 1831. Copper mining, with 
more or less interruption, was prosecuted 
on First Mountain from 1769 to 1840. 
The Raritan Water Power Co. (origin- 
ally Somerville) was organized in 1863 ; 
the Raritan Woolen Mills Co., in 1869, 
and the Bound Brook Woolen Mills 
Co., in 1878. The first school-house was 
built about 1742, at Bound Brook, where, 
in 1800, an academy was built on the 
site of the present academy there. Somer- 
ville Academy was opened in 1802, and 
Somex'ville Classical Institute went into 

5 



operation in 1848, succeeding a former 
seminary. Church organizations have 
been as follows : First Reformed Church 
of Raritan, 1699; Second Reformed 
Church of Raritan, 1834 ; First Baptist 
Church of Somerville, 1843 ; St. John's 
Episcopal, 1851 ; Presbyterian Church of 
Somerset, Middlesex or Bound Brook, 
1725 ; Congregational Church of Bound 
Brook, 1876 ; Bound Brook Methodist 
Episcopal, 1849 ; St. Joseph's Catholic, 
1863; Third Reformed Church of Rari- 
tan, 1848 ; Raritan Methodist Episcopal 
Church, 1872; St. Bernard's Catholic 
Church, 1852 ; Reformed Church of 
North Branch, 1825, and Somerville 
Methodist Episcopal Church, in 1832. 
The princijDal villages in Bridgewater 
are : Somerville, Bound Brook, Raritan 
and Martinsville. 

Bedminster. — This township lies in the 
northwestern part of the county, and em- 
braces a large area. It is generally 
level, excepting in the north, where the 
Second Mountain crosses. Its drainage 
is toward the south, by the North Branch 
and its tributaries. Margaret Winder pur- 
j chased the first land in 1690, and the first 
; settlers were Scotch, who were followed 
I by the Palatinate Germans. Bedminster 
; township was probably oi'ganized about 
I 1749. The destruction of the township 
records by fire in 1845 has left a large 
! blank in the early history of Bedminster. 
A school was in existence in 1759, an acad- 

65 



6G 



HisTORiCAi, Sketch. 



eni}' is mentioned at Pluckamin in 
1779, and classical schools were in oper- 
ation before 1818. The township schools 
are in good condition. The churches of 
the township have been organized as fol- 
lows : St. Paul's Lutheran, 1756 ; Lam- 
ington Presbyterian, 1740; Bedminster 
Reformed, 1758; Peapack Reformed, 
1848 ; Peapack Methodist Ej^iscopal, 
1838, and Pluckamin Presbyterian, 1851. 
The main villages and hamlets of the 
township are : Pluckamin, Larger Cross 
Roads, Lesser Cross Roads, Peapack, 
Lamington and Pottersville. Pluckamin 
is said to be a corruption of Flaquemine, 
from Plaqueminier, meaning in Fi-ench 
the date-plum or persimmon tree, which 
Avas plentiful in that vicinity. 

Bernard. — Bernard township, named 
after Governor Francis Bernard, is in the 
north-eastern part of the county, and 
comprises an area of 26,541 acres. It is 
drained by the Passaic and Raritan 
rivers, and its ridges are of trap forma- 
tion, while the lesser hills are drift ol 
the glacial epoch, and the valleys have 
an alluvial soil. The soil is productive, 
and magnetic iron-ore mines have been 
opened in Mine mountain. Settlements 
were made as early as 1720, and previous 
to this James Pitney was a squatter resi- 
dent. The first Indian land-title ac- 
quired was " Harrison's Neck " of 3,000 \ 
acres. Bernard township lost its early 
records by fire, but is supposed to have 
been organized about 1759. Fanning, 
the chief occupation, is of two kinds, 
grain-raising and dairj'ing. The public 
schools are well supported, but even ti'a- 
dition supplies not the name of the first 
teacher. The famous Basking Ridge 
Classical School was conducted for over 
half a centur3\ The Smith familj' re- j 
union in 1876 brought together over [ 



2500 Smiths from Somerset and Hunter- 
don counties. The church list of the 
township is as follows : Basking Ridge 
Presbj^terian, 1720 ; Liberty Corner Pres- 
byterian, 1837; Millington Baptist, 1851; 
St. Mark's Episcopal, 1850; and St. 
James' Catholic, 1860. The celebrated 
George Whitefield visited and preached 
at Basking Ridge in 1740. The leading 
villages and hamlets are : Basking Ridge, 
Bernardsville (once Vealtown), Liberty 
Corner, and Madisonville. 

Branchburg. — This township is in the 
western part of the county, contains 12,- 
634 acres of land, and has a slightly un- 
dulated sui'face. It is drained by the 
North and South Branches of the Rari- 
tan. The territory of the towaiship was 
included in three Indian titles, obtained 
between 1785 and 1790. Among the 
early settlers were : John Dobie, and 
John Campbell (son of Lord Neil Camp- 
bell). The township was organized AjDril 
5, 1845. A school-house, whose site is 
indeterminable now, was built in 1782, 
but of the teachers at it nothing can be 
learned. The public schools are few in 
number, but are progressive. No church 
nor village was within the township as 
late as 1885, and up to that time North 
Branch post-office. North Branch depot, 
and Milltown were not large enough to 
be counted villages. 

Hillsborough. — Hillsborough, the largest 
township in the county, contains 37,894 
acres of land, and has no large streams 
within its territory. The surface varies 
from level to mountainous, the soil is a 
red sand-stone, and but little timber re- 
mains. Neshanic mountain is five hun- 
dred feet high, its top being the only 
land in the township that is not culti- 
vated. The territory of Hillsborough 
township was for a long time disputed 



Historical Sketch. 



67 



territory, between East and West Jersey. 
Settlements actually commenced in 1690. 
under the twenty-four proprietors. The 
township organization can not be given 
accurately, for the oldest records in ex- 
istence bearing on the subject only ex- 
tend back to 1746. The date of the 
earliest school is also unknown, being be- 
yond reliable conjecture, although in 
1730 we find William Parish teaching in 
a school-house on the south bank of the 
Raritan. The present public schools are 
prosperous and well instructed. A clas- 
sical school has been taught in Millstone 
at different times, and Queen's College 
was temporarily removed there in 1780. 
The church list of Hillsborough town- 
ship is as follows : Millstone Presbyte- 
rian, 1759 ; Clover Hill Reformed, 1834; 
Neshanic Reformed, 1752 ; Hillsborough 
Reformed, 1766 ; Branch ville Reformed, 
1850; Rock Mills Methodist Episcopal, 
about 1840; African Methodist Episco- 
pal, about 1865 ; and Mountain Mission 
(union), 1876. The villages and hamlets 
of the township are : Millstone, Neshanic, 
Flaggtown, Clover Hill, Blackwell's, South 
Branch or Branchville, Rock Mill, and 
Roycefield. 

Franklin. — This township is in the south- 
eastern part of the county, contains 81,- 
610 acres of land, and has a level or 
gently undulating surface, except where 
Ten-mile mountain crosses in the extreme 
south. All streams within the township 
are small, and the soil is well adapted to 
farming and grazing. Settlement com- 
menced as early as 1701, and in 1703 we 
have record of John Van Houten, Tunis 
Quick, Dollies Hageman, Jacob Bennet, 
and John Harrison as among the resi- 
dents of the township. In 1746 the ter- 
ritory of Franklin was called the East- 
ern Precinct, and was not formally or- 



ganized until 1760. The first school- 
house was at Three Mile Run, where, 
in 1720, Jacobus Schureman taught. 
Schureman was probably the first school- 
master in the county. Among classical 
schools Kingston Academy soon attained 
high rank, and the public schools have 
been well supported. The churches of 
the township are as follows : Three Mile 
Run Reformed, 1703-54 ; Kingston Pres- 
byterian, before 1700; Six Mile Run Re- 
formed, 1710; Bound Brook Episcopal, 
about 1800; Middle Bush Reformed, 
1834 ; East Millstone Methodist Episco- 
pal, 1854 ; Griggstown Reformed, 1842 ; 
South Middlebush Colored Methodist 
Episcopal, 1876 ; Bound Brook Reformed, 
1846; East Millstone Reformed, 1855, 
and East Millstone Catholic, 1864. The 
villages and hamlets of the township are : 
Six Mile Run, East Millstone, Blooming- 
ton, Weston, Rocky Hill, Middlebush, 
Griggstown and Kingston. 

Montgomery. — Montgomery township is 
in the southern part of Somerset county, 
contains 19,590 acres, and has a hilly 
surface and a clay, sandy loam and red 
shale soil. The township originally con- 
tained 36,500 acres, but in 1838, 16,910 
acres of it were given to Mercer county. 
The drainage is to the east, and Sour- 
land Mountain in the south-west contains 
the noted " Roaring Rock " caves and 
the " Devil's Half Acre." As early as 
1693 lands in this township were sold by 
the twenty-four proprietors, and settle- 
ments commenced not later probably 
than the year 1700. The township was 
organized between 1762 and 1772, with 
everything in favor of the year 1772. 
Neither history nor tradition tells of the 
early schools and teachers, and the pres- 
ent public schools are kept up Avith the 
times. 



CHAPTER Yl. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 



r, J. 




AVING long been distin- 
guished for eloquence 
and legal learning, the 
Bench and Bar of Som- 
erset__county have won 
the proud distinction of 
being the peers of any 
others in the state of 
New Jersey. Some of those whose names 
have gilded the legal " roll of honor " of 
the county and state, representing some 
of the greatest genius, learning and judi- 
cial merit and ability in the country, are 
the following : William Patterson, Peter 
D. Vroom, Samuel Southard, William 
Griffith, Andrew Kirkpatrick, George H. 
Brown, John M. Berrien, James S. Ne- 
vius, Isaac N. Blackford, Richard Stock- 
ton, Henry Southard, Frederick and 
Theodore Frelinghuj-sen, and Abraham 
0. Zabriskie. 

Judges. — The records of the court were 
burned when the court-house was de- 
stroyed by fire in 1779. We give the 
following list of judges from 1778 to 
1896: 

1778, Peter Scheuck, Jacob Bergen, Abraham 
Van Neste, Eiios Kelsey, Jacob A'^an jVord- 
strand, Edward Bunn, Christopher Hoaglandt, 
Tobias Van Xorden, Ernestus Van Harlingen, 
Jacob Wyckoff, Andrew Hegeman, Dirk Low, 
Nathaniel Ayers, Roelof Sebriug, Thomas Berry, 
Henry Middleworth, Ebenezer Tingley, Abra- 
ham Quick, Jolin Manning, Guisbert Sutfin, 
Cornelius Wyckoff, John Johnson ; 1780, Wil- 
68 



Ham Verbyck, Alexander Kirkpatrick; 1781, 
Tobias Van Norden, John Jolinston ; 1782, 
Robert Stockton, Peter Dtimont, John Wort- 
luau, Beuj. Taylor, George Van Neste, John 
Compton, Simon Van Nordwick, Peter Davis, 
Hiigli Gaston, Ichabod Leigh, Moses Scott, 
; John Sebring; 1783-84, William Verbyck, 
I Thomas Berry, Moses Scott, Robert Stockton, 
Tobias Van Norden, Henry Van Middleworth, 
i Andrew Hegeman, John Murray, James Kirk- 
1 patrick, Jacob Riskey, John ^Manning, David 
I Kelly, John Sebriug, John "Wortman, Ichabod 
Leigh, Nicholas Dubois, Robt. Gaston, Peter 
Dumout, Ernestus Van Harlingen, John John- 
son, Jacob Van Nordstrand, Jacob Lewis; 1785, 
Mathias Baker; 1786, Christopher Hoagland, 
Aaron Mattison, Joseph Annin, Jacob Matteson ; 
1788, Benjamin Blackford, Peter D. Vroom, 
John Boylan, Henry Southard, Gilbert Sut- 
phin, Daniel Blackford; 1789, John Stryker; 
1 790, Garret Terhune, Isaac Davis ; 1792, Rob- 
ert Blair, John Beatty, Jacob Teu Eyck ; 1793, 
Peter J. Stryker ; 1795, James Van Duyn, 
Frederick Ver Mulen, John Bryant; 1796, 
Nicholas Arrowsmith, David Ayere; 1797, 
Archibald Mercer, John Bayard, John Begar, 
Garret Tunison, Wm. McEowen ; 1798, John 
Simonson, James Stryker, Jacob De Groot ; 
1799, Frederick Frelinghuysen, Peter Probasco ; 
1801, Jacob R. Hardenburgb, David Nevius; 
1803, John N. Simpson ; 1804, Martin Schenck, 
i Henry Van Derveer ; 1805, Fred. Cruser, Jas. 
i Anderson ; 1806, Jas. Van Duyn ; 1807, Saml. 
Bayard, David Smalley, Caleb Brokaw ; 1808, 
Dickinson Miller; 1809, Jacob De Groot; 1810, 
\ Hugh McGowen, John Bray, John Rickey, 



Historical Sketch. 



69 



Fred. Cruser ; 1811, John Stout, David Smal- 
ley, F. Ver Mulen, Martin Schenck, Edward 
Lewis, Nicholas Arrowsmith ; 1812, James 
Henry, Daniel La Tourette, Henry W. Schenck, 
John Rickey, Dickinson Miller, Samuel Bay- 
ard, Joseph Annin ; 1813, James Henry, John 
Bray, Edward Lewis, A. Van Arsdale, John 
Rickey, James Stryker; 1814, Hugh McEowen, 
Jacob De Groot, Frederick Cruser ; 1815, A. 
Howell, John H. Disboroiigh, Cornelius Van 
Horn, Nicholas Dubois ; 1816, James Stryker; 
1817, Dickinson Miller; 1818, Henry H. 
Schenck, John Rickey, A. Van Arsdale; 1819, 
Jacob De Groot, Fred. Cruser ; 1820, John 
Stout, John H. Disborough, Isaac Southard, 
Nicholas Dubois, Job Lane ; 1821, A. Howell, 
James Stryker, Nicholas Arrowsmith, John 
Kirkpatrick, Farrington Barcalow, Charles Fer- 
ris, Dickinson Miller, Jacob De Groot; 1822, 
William Cruser; 1823, Ferdinand Van Der- 
veer, Henry H. Schenck; 1824, John Rickey; 
1825, James D. Stryker, John Stout, Jacob De 
Groot; 1826, Henry M. Cohu, Job Lane, A. 
Howell, Nicholas Arrowsmith, Farrington Bar- 
calow ; 1827, John Kirkpatrick, William Todd, 
W. B. Gaston, William Cruser; 1828, Ferdi- 
nand Van Derveer, Henry H. Schenck, Thos. 
Terrel, Jacob De Groot, John Terhune, James 
D. Stryker, Elias Brown, John Rickey ; 1830, 
John Kirkpatrick, Wm. D. Stewart, Squier 
Terrell ; 1831, John Gulick, Farrington Barca- 
low, John Breece, William A. Van Doren, 
Nicholas Arrowsmith, A. Howell; 1832, Wil- 
liam Todd, Wm. T. Rodgers, John A. Austin, 
Samuel S. Doty, Wm. B. Gaston, James Taylor, 
John Breece, Ferd. Van Derveer; 1833, Peter 
Voorhees, John Lowrey, John Terhune, P. W. 
Stryker, J. Van Doren, William Cruser, James 
D. Stryker, John S. Todd ; 1834, Aaron Long- 
street, J. R. Hardenburgh, James Taylor; 1835, 
John Kirkpatrick, Wm. D. Stewart; 1836, 
Caleb C. Brokaw, Joseph Nevius, Squier Ter- 
rell, Matthias V. D. Cruser, Wm. A. Van 
Doren, Farrington Barcalow, Daniel H. Dis- 
borough, John Gulick ; 1837, Peter S. Nevius ; 
1838, Peter Voorhees, Henry H. Wilson, Sam- 



uel S. Doty, John Terhune, John Lowrey, Ferd. 
Van Derveer, John H. Voorhees, P. W. Stryker, 
Peter L. Elmendorf, Benj. McDonald; 1839, 
Cornelius S. Stryker, James Taylor; 1840, 
Lewis Mundy ; 1841, Ralph Voorhees, James 
P. Goltra, S. Shubal Luce, William H. Sebring, 
Henry H. Wilson; 1842, William B. Gaston, 
William Kennedy, Elisha Moore, Elias Brown, 
Andrew Smalley, Peter S. Nevius ; 1843, P. 
W. Stryker, A. Sergeant, Frederick Cook, Peter 
Voorhees, William A. Van Doren, John Ter- 
hune, C. Morton, John H. Voorhees, L. Bunn, 
Jacob Losey, Aaron Lougstreet, Caleb C. Bro- 
kaw, Daniel Whitenack ; 1814, Daniel H. Dis- 
borough, Henry D. Johnson, James D. Stryker, 
Peter K. Fisher, Frederick Chi Ids, John Wil- 
son, Joseph Nevius, Squier Terrell, Fred. Ap- 
gar, Michael R. Nevius, Albert Cammanu, 
Joseph Huffman ; 1845, James Taylor ; 1846, 
Lewis Mundy ; 1848, Joseph A. Gaston, John 
H. Voorhees; 1849, Corn. S. Stryker; 1850, 
Isaac Lindley; 1851, Saml. Corle; 1852, Leon- 
ard Bunn ; 1853, Danl. Whitenack; 1854, Jas. 
Campbell; 1857, Leonard Bunn; 1858, Joseph 
Thompson; 1859, Caleb Morton, Jos. Thomp- 
son ; 1862, Leonard Bunn ; 1863, Samuel Corle ; 
1864, John H. Anderson ; 1865, D. W. Wilson ; 
1866, John C. Garretson ; 1867, J. V. D. Hoag- 
land; 1868, Samuel Corle; 1869, A. S. Wil- 
liamson; 1872, Joseph Thompson ; 1873, John 
C. Garretson; 1874, J. V. D. Hoagland ; 1877, 
Andrew V. D. B. Vosseller ; 1878, John M. 
Garretson; 1879, Joseph Thompson; 1885- 
1890-1895, J. D. Bartine. 

Roll of the Bar, 1769-1896.— 17 Q9, Wil- 
liam Patterson ; 1784, Richard Stockton ; 1785, 
Frederick Frelinghuysen and Andrew Kirk- 
patrick; 1788, William Griffith; 1791, Lucius 
H. Stockton ; 1792, George McDonald ; 1797, 
John Frelinghuysen; 1801, Joseph W. Scott; 
1805, Jacob R. Hardenbergh ; 1808, Theodore 
Frelinghuysen; 1810, Frederick Frelinghuy- 
sen and Isaac Blackford; 1811, Samuel L. 
Southard; 1813, Peter D. Vroom, Jr.; 1816, 
Thomas A. Hartwell ; 1817, William B. Grif- 
fith and James S. Green; 1819, James S. Ne- 



70 



Historical Sketch. 



vius; 1821, John Henry; 1822, Andrew Mil- 
ler; 1823, Samuel J. Bnvard ; 1824, John M. 
Mann and William Thomson ; 1828, Abraham 
O. Zabriskie; 1829, Joseph A. Gaston and 
Peter Vredenbiirg ; 1830, William H. Leupp 
and William L. Dayton; 1835, George H. 
Brown and Theodore Frelinghuysen ; 1836, 
John Van Dyke and Garrett S. Cannon ; 1838, 
Dumont Frelinghuysen; 1839, Farrington Bar- 
calow, Frederick T. Frelingimysen, and John 
F. Hageman; 1840, Hugh M. Gaston; 1841, 
Frederick J. Frelinghuysen and William K. 
McDonald ; 1844, John V. Voorhees, Samuel S. 
Hartwell, Stephen B. Ransom and Robert Voor- 



; hees; 1847, Isaiah N. Dilts ; 1849, A.shbel 
Green; 1851, Peter L. Voorhees; 1853, John 
Hartwell and Robert S. Green ; 1854, Enos 

j W. Runyon ; 1859, Frederick Voorhees; 1863, 
Alva A. Clark ; 1865, John D. Bartine; 1870, 
Wra. H. Long; 1871, A. V. D. Honeyman, 
Winnard J.Davis; 1874, R. V. Lindaburg; 
1875, George E. Pace; 1876, David M. Sut- 
phin, John Schomp, Wm. C. Sanborn ; 1877, 
George L. Bell ; 1878, William V. Steele; 1880, 
Hugh K. Gaston, John A. Freeh, James J. 
Meehan; 1882, Charles A. Reed ; 1890, Nel- 
son Y. Duugau. 



s 



0"»v\eA^ 



rt 



Ov>— V 



CHAPTER YII. 



THE MEDICAL PROFESSION — CHURCHES — SCHOOLS — BIBLIOGRAPHY. 




P the early physicians of 
the county but little 
can be gleaned, and no 
roll can be obtained of 
members of the county 
medical society until 
within recent years, al- 
though in age it goes 
back to the formation of medical societies 
in the state. 

On the first Tuesday of May, 1816, 
the New Jersey Medical Society pro- 
ceeded to appoint district societies in the 
counties. The following persons were 
appointed to meet on Sept. 20, at Somer- 
ville, to effect a district organization, viz. : 
Peter I. Stryker, Ferdinand Schenck, 
William McKissack, J. L. Elmendorf, 
Wm. D. McKissack, E. Smith, Augus- 
tus Taylor, Moses Scott, and Henry 
Schenck. 

One of the most prominent members 
of the District Medical Society was Dr. 
William McKissack, who practiced at 
Bound Brook. 

The following are recent physicians of 
Somerset county : Robert S. Smith, Henry 
H. Van Derveer, Henry F. Van Derveer, 
C. B. Jaques, Henry G. Wagoner, Samuel 
K. Martin, Peter D. McKissack, L. H. 
Mosher, William B. Ribble, James B. 
Van Derveer, Jesse S. B. Ribble, Robt. 
M. Morey, J. Fred. Berg, William E. 
Mattison, John V. Robbins, James G. 



Mynard, John C. Sutphen, Joseph S. 
Sutphen, John W. Craig, Peter T. Sut- 
phen, James S. Knox, A. P. Hunt, W. 
H. Morrill, D. C. Van Deusen, W. S. 
Swinton, B. B. Matthews, Byron Thorn- 
ton, J. B. Cornell, C. M. Field, I. L. 
Campton, C. R. P. Fisher, J. D. Van 
Derveer, Edwin T. Davis, Louis Reed, 
Francis McConaughy, Thomas H. Flynn, 
A. L. Stillwell, S. 0. B. Taylor, P. J. 
Zeglio, D. C. Adams, Adonis Nelson, and 
E. F. Farrow. 

Churches. — The early pioneer settle- 
ment but preceded the church and school- 
house, and the early ministers labored 
long and faithfully for the social and spir- 
itual good of their people. With each suc- 
ceeding generation came able and devoted 
ministers. We give in order of age the 
different religious denominations in the 
county, and the years in which their 
churches were established in the different 
townships. 

German Reformed. — 1st. Raritan, Bridge- 
water, 1699 ; Three Mile Run, Franklin, 1703 ; 
Six Mile Run, Franklin, 1710; Harlingen, 
Montgomery, 1727; Neshanic, Hillsborough, 
1752; Bedminster, Bedminster, 1758; Hills- 
borough, Hillsborough, 1766; North Branch, 
Bridgewater, 1825 ; Blaweuburg, Montgomery, 
1830; Second Raritan, Bridgewater, 1834; 
Clover Hill, Hillsborough, 1834; Middlebush, 
Franklin, 1834; Griggstowu, Franklin, 1842; 
Bound Brook, Franklin, 1846 ; Third Raritan, 

71 



72 



Historical Sketch. 



Bridgewater, 1848; Peapack, Bedminster, 1848; 
Branchville, Hillsborough, 1850; East Mill- 
stone, Frauklin, 1855. 

Presbyterian. — Kingston, Franklin, be- 
fore 1700; Basking Ridge, Bernard, 1720; 
Bound Brook, Bridgewater, 1725 ; Lamington, ; 
Bedminster, 1740; Millstone, Hillsborough, | 
1759 ; Liberty Corner, Bernard, 1837 ; Plucka- 
min, Bedminster, 1851. 

Lutheran. — St. Paul's, Bedminster, ! 
1756. 

Protestant Episcopal. — Bound Brook, 
Franklin, about 1800; Trinity, Montgomery, 
1840; St. Mark's, Bernard, 1850; St. John's, 
Bridgewater, 1851. 

Methodist Episcopal.— Somerville, Bridge- 
water, 1832 ; Peapack, Bedminster, 1838 ; 
Rock Mills, Hillsborough, 1840; Bound Brook, 
Bridgewater, 1849; East Millstone, Franklin, 
1854; JS'orth Plainfield, 1868; Rocky Hill, 
Montgomery, 1869 ; Raritan, Bridgewater, 
1872. 

Baptist. — First Somerville, Bridgewa- 
ter, 1843; Millingtou, Bernard, 1851. 

Catholic. — St. Bernard's, Bridgewater, 
1852 ; St. James, Bernard, 1860; St. Joseph's, 
Bridgewater, 1863 ; East Millstone, Franklin, 
1864. 

Congregational. — Bound Brook, Bridge- 
water, 1876. 

The Middlebush Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church, in Franklin township, 
was organized in 1876 ; while the African 
Methodist Episcopal church of Hillsbor- 
ough township was formed ten years 
earlier. 

Schools. — The earliest school in the 
county, of which there is any record, was 
the "three-mile school," opened, in 1720, 
by Jacobus Schureman, who seems en- 
titled to the honor of being the pioneer 
teacher of Somerset county. The old 
subscription schools were numerous, 



while at an early day classical schools, 
academies and seminaries were estab- 
lished, and the fact should not be for- 
gotten that the founding of Queen's (now 
Rutgers) College was largely due to the 
efforts of citizens of the count3^ Kings- 
ton Academy, Basking Ridge Classical 
School and Pluckamin Academy were 
among past institutions of merit and note. 
The public school system has grown 
steadily in efficiency and in popular favor 
until it now compares favorably with the 
school system of any other county in 
New Jersey. 

Bibliography. — Somerset county exceeds 
any county in the Union for the number 
of its distinguished authors. In the reli- 
gious world proudly loom up the names 
of T. De Witt Talmage, T. W. Chambers, 
Spencer F. Cone, John F. Mesick, John 
Cornell, Isaac V. Brown, Theodore Strong, 
William Jackson, Morris C. Sutphin, El- 
bert S. Porter and a score of others. In 
the educational field E. A. Apgar is 
known all over the United States. In 
law and statesmanship the county pre- 
sents the honored names of Stockton, Bay- 
ard, Southard, Berrien, Dayton, Black- 
ford, Paterson and Frelinghuysen. In 
metaphysics Witherspoon takes leading 
rank, and in advanced logical thought he 
was followed by Griffith, Finley, Broun- 
lee, McDowell, Mrs. Blackwell, Mrs. 
McConaughy, Fish, Vroom, Corwin and 
Craig. In medicine we find Dr. A. B. 
Dayton ; in agriculture. Dr. L. S. Pen- 
nington, the pioneer scientific farmer of 
Illinois ; and, in history and biography. 
Messier, Snell, Honeyman and others. 
Poetry is represented by Mary H. Ed- 
wards and Mrs. Flowers, and the novel 
: by numerous good winters. 




/f?r?^ 




BIOGRAPHIES. 



WILLIAM H. VREDENBUEGH, a 
leading lawyer at Freehold, Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, is a son of 
Judoe Peter and Eleanor BrinkerhofF 
Vredenburgh, and was born Aug. 19, 
1840, in that town. He is of old Dutch 
extraction, and his ancestors, prior to 
1658, lived in Holland. In May of that 
year, according to the colonial history of 
New York, William I. Vredenburgh came 
to New Netherlands from the Hague in 
the ship " Gilded Beaver." From him 
sprang successive generations led by Isaac, 
William, Peter, and Peter, Jr. The last 
one was the great-grandfather of our sub- 
ject, of whom the record states that he 
died at New Brunswick, New Jersey, Aug. 
24, 1824, after fulfilling the duties of 
county treasurer for forty-two consecutive 
years. He was for many years a trustee 
of Rutgers College. His father, likewise j 
named Peter, became a resident of New 
Brunswick in 1743, at the age of twenty- 
three years, and he brought with him his 
newly-wedded wife, whose maiden name 
was Margaret Scuroman. He was a trus- 
tee of Rutgers College in 1782, and he 
died in 1810, at the age of ninety years. ■ 
His will is on record in the office of the 
secretary of state at Trenton, New Jersey. 
The paternal grandfather. Dr. Peter 
Vredenburgh, after completing his educa- 
tion, entered upon the practice of medicine 
at Somerville, New Jersey, to which pro- 
fession and practice he devoted his entire 
life, and he was held in high repute as a 
physician in all of Somerset county. j 

6 



Judge Peter Vredenburgh, our subject's 
father, was born at Redington, Hunter- 
don county. New Jersey, in 1805. He 
received his collegiate education at Rut- 
gers College, from which he graduated. 
In the year 1829 he came to Monmouth 
county, and commenced the practice of 
law at Eatontown, where he remained for 
nearly a year, and then removed to Free- 
hold, where he continued to reside during 
the i-emainder of his life. He was a 
whig, and took a leading part in politics. 
For fifteen years he held the office of prose- 
cutor of the pleas, and he represented 
Monmouth county one term in the senate 
of New Jersey. In 1855 he was appointed 
one of the associate justices of the supreme 
court by Governor Price, and he was i^e- 
appointed to that office in 1862 by Gov- 
ernor Olden, thus holding the position for 
j fourteen yeai's, and discharging the duties 
of the office with eminent ability and 
fidelity. At the close of his second term 
he resumed the practice of law, but his 
health soon began to fail. Judge Vreden- 
burgh had never recovered from the heavy 
blow he sustained in the death of his 
son. Major Peter Vredenburgh, Jr., who 
was killed, Sept. 19, 1864, at the bat- 
tle of Oj)equan, Virginia. He fruitlessly 
sought to recuperate in Florida his failing 
energies, and to recover from his bereave- 
ment. He died March 24, 1873, at St. 
Augustine. Judge Vredenburgh was mar- 
ried, in 1836, to Eleanor Brin kerb off. 
They had three children, all sons, and each 
of whom adopted the law as his profession : 

73 



74 



Biographical Sketches. 



Major Peter, Jr., admitted as a counsel- 
lor, Feb., 18G'2, and subsequently killed 
in battle; William H., our subject, and 
James B., born Oct. 1, 1844, admitted 
as a counsellor in June, 1869, and at pres- 
ent practicing at Jersey City. Judge Vre- 
denburgli was a trustee of Rutgers College 
from 1849 to 1873, and from that seat of 
learning he received the degree of LL.D. 
William H. Vredenburgh, our subject, 
was graduated from Rutgers College in j 
1859. He studied law in the office of ! 
Hon. Joseph D. Bedle, ex-governor and 
ex-justice of the supreme court of New 
Jersey. In June, 1862, he was admitted 
to practice as an attorney, and as a coun- 
sellor in June, 1865. On his first admis- 
sion he commenced practice in Freehold, 
where he has remained until the present ; 
time with the exception of an interval of I 
two years at Eatontown, where he was 
engaged in continuing the business of his 
brother. Major Peter Vredenburgh, Jr., ' 
who was ajjsent in the service of the gov- i 
ernment. Mr. Vredenburgh during his 
thirty years or more of practice has been 
engaged in the trial of many important 
cases in Monmouth and Ocean counties 
as well as in the appellate courts — cases 
which have settled questions of grave 
importance to the litigants and principles 
of lasting interest to the profession. The 
case of Williams vs. Vreeland was a nota- j 
ble instance of this kind, and was the first | 
case wherein a New Jersey court engrafted 
on a will a legacy not mentioned in it, on 
the strength of a parol declaration of a 
trust by the testator, coupled with a ver- 
bal acceptance of the trust by the defend- 
ant. In this Mr. Vredenburgh added 
largely to his reputation as a reasoner 
and a pleader. In 1865 Mi". Vredenburgh 
associated himself in a law partnership 
with Philip J. Ryall, which continued for 



five years, when the latter's failing health 
compelled him to retire from practice. 
In 1884 he was nominated by the repub- 
licans of Monmouth county as their can- 
didate for state senator. His election 
seemed certain until within a week before 
election day, when the democrats with- 
drew their candidate and fused with the 
prohibitionists. The result was Mr. Vre- 
denburgh's defeat, although he polled 
nearly seven thousand votes and ran far 
ahead of the republican ticket. He was 
appointed one of the advisory masters in 
chancery by Chancellor McGill, and in 
1894 he was elected president of the First 
National Bank of Freehold, in which posi- 
tion he is yet serving. He is a director 
in various other corporations and has re- 
cently been selected by Governor Griggs 
as a member of the committee to recom- 
mend to the legislature methods of tax 
equalization, a subject of pressing impor1> 
ance at this time. 



TTON. HOLMES W. MURPHY, gradu- 
-'—'- ate of Princeton College and ex- 
member of Assembl}', is also a prominent 
member of the Monmouth county bar and 
the veteran deputy county clerk. He 
is a son of Judge Joseph and Alice 
Holmes Murphy, and was born Nov. 28, 
1822, at Freehold, this county. He 
received his primary educational nurtur- 
ing in various private and select schools 
at or near Freehold, and Freehold Acad- 
emy later, Avhere he prepared for college, 
and accordingl}' in 1838 he matriculated 
at Wesleyan University at Middletown, 
Connecticut, and entered the Freshman 
class. After remaining here three years, 
he entered, in 1841, the Senior class of 
Princeton College, graduating with the 
class of '42 with honors, and in due course 




^f-B-C^.,^t.c^ tJ^h^^-^^-^fM^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



75 



received the degree of Master of Arts. 
Subsequently, in 1842, Mr. Murphy reg- 
istered as a law student with Hon. Judge 
Dikeman, of Brooklyn, from whose office 
he was admitted to practice in the sev- 
eral courts of New York state in 1845. 
He at once established himself in the 
practice of his profession at Brooklyn, 
where he remained ten years, during 
which time, in connection with his prac- 
tice, he was for two terms a seai'cher of : 

• . I 

real-estate titles in the county clerk's 
office of King's county. During a short 
period he was a commissioner of deeds, , 
in connection with which he was exten- j 
sively engaged in conveyancing. 

In about 1854 Mr. Murphy returned 
to his place of birth, at Freehold, this 
county, and in Feb., 1856, became deputy 
county clerk under Jehu Patterson, Esq., 
and upon the death of the latter, I 
served in the same position under his i 
successor, John W. Bartleson, until Nov., ! 
1858, when he himself was elected county 
clei'k by a very large majority. He 
served in this position until Nov., 1868, 
having been re-elected without opposition. 
During this time he served as clerk of the 
board of chosen freeholders of the county ' 
from May, 1858, to May, 1874. Mr. \ 
Murphy was editor of the Monmouth 
Democrat during the absence of its veteran 
editor. Major James S. Yard, who was in 
the service. Mr. Murphy, by virtue of 
his position as clerk of the board of 
freeholders, which position he held from 
May, 1858, to May, 1874, and the ex- 
plicit confidence reposed in him, became 
very active in assisting the authorities in j 
collecting and raising money by the sale [ 
of bonds for furnishing its quota of vol- 
unteers. He also was appointed to paj' 
out the state bounty to the wives and 
families of the volunteers from Freehold 



township. Mr. Murphy was enthusiastic 
in his su^Dport of the cause of the Union, 
and as editor he espoused through numer- 
ous articles and as editorials, in most vig- 
orous language, his war sentiments and 
advocacy of the prosecution of the strug- 
gle. 

From May, 1869, the date of incor- 
poration, to May, 1872, Mr. Murphy 
served as chief commissioner of Free- 
hold. Upon this organization virtually 
followed much needed legislation to carry 
out the plan of the new incorporation. 
But in prosecuting this difficult under- 
taking many obstacles were rnet with, 
many difficulties and vigorous oppositions 
encountered where they came in contact 
with conflicting interests, requiring great 
courage and firmness as well as prudence 
and good judgment in order to harmon- 
ize antagonizing interests. At the expira- 
tion of Mr. Murphy's term as county 
clerk he became a deputy under his 
successor until Nov., 1873. In 1874 
he was admitted to the bar of this state, 
and entered into a partnershii) with Hon. 
George C. Beekman in the jsractice of his 
profession. In 1880 Mr. Murphy was 
elected a member of the general assem- 
bly of this state, served one term and 
refused a re-election. He served on a 
number of important committees, and 
was a member of the constitutional com- 
mission in 1881. At present he is serv- 
ing his twenty-seventh year in the county 
clerk's office. In 1892 he was elected pres- 
ident of the Monmouth County Mutual 
Fire Insurance Company, and is a direc- 
tor in the First National Bank of Free- 
hold. As president of the Maplewood 
Cemetery Company he has rendered valu- 
able service, and for twenty j^ears has 
been a trustee of the Ocean Grove Camp 
Meeting Association. He is an active 



76 



Biographical Sketches. 



worker in the M. E. Churcli of Freehold, 
having served twelve years as president 
of the board of trustees. 

His nuptials were celebrated on the 
12th of Nov., 18C1, having married 
Lavinia C. Swift, daughter of Daniel D. 
Swift, of Fulton House, Lancaster county, 
Pa., and they had seven children : M. 
Louise (who graduated at the Young 
Ladies' Seminary at Freehold and Wes- 
leyan Female College at Wilmington, 
Del.), Alice (dec'd), Emma (dec'd), Joseph 
(dec'd), Lavinia S. (who graduated at 
the Young Ladies' Seminary of Free- 
hold), Adeline S. (who graduated at 
the Young Ladies' Seminary of Freehold 
and is now a pupil at the Woman's Col- 
lege at Baltimore, Md.), and Holmes 
(dec'd). 

Mr. Murphy in his social life has de- 
voted much of his time to Freemasonry 
and Odd Fellowship. He became a past 
master of Fortitude Lodge, F. and A. M., 
of Brooklyn in 1851, and has held the 
highest honors in the state of New Jersey, 
serving as deputy grand master of the 
Grand Lodge of Masons. He is a past 
master of Olive Branch Lodge, No. 16. 
He is a member of Monmouth Lodge, No. 
20, I. 0. 0. F., and past district deputy 
grand master of the Grand Lodge of L 0. 
0. F., and is also a member of the Sons 
of the American Revolution. 

The original American progenitor of 
the Murphy family was Timothy Mui*- 
phy, who was an emigrant from Ireland, 
and came to this country about 1750, 
locating near Kej-port, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey. He was a school teacher, a 
justice of the peace, and taught survey- 
ing and navigation. He also served as 
judge of the court of common pleas of 
Monmouth county at one time. 

He married Mary Garrison, and they 



had eight children, four sons and four 
daughters, the youngest of whom was 
Judge Joseph, father of subject, who was 
born at Bethany, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, Jan. 1, 1797. When yet 
a young man, in 1819, he removed to 
Freehold and established a tannery oppo- 
site the "Cowart Place," on the Key- 
port road. On Jan. 1, 1820, he was mar- 
ried to Alice Holmes, daughter of Stout 
Holmes, who served in the Continental 
Army of the Revolution, at that time a 
citizen of Freehold. They had nine chil- 
dren, of whom Holmes W. was the second 
eldest. Judge Murphy subsequently was 
engaged in the mercantile business at 
Freehold for several years, and in 1838 
purchased a farm near Freehold, to which 
after 1850 he gave his entire time and 
attention, and was rated as one of the 
most successful and practical farmers in 
the county. In 1867, having accumu- 
lated a competenc}', he sold his farm and 
retired from active business pursuits, and 
resided at Freehold up to his death. He 
served for a time as one of the judges of 
the court of common pleas of Monmouth 
county with dignity, rare impartiality, 
and good judgment. He was a man pos- 
sessed of many sterling qualities of both 
heart and head. As a judge he was firm 
and unswerving in his convictions of 
right; cautious and slow in meting out 
judgment, but steadfast in his decisions. 
He died in 1884 at the age of eighty- 
seven years. 



TTON. ALFRED WALLING, JR., ex- 
-*~L judge of Monmouth count}^, and 
a distinguished member of the Monmouth 
county bar, with offices at Keyport, is a 
son of Alfred and Elizabeth Stout Wal- 
ling, and was born Oct. 26, 1845, at Key- 




vA VM^-tsULfi. 



-A_*_-«— 



^- 



Biographical Sketches. 



79 



port. The name is of Welsh origin, and 
the family has long been a prominent 
one in New Jersey, figuring extensively 
in agricultural, commercial, and legisla- 
tive circles. 

Cornelius Walling, paternal grand- 
father of our subject, Avho was a very 
active member of the New Jersey Assem- 
bly in 1823, was a native of old Mid- 
dletown township, and was a life-long 
farmer near Keyport, in Middletown 
township. He was a staunch democrat 
in politics, and besides his career in the 
legislature also held a number of local 
offices in his township. He was an active 
supporter of the Methodist Episcopal 
church at Bethany, near Keyport. His 
wife was Miss Elizabeth Mui'jjhy, daugh- 
ter of Timothy Murphy, of old Middle- 
town township, who died in 1886, and 
by whom he had four children: Alfred, 
Eusebius M., Elizabeth, wife of Thomas 
V. Arrowsmith, late clerk of Monmouth 
county, and Amelia, wife of Thomas B. 
Stout, of Keyport. He died about 1828. 

Alfred Walling, father of our subject, 
was also a well-known member of the 
New Jersey Assembly, serving with dis- 
tinction in the sessions of 1849 and 1850. 
He was a native of Middletown township, 
and possessed a good common-school edu- 
cation. He was clerk in a store at Cen- 
treville for several years, and was sub- 
sequently engaged in the business of sur- 
veying and conveyancing at Keyport, 
which he conducted successfullj' until the I 
time of his death in Nov., 1875. He 
was an active participant in Monmouth ' 
county politics, and besides serving in the 
legislature was, in early life, clerk of Mid- 
dletown township, and, later, assessor of 
Raritan township. He was a member 
of the Protestant Episcopal church at 
Keyport, and a member of Delta Chap- 



ter, No. 14, F. and A. M. He married 
Miss Elizabeth Stout, daughter of John 
Stout, of old Middletown township, by 
whom he had three children : All'red, our 
subject; Eusebius, deceased in 1861, and 
Matilda. Our subject's mother died in 
1852. 

Judge Alfred Walling, subject of this 
sketch, received a common-school educa- 
tion at Keyport. In early youth he 
worked on a farm near Keyport, and sub- 
sequently occupied a position as clerk in 
a store at New York city for two years. 
He then returned to Keyport, and took 
charge of his father s business, which he 
conducted until 1874. He had always 
been a close student, and he applied him- 
self to the reading of law, being admitted 
to the bar in 1874. He immediately 
began the practice of this profession at 
Keyport, and attained such rapid emi- 
nence that he was appointed judge in the 
Monmouth county courts in 1879, serv 
ing until 1890. At the expiration of his 
judicial career he returned to Keyport, 
and has since built up a lai'ge and lucra 
tive practice, embracing every branch 
of the profession. Judge Walling has 
always been a staunch democrat, and one 
of the foremost men in his party in Mon- 
mouth county. He takes an active in- 
terest in educational matters, and served 
as school trustee at Keyport for several 
years. He was formerly a member of 
Lodge No. 49, F. and A. M., of Key- 
port. He was married Jan. 9, 1867, to 
Miss Henrietta Ogdeu, daughter of Rufus 
Ogden, of Keyport, and they have had 
three children : Olnetta, Elizabeth, de- 
ceased, and Rufus 0. Judge Walling is 
a man of handsome personality and dis- 
tinguished appearance, is easj^ in his bear- 
ing and courteous in manner. He is 
widely known and respected, and is one 



80 



Biographical Sketches. 



of the most popular men in Monmouth 
county. He is a tireless worker, is thor- 
oughly versed in every turn and techni- 
cality of his profession, and is well in- 
formed on all subjects of general infor- 
mation. His position in the county is 
an eminent and influential one. 



TTON. HENRY M. NEVIUS, circuit 
-' — •- court judge, ex-president of the 
state senate, and for twenty years one of 
the most prominent lawyers of the state 
of New Jersey, was also a gallant officer 
of the civil war, and at present is an 
esteemed citizen of Red Bank, where he 
has resided since May, 1875, previously in 
Freehold and vicinity. He is a grandson 
of David Nevius, a brother of Judge 
James S. Nevius, president judge for 
many years of the Monmouth county 
circuit, and a son of James S., Jr., and 
Hannah Bowne Nevius, and was born 
Jan. 30, 1841, in Freehold township, 
Monmouth county. New Jersey. He 
received his early educational training in 
Freehold Institute, and subsequently took 
a course in the university at Grand Rapids, 
Michigan. In April, 1861, he resolved 
upon the study of law, and accordingly 
registered as a student in the office of E. 
Smith, Jr., and General Russell Alger, at 
Grand Rapids, Michigan, but upon the 
breaking out of the war of the rebellion 
east his fortunes for the cause of his 
country, and accordingly, in July of 1861, 
he enlisted in a company being organized 
at Grand Rapids, which became known 
as the " Lincoln Cavalry," Company K, 
attached to the First New York Lincoln 
cavalrj'. Having served with distinc- 
tion in this department of the arm}-, in 
Jan., 1863, he was promoted to sec- 
ond lieutenant of Company D, Seventh 



Michigan cavaliy,which together with the 
First, Fifth and Sixth Michigan cavaliy, 
constituted the celebrated brigade, under 
the leadership of General George A. 
Custer, won such brilliant fame in the 
campaign of the Army of the Potomac. 
He returned home during the winter of 
1863-4, but the following spring re-en- 
listed in the Twenty-fifth New York 
cavalry regiment, and soon after was pro- 
moted to first lieutenant. On the 11th 
of July, 1864, during an engagement in 
front of Fort Stevens, he lost his left 
arm, this making the fourth wound he had 
received in the service. For meritorious 
conduct in this battle he was promoted to 
the rank of major. While confined to 
the hospital, undergoing treatment for 
his wounds, he was serving on detached 
duty, and remained in the service u^ to 
July, 1865. Now that the war was over 
he returned to reside in quiet and peace 
at INIarlboro, where he established him- 
self in the insurance business, and in 
connection with which he served as asses- 
sor of internal revenue of the district, 
comprising Monmouth county, from 1866- 
68, when he resigned to eiiter upon the 
study of law in the office of General 
Charles Haight, at Freehold, with Avhom 
he remained until admitted at February 
term, 1873. He at once located in prac- 
tice at Freehold, whore he remained up 
to May, 1875, when he became a law 
partner of Hon. John S. Ajiplegate, at 
Red Bank, with whom he remained four 
years, 1884-88, when the firm was dis- 
solved, whereupon Mr. Nevius associated 
with him Edward Wilson, Esq., a former 
student, which relation has lasted ever 
since. He was admitted as a counsellor 
in 1876. In recognition of his legal 
learning and ability, in 1896, Governor 
Griggs appointed him circuit court judge 



Biographical Sketches. 



81 



of Hudson county district, one of the 
most enviable positions in the judicial 
department of the state, in which posi- 
tion he is ably serving at the present 
time. In politics he is an uncompromis- 
ing republican, but never an aspirant for 
oflftce ; however-, after having several times 
refused the nomination for member of 
general assembly and once that of sena- 
tor, in 1887, upon the solicitation of his 
friends, he was induced to accept the 
nomination and was elected to the latter 
office, and in 1890, served as president of 
that body. He was specially active and 
useful as a public speaker during the presi- 
dential campaigns of 1880, 1884, and 
1888, having delivered during the latter 
campaign over sixty speeches, and he 
bears the enviable reputation of being 
one of the most eloquent political and 
Grand Army speakers in the state. He 
is a member and was one of the chief 
organizers of Arrowsmith Post, No. 61, 
G. A. K., in 1881, at Red Bank, and 
served as its commander up to 1884, 
when he was elected commander of the 
department of New Jersey, serving up 
to 1885, when he was re-elected by accla- 
mation. He married Dec. 27, 1871, 
Matilda H., a daughter of the late Wil- 
liam W.Herbert, of Marlboro, this county, 
and they have one daughter, Kate T. 

Judge Nevius,as asoldier and an officer, 
was possessed of a cool head and a bold 
courage which knew no fear, and he bears 
an enviable record. As a lawyer he is 
well versed in all the subtleties of the 
law, is careful in the preparation of his 
cases, is an eloquent pleader and true to 
his client. As a statesman, his ability 
and eloquence as a public speaker and 
debater soon won for him recognition as 
being one of the ablest and most popular 
men in the senate, which resulted in his \ 



I election as its president. As a juris 
his latest honor — he is able, broad-minded 
and impartial. 



TTENRY S. WHITE, ex-United States 
■*— •- district attorney, and a leading 
member of the Hudson county bar, with 
offices at Jersey City, but residing at 
Red Bank, Monmouth county, where he 
is an influential citizen, is a son of Isaac 
P. and Adaline (Simmons) White, and 
was born July 13, 1844, at Red Bank. 
The name is of English origin. His 
great-great-grandfather, Thomas White, 
and his great-grandfather, Thomas White, 
2d, were both well-known and prosper- 
ous farmers in Shrewsbury township, 
Monmouth county. His grandftither, 
Esek White, was well educated at New 
Yoi'k city, where he engaged in business, 
in addition to operating the family farm 
in Monmouth county. He was a staunch 
old-line whig, and a quaker by faith. 
His wife was Miss Ann Bessonet, daugh- 
ter of a prominent French family, by 
whom he had four children: Henry B., 
Esek T., Isaac P., and Caroline. 

Isaac P. White, our subject's father, 
was born in Shrewsbury township, Mon- 
mouth county, Api'il 7, 1804, and died 
at Jersey City, Jan. 27, 1876. In 
early life he was a clerk in Corliss & 
Allen's store at Shrewsbury town for 
some time, and subsequent!}^ removed to 
Brooklyn, New York, and organized the 
firm of Lippincott & White, which car- 
ried on a wholesale grocery business. 
He afterwards located at Red Bank as a 
member of the firm of Wooley & White, 
lumber dealers. They established the 
first lumber yard in this section of New 
Jersey, and did an extensive and lucra- 
tive business. He then removed, in 



82 



Biographical Sketches. 



1873, to Jersey City, where he lived qui- 
etly until his death, in 1876, in his sev- 
enty-second year. In politics he was an 
old-line whig and republican, and took 
an active interest in public matters. By 
religious faith he was a quaker, but his 
wife being a presbyterian, he attended 
the church of that denomination and 
helped to organize the Presbyterian 
church of Red Bank. He was an ensign, 
or third lieutenant, in the New York mi- 
litia for many years, and his commission 
is still in his son's possession. He was a 
prominent member of a lodge of 1. 0. 0. F. 
of Red Bank. His wife was Miss Ada- 
line Simmons, daughter of Abraham 
Simmons, who was born at Phelps, On- 
tario county. New York, on Aug. 26, 
1817, and died at Red Bank, May 7, 
1884. They had three children : Henry 
S., Theodore S., who died July 28, 1865, 
and James S., who died April 11, 1860. 

Henry S. White, subject of this sketch, 
received his preliminary education in the 
public schools of Red Bank, and then 
prepai'ed for college under private tutors 
at home. He took a course at the Col- 
lege of Physicians and Surgeons, New 
York city, and graduated in 1861, but 
did not immediately obtain his diploma 
on account of not having reached the 
required age of twenty-one years. He 
was appointed assistant surgeon in" tlie 
U. S. Army the last j-ear of the war, and 
retained that position until his discharge 
in July, 1865. He then spent some time 
in the women's hospital and the old New 
York hospital, New York city, until the 
spring of 1866, when he obtained his de- 
gree of M. D. He immediately entered 
upon the practice of his profession at 
Red Bank, and spent about two years 
there. In 1868 he returned to New 
York city and entered the law depart- 



ment of Columbia College, whence be 
graduated in May, 1870. He then en- 
tered the law office of William A. Lewis, 
at Jersey City, where he i-ead law until 
Feb., 1873. He was admitted to the bar 
for general pi'actice in New Jersey, in 
Nov., 1872, and as counsel]or-a1>law, in 
Nov., 1875. He opened an office in Jer- 
sey City on Feb. 1, 1873, in co-partner- 
ship with John Blair, and the firm contin- 
ued in business until Feb., 1878, when it 
was dissolved upon the appointment of 
Mr. Blair to the judiciary. Since that 
time Mr. AVhite has practiced independ- 
ently, and has a large and lucrative cli- 
entage. Between 1884 and 1890 he 
also had an office in New York city. 
Among important cases upon which Mr. 
White has been employed, one of the 
most notable, and the one which gave 
him greatest prominence, was the suit of 
the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western 
Railroad Company against the Hudson 
Tunnel Railway Company. The latter 
company being organized for tlie con- 
struction of a tunnel under the Hudson 
river between New York and Jersey 
City. The former company held that 
according to the provisions of the gen- 
eral railroad law, no company could be 
legally organized for the construction of 
such a tunnel, and that they further 
could exercise no riaht of eminent do- 
main. After a hard fight, and long and 
tedious litigation lasting several years, 
and passing through the court of chan- 
cery, the supreme court, the court of 
appeals and, lastly, the United States 
court, the latter comjjany receiving the 
decision of each, the work of construct- 
ing the tunnel was now allowed to jjro- 
ceed, but after two thousand feet had 
been constructed, financi.al difficulties 
forced a suspension of work, and the 



Biographical Sketches. 



85 



project, though a bold and novel one, yet 
entirely practicable, was never completed. 
Mr. White's victory in this celebrated 
case gave him a wide reputation. He is I 
a staunch republican in politics, and is 
actively identified with public affairs 
both in Monmouth and Hudson counties. 
In 1878 he was appointed collector of 
the port at Jersey City, which position 
he occupied for four years. In 1884 he 
removed to Red Bank, where he had previ- , 
ouslybuilta handsome residence. In 1890 ! 
he was appointed United States district 
attorney for the district of New Jersey, 
and administered the affairs of that office 
with vigor and renown until August, 
189-4, when a democrat succeeded him. 
Mr. White was a delegate to the Na- 
tional Republican Convention at Chica^ 
go, in 1888, and was secretary of the 
New Jersey delegation. He is a member 
of a lodge of F. and A. M., of Red Bank, 
and is a prominent member of Post No. 
61, G. A. R., of Red Bank, having been 
department commander of the G. A. R. 
of New Jersey in 1895 and 1896. He 
attends the Presbyterian church of Red 
Bank, and is president of the board of 
trustees. In 1878 he was married to 
Miss Annie H. McLean, daughter of ex- 
Judge A. C. McLean, of Freehold, and 
they have one daughter, Margaretta. 
Mr. White is talented and energetic, two 
qualities, to which his enviable success 
in life is largely due. He is popular and 
respected at Red Bank, and is well- 
known at Jersey City as one of the most 
active, forcible and eloquent pleaders in 
the local courts. 



HARKY C. PERRINE, president of 
the First National Bank of South 
Amboy, and a prominent potter and clay 



miner in that city, is a sou of John and 
Sarah D. (Appelget) Perrine, and was born 
March 6, 184.3, at Spotswood, Middle- 
sex county. New Jersey. The Perrine 
family is of French origin. Many years 
ago wheii the Edict of Nantes was pro- 
mulgated, France lost, and America wel- 
comed, one more Huguenot to her shores, 
in the person of one of the paternal an- 
cestors of our subject. He settled oir 
State n Island. 

Harry C. Perrine obtained his rudi- 
mentary education in the common schools 
at Spotswood, and subsequently became 
a student at Burlington College, Burling- 
ton, N. J., and at Columbia Grammar 
School, in New York city. In 1864 he 
went into business at South Amboy, 
which he carried on in a successful man- 
ner for three years, when he moved to 
New York city, and became a wholesale 
dealer in provisions. He returned to 
South Amboy in 1875, and purchased the 
Swan Hill Pottery, putting it in com- 
plete order and repair, and at once com- 
menced the manufacture and sale of 
earthenware, brown, yellow and stone- 
wares, which immediately became known 
and had ready market all over the Uni- 
ted States. In recent years the j^ottery 
business has become somewhat depressed. 
Tliis he ascribes to the changes in tariff 
legislation embodied in the Wilson Bill. 
He anticipates the enactment of a tariff 
bill by the ensuing Congress that will 
infuse fresh vitality into the pottery 
trade, and enable him in his works to 
employ a large number of hands. Mr. 
Perrine is also engaged very largely in 
clay mining, as well as in the successful 
cultivation of cranberries. He was chosen 
president of the First National Bank of 
South Amboy at the time of its organi- 
zation in 1888, in which responsible po- 



86 



Biographical Sketches. 



sition he continues up to the present 
time. In politics he is a republican, and 
naturally a believer in i\[cKinlejism and 
all that name implies. While taking an 
interest in elections he has had no desire 
for holding public office, having declined 
in numerous instances to be a candidate. 
He is a member of the Episcopal church 
at South Amboj, and a very active 
Christian worker. He is a member of 
St. Stephen's Lodge, No. 63, F. and A. 
M., as well as a companion of Scott Chap- 
ter, No. 4, Royal Arch Masons. He is 
also a Sir Knight in Coeur De Leon 
Commandery, Knights Templar, in New 
Brunswick, New Jerse}^ ; an ex-commo- 
dore of the South Amboy Yacht Club, 
etc. Mr. Perrine was married Feb. 13, 
1868, to Emma M.. daughter of Captain 
Charles Fish, treasurer and general agent 
of the Camden and Amboy Railroad, at 
South Amboy. Their son, Harry C, Jr., 
is engaged in the clay business with his 
father. The family residence, " Swan 
Hill," is situated on a beautiful eminence 
at the foot of Broadway, South Ambo}^, 
N. J., and commands a magnificent view i 
of Raritan and Princess bays. 

John Perrine, father of our subject, , 
was born near Matchaponix, New Jersey. 
His education was acquired in the com- 
mon schools. He became a land survey- 
or and a public functionary in the set- 
tlement of estates. In 1835 he surveyed 
and laid out the town of South Amboy. 
He served in both branches of the New 
Jersey legislature a number of terms, 
representing his county and district with 
marked ability. He was elected judge 
of the covirt of common pleas at New 
Brunswick, and presided with distin- 
guished ability for twelve years. He 
was also a manufacturer of snufF, and 
operated mills for its production with 



great success. He was engaged in mer- 
cantile pursuits for many years, and 
died Jan. 29, 1884, in the eighty-sixth 
year of his age. In all his undertakings 
he was very prosperous, and activity 
and shrewdness seemed stamped on every 
thing he touched, and he was a man 
noted for the excellence of his judgment. 
He had large holdings of real estate. 
He was a member of the Episcopal 
church of Spotswood, and early in life 
affiliated himself with the Masonic fra- 
ternity. He had four sons : Orlando, 
Thomas A., J. Baird, and Harry C, our 
subject. 

Harry C. Perrine inherits his father's 
great executive ability. He too pos- 
sesses his sire's capability to turn every- 
thing to good account. Possessing tact 
and enterprise, prudence safely stretched 
and liberality drawn at the proper line, 
he is a tower of strength to the bank of 
which he is the honored president. No 
man more thoroughly commands the re- 
spect and admiration of his fellow-towns- 
men than does Mr. Perrine. 



T EWIS T. HOWEL, president of the 
J-^ First National Bank of New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, and a prominent citi- 
zen of East Millstone, New Jersey, is a 
son of Joseph and Sarah S. Howel, 
and was born January 31, 1820, in 
Middlesex county. New Jersey. His 
paternal grandfather was a mechanic, 
and during his life followed tlie trade of 
a mason. In politics he was an old-line 
whig. His children were : Martin A., 
Stephen, Joseph, Elizabeth Vanderhof 
and Mar}', who was married, first, to 
James Dunn, and second, to Jacob Black- 
wey. His father, Joseph Howel, received 
a common-school education and followed 



Biographical Sketches. 



89 



the example of his father by learning 
the trade of a mason. After following 
this for some years he changed his occu- 
pation to that of a farmer, but finally 
became a merchant. He was politically 
an old-line whig, and afterwards became 
a republican. He took much interest in 
Christian work, and was not only a mem- 
ber but an elder and trustee of the Dutch 
Reformed church, after having been for 
some years a member of the Presbyterian 
church. To him and his wife were born 
three daughters and two sons : Lewis T., 
Stephen, Ann Eliza, deceased, Mary Jane, 
married to John Wilson, and Sarah. 

Lewis T. Howel has had what may be 
considered a remarkable career, and it 
serves to illustrate what native ability, 
by energy, perseverance and high moral 
character, can accomplish, even in the 
absence of what is considered as a liberal 
education. 

The subject of this sketch was obliged 
to content himself with what education ■ 
he could acquire at the public schools, 
which he left at the early age of fifteen 
years to begin his business life. 

He first secured employment as a 
clerk in a store, where he remained 
for four years, till 1837. He then went 
to learn the trade of a tailor at Plain- 
field, New Jersey. Owing to the general 
business depression which began that year 
he abandoned his trade and became en- 
gaged in farming. This he followed 
until 1844, when he began the manufac- 
ture of wall paper at New Brunswick, 
New Jersey, at which business he 
achieved an eminent degree of success, 
and continued in it for a period of eigh- 
teen years. He then embarked in the 
coal business at New Brunswick, which 
he maintained for three years, and sub- 
sequently went into the lumber business, 



continuing in this for eleven years. Hav- 
ing accumulated a fortune, he retired from 
active commercial life altogether, and re- 
moved to Millstone, as a place offering to 
him special inducements for a permanent 
residence, and in 1884 he was elected 
president of the National Bank of New 
Jersey. Of this bank he had been a 
director for twenty years. 

In his politics Mr. Howel is staunchly 
republican, although by no means a poli- 
tician. He has held a large number of 
township offices, as marks of honor con- 
ferred by his fellow-townsmen, and where 
the only inducement for him was the 
opportunity to be of service to them. 
He is an active Christian, a member of 
the Reformed church of Millstone, and 
one of its elders. On Oct. 21, 1846, Mr. 
Howel was joined in marriage to Juanna 
M. Wyckoff, and to them have been born 
two daughters : Gertrude, married to 
William E. Nuther, and Sarah. Mr. 
Howel represents a broad-minded conser- 
vative type of financiers, and as a bank 
official may be truly termed a working 
president, giving his personal attention 
to the details of the business, and intro- 
ducing into the contents of all the de- 
partments of the business the same 
systematic, correct and upright methods 
that are characteristic of all Mr. Howel's 
business relations. Under his incum- 
bency the First National Bank of New 
Jersey has justly risen to a front rank 
among the most solid and reliable finan- 
cial institutions of the state. 



HON. DANIEL C. CHASE, ex-sena- 
tor from Middlesex county. New 
Jersey, and ex-mayor of South Amboy, 
where he resides, is also one of the most 
substantial and successful business men 



90 



Biographical Sketches. 



in Middlesex county. He is the son of 
Holder T. and Phoebe Coy Chase, and 
was born May 4, 1850, at Broadalbin, 
New York. His great-grandfather, Jo- 
seph Chase, was a native of England, 
from which country he emigrated to 
America and settled at Fall River, Mas- 
sachusetts. He married a Miss Sowle, a 
Spanish lady. 

Stephen Chase, son of Joseph, was 
born in 1785 at Fall River, where he 
followed the occupation of a farmer and 
woodsman. In the prosecution of the 
latter branch of industry he was exten- 
sively and successfully employed in fur- 
nishing timber to contractoi's engaged in 
railroad and other construction business. 
He was an American patriot and a colo- 
nel in the war of 1812. In religion 
he was a baptist. He married Sarah 
Philips, by whom he had six sons : Ben- 
jamin, Holder T., Charles, Harvey, John 
L. and William. He died in 1850, his 
wife surviving him until 1862. 

Holder T. Chase, father of our subject, 
was born March 16, 1812, at Broadalbin, 
New York. He became a farmer by 
occupation, in which connection he was 
also a dealer in timber. He migrated to 
Michigan in 1866, and was engaged in 
agricultui'al pursuits at Quincy for the 
ensuing year, when he died. Politically 
he was a democrat, and in religion a 
baptist. He was twice married, and by 
his first wife, Phoebe Coy, who died in 
1853, he was the father of four children : 
Eliza A., Andrew J., Clarinda and Daniel 
C, our subject. His second wife, Chally 
Pawling, bore him two sons : Holder and 
Benjamin. 

Daniel C. Chase, after attending the 
public schools in his native town until 
the age of thirteen years, worked on a 
farm in Cayuga county. New York, for 



about one year. He then went to New 
York city, where he obtained a position 
as night watchman for the Delaware and 
Raritan Canal steamboats, from which 
humble position he has been gradually 
promoted until he obtained his present 
responsible one of superintendent of the 
Delaware and Raritan Canal (Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad Co.) steam-towing, with 
offices at 129 Broad street. New York. 
He has a thorough knowledge of boat^ 
ing, is well versed in admiralty law, is 
an engineer and telegraph operator, the 
originator of the duplex sj^stem of col- 
lecting towage, also of the smoke-stack 
signs for distinguishing different lines ot 
steamboats, is associated in the patent 
right of the Practical Rocking Grate 
Bars, which are almost universally used 
on water and to a large extent on land. 
He has originated various transportation 
and shipbuilding companies, besides var- 
ious other business enterprises of minor 
importance. He was for several years 
president of the South Amboy board of 
trade, and is also extensively interested 
in real estate. He is a member of St. Ste- 
phen's Lodge, No. 63, F. and A. M., at 
South Amboy, Mt. Zion Chapter, R. A. M., 
of New York, and York Commandery, 
Knights Templar. Besides, he is a mem- 
ber of various social clubs and organiza- 
tions. He was one of the originators of 
the South Amboy First National Bank, 
chartered in 1890, and has served as a 
director ever since. In political texture 
the senator is a staunch democrat, and 
has acquired much prominence as a 
political leader in local, county and state 
politics. Among the numerous positions 
with which his constituents have honored 
him were the following : Chosen free- 
holder for one term, 1884 ; and senator 
from Middlesex county, elected in 1885 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



91 



for tliree years. As a member of this 
body he drafted and, after a hard struggle 
on the senate floor, secured the passage 
of a bill organizing the borough of South 
Amboy in 1887. Much opposition was 
encountered in the undertaking, and it 
was largely due to the personal efforts of 
Mr. Chase that the organization was 
effected. That his purpose was well 
merited and the results appreciated is 
evidenced in the fact that upon his re- 
tirement from the senate he was five 
times elected to succeed himself as mayor. 
In 1888 he was elected commissioner of 
pilotage, with oflfices at Jersey City, in 
which position, as president of the board, 
he is serving at the present time. In 
1894 he was nominated for Congress 
from the Third Congressional district, but 
refused to accept the candidacy. He en- 
joys a wide range of prosperity, regard- 
less of party faith, and, as a citizeia, 
commands the highest respect of all who 
know him. He has been especially po- 
tent in the local, civil and industrial 
affairs of his town, being always ear- 
nestly identified with all wortliy move- 
ments or enterprises brought forward for 
the promotion of the interests of the 
town and community. He married, Aug. 
2, 1880, Miss Emma E., daughter of 
Stephen H. and Helen C. Thompson 
Fuller, of Broadalbin, New York, for 
many years a traveling salesman. Mr. 
and Mrs. Chase have one child, a daugh- 
ter, Lulu. 



HON. PATRICK CONVERT, a life-long 
democrat, ex-member of the New 
Jersey legislature and ex-sheriff of Mid- 
dlesex county, now residing at Perth 
Amboy, is also one of the well-known 
men in the political and industrial affairs 



of the state, having served in various 
public positions of honor and trust within 
the gift of the city and county for over 
thirty years, and during intervals of the 
same time and ever since has been promi- 
nent in business circles of Perth Amboy. 
He was born in Ireland, on May 16, 1841, 
his 23arents being Cornelius and Mary 
Convery. His father died when he was 
but an infant of fifteen months, and at 
the age of ten years he came to this 
country with his mother, landing at New 
York December 8, 1851, and located in 
Perth Amboy two days later. Here he 
received a rudimentary education in the 
public schools, but he was compelled when 
yet quite young to part from teachers and 
school-mates and begin the battle of life. 
After working at various employments 
from time to time, he became apprenticed 
to a firm in New York, then engaged in 
the business of marble cutting; abandon- 
ing later this employment, young Convery 
returned to Perth Amboy and assisted his 
brother, then engaged in the hotel and 
livery business, until 1858. From that 
time until 1860 he lived in New Bruns- 
wick with his sister. On the death of 
his brother in September of that year, 
Patrick, then in his nineteenth year, 
assumed the fulfillment of his brother's 
contract for carrying the United States 
mails between Perth Amboy and Rah way. 
He continued in this service until July 1, 
1864, making one trip daily ; in 1861 the 
postmaster-general increased the service 
to two trips daily. He faithfully served 
the public on his eight-mile route through 
all kinds and conditions of weather, miss- 
ing but one trip in the entire four years, 
jogging along on horseback, sometimes 
carrying one hundred and seventy pounds 
oT mail matter in his sack. During this 
pei-iod, using a carriage part of the time, 



92 



Biographical Sketches. 



he had the pleasure of carrying many of 
the prominent and distinguished men of 
the day, among the number being Horace 
Greeley, Garrett Smith, W. Lloyd Garri- 
son, and the late Governor R. S. Green. 
This, of course, was before the advent of 
the railroad to Perth Amboy. In 1865 
he entered upon his political career by 
assuming the positions of constable and 
tax collector, to which he had been 
elected ; he also filled the position of 
street commissioner and of treasurer of 
the school fund, and fulfilled those func- 
tions until 1876. From 1868 to 1873 his 
duties were added to bj- Judge E. W. 
Scudder, who appointed Mr. Convery 
court crier of Middlesex county. In 1876 
he was elected to fill a vacancy on the 
board of aldermen, and was subsequently 
re-elected to a full term of three years, 
serving in that capacity a total of four 
and a half years. He served the terms 
of 1878-1879 in the legislature of New 
Jersey with marked credit to himself and 
to his constituents. Mr. Convery pur- 
chased the interest of Mr. Hall in the 
firm of W. Hall & Co., grocers and hard- 
ware dealers. In 1879 he disposed of his 
interest in the grocery business and en- 
gaged in the ship chandler}- and coal 
business, in which he is still engaged. 
Mr. Convery resigned the position of city 
treasurer of Perth Amboy in 1884, having 
been appointed by the cit}' council the 
May previous, to take the office of sheriff 
of Middlesex county, to which his friends 
had elected him, and which he occupied 
three years. In 1889 he made another 
successful political campaign, resulting in 
his election to an office not less honorable 
and remunerative than that of the shriev- 
alty — the county clerkship of Middlesex, 
which office he held five years. And during 
such an active, eventful life, in business 



and politics, Mr. Convery has found time 
to devote considerable attention to several 
business and financial institutions. He has 
served as a director of the Middlesex 
County Bank for a period of thirteen years; 
is second vice-president and a manager 
of the Perth Amboy Savings Institution 
at the present time, and is president of the 
Perth Amboy Gaslight Companj'. He has 
been a member of the board of health of 
Perth Amboy for four years, and its presi- 
dent for two years. The career of Honor- 
able Patrick Convery from apprentice boy 
to sheriff, and to a commanding position in 
commercial, financial and political circles, 
is a revelation of possibilities for aspiring 
youth of this country. 



TD S. VAN ANGLEN, of the firm of 
-*- • Van Anglen & Kent, an exten- 
sive grocer, and a representative business 
man of New Brunswick, New Jerse}', was 
born at Raritan Landing, on March 25, 
1843, and is a son of Cornelius and Han- 
nah Van Anglen, his paternal ancestry 
being Holland Dutch. His paternal grand- 
father, Cornelius Van Anglen, was an 
enterprising merchant in New Brunswick, 
owning what was known as the Bull's 
Head hotel ; a member of the Dutch Re- 
formed church, and an old-line whig in 
politics until the dissolution of that party, 
when he naturall}" joined the republi- 
cans. His children were : John, Suydam, 
Cornelius, Charles, Cynthia, Sarah and 
Maria. Father of our subject, Cornelius 
Van Anglen, born July 29, 1813, received 
a common school education, and then 
went to the state of Kentucky, where he 
secured a clerkship in a general store, 
and also followed the occupation of a far- 
mer. After remaining west for some 
time he returned to Newr BrunsAvick, and 



Biographical Sketches. 



95 



entered mercantile life, remaining there 
until his death, which occurred on May 
19, 1872, his wife's death having preceded 
his, on April 21, 1860. Eleven children 
blessed their marriage union, as follows : 
Sarah, married to John Booraein ; Charles, 
deceased; Jane Maria, deceased ; Cynthia, 
married to William S. Provost, a gallant 
soldier in the late war, who served in nu- 
merous engagements, received several 
wounds, and at its close was captain, 
and I'esided at New Brunswick ; Ed- 
ward, James, Susan M., Samuel, Peter S., 
Anna, Charles C, and Julia D. 

P. S. Van Anglen, after his graduation 
from the public schools, became a clerk in 
the grocery store of Martin Ne-vius, New 
Brunswick, for a period, and then accepted 
a similar position with A. F. Eandolph, 
with whom he remained ten years. He 
then ventured into business for himself 
in partnership with Nahum Kent, the 
firm name being Van Anglen & Kent. 
This partnership continued for one year 
and a half, when it was dissolved. Mr. 
Van Anglen associated himself with Mr. 
Ballard for two years, and then with 
Isaac Martin, in the same line of business, 
with whom he remained for seven years. 
In 1876 he again established the firm of 
Van Anglen & Kent, and has continued 
in the grocery business under that firm 
name ever since, and at present they have 
one of the largest trades of its kind in 
New Brunswick. His former partner, 
Mr. Kent, recently died, but the business 
is being continued under the same firm 
name. 

Mr. Van Anglen is an active political 
worker, following the fortunes of the 
Eepublican party, and has three times 
been elected a member of the board of 
freeholders, and twice to the board of 
aldermen. He is a member of the board 



of trade ; of the Mei'chants' association, 
of which body he was president for three 
years. He is a member of the United 
American Workmen, and of the Baptist 
church, of which he is, and has been for 
thirteen years, a trustee. Mr. Van Anglen 
is an active Christian, foremost in all 
movements for the benefit of his church 
and city, a good citizen and a substantial, 
prosperous business man. He married 
Lenora Kent, daughter of Phineas and 
Catherine Kent, Nov. 15, 1865, and they 
have three children : Cornelius, Louis M., 
and Effie C. 

Mr. Van Anglen is an example of a 
thoroughly self-made man, practical in 
his views and enterprising. He is of 
proverbial honesty, fair dealing and abso- 
lute reliability, while, as a citizen, he is 
equally steadfast and faithful to all the 
demands of good citizenship. 



WILLIAM H. Mccormick, a pro- 
minent citizen and a leading mer- 
chant of Middlesex county, residing at 
Perth Amboy, New Jersey, is the son of 
Patrick and Sarah Espey McCormick. 
His father, Patrick McCormick, came 
from Tubbamore, Ireland, to this country 
about 1821, and landed at Perth Amboy, 
where he immediately secured employ- 
ment as a cooper, which trade he had 
leai-ned in the old country. It was but 
a short time before Mr. McCormick en- 
tered the oyster business, and he was a 
pioneer in shipping oysters inland, as he 
made the first wooden keg used for that 
purpose in the state of New Jersey. 
Although Mr. McCormick never -aspired 
to political honoi's, he was an active 
democrat, and served as school trustee 
at one time. His first wife, Sarah Espey, 
who died at Perth Amboy, of cholera, in 



96 



Biographical Sketches. 



1851, bore liim seven children: Esther ' 
Guinness, Catharine, Bertram, Mary Jane, 
Schenck, Anna Mallon, wife of Brigadier 
General James E. Mallon, of Brooklyn, 
New York; James, who died when fifteen 
years of age; Sarah, who died when seven 
years of age, and William H. His second 
wife was Mary Brophy, of New York 
city. 

William H., the subject of this sketch, 
was born at Perth Amboy, New Jersey, 
March 26, 1847. He attended the pub- 
lic schools and Woodbridge Hall, but left 
school at the age of fourteen years, and 
entered the employ of John Manning, at 
Perth Amboy, as a clerk, with whom he 
remained for a short time, when he en- 
gaged with William Hall and J. B. Ford, 
in the grocery business. Mr. McCormick 
remained with this firm for two years, 
and then accepted a clerkship with Jacob 
Knapp and Isaac V. Briggs, of New York 
city. His employers soon recognized his 
ability, and at the expiration of a few 
months placed the entire management 
of their business in his hands. Two 
and a half years later he engaged with 
R. L. Leggett & Co., wholesale grocers 
of New York, with whom he remained 
until 1868, when he returned to Perth 
Amboy, and entered into partnership 
with William Hall, under the firm 
name of William Hall & Co. After a 
lapse of five years, in 1873, Mr. Patrick 
Convery bought Mr. Hall's interest in 
the business, and the firm continued to 
do business under the name of McCor- 
mick & Co., until the year 1879, when Mr. 
McCormick purchased Mr. Convery 's en- 
tire interest in all their many business 
ventures, which included two stores and 
two coal yards. In 1884 he moved from 
No. 40 to No. 82 Smith street, where he 
now conducts the largest general mercan- 



tile business in Perth Amboy, represent- 
ing a trade of over $100,000 a year, which 
is without doubt the most extensive mer- 
cantile business in Middlesex county. 
Mr. McCormick is a democrat and a 
member of the Tax-payers' Association. 
He has been so occupied by his personal 
business interests that he has never taken 
any active part in politics. On the 23d 
day of Oct., 1872, Mr. McCormick was 
married to Miss Katharine, daughter of 
Mr. Manus McNulty, of New York city, 
and their happy union has been blessed 
by the birth of thirteen children : William 
M., deceased ; Edward M., Madeline, 
Katharine L., Harry, Rose, Anna, Wil- 
liam H., Jr., Frances Kelley, deceased ; 
Grace, Francis Leggett, Claire and Helen. 
Perth Amboy may well be proud of Mr. 
McCormick's success in business. He is 
a man who has made his own way in the 
world, one of those citizens to whom 
Americans proudly refer as self-made 
men. His pluck and perseverance are a 
practical lesson to all young men, and 
his business inspires others with the hope 
of like attainment. As a business man 
he is industrious, energetic and shrewd; 
socially he is affable, congenial and justly 
popular. 



TTON. DAVID DEMOREST DE NISE, 
-*— *- ex-member of the assembly and 
at present the efficient president of 
the state board of agriculture of New 
Jersej', is a son of John Schanck and 
Cathei'ine Thompson De Nise, and was 
born in Freehold township, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, Sept. 23, 1840. 
Tunis Nyssen came from Utrecht, Hol- 
land, on the Mayfiower, about 1 630, and 
located on Long Island, but subsequently 
came to Monmouth county, and settled 




J)^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



99 



in Freehold township, where the old 
homestead mansion is still standing and 
in a good state of preservation. In this 
old mansion house our subject's paternal 
grandfather, Daniel De Nise, was born, 
and resided all his life, operating a farm 
of six hundred acres, a part of the orig- 
inal tract. He was a man of consider- 
able means, a staunch whig, served forty 
years as county collector, was a commis- 
sioned officer in the war of the revolu- 
tion, and a member of the Reformed 
church at Marlboro. He married Jane 
Schanck, and passed away in 1823, aged 
seventy years, twenty-three years after 
the demise of his wife, who died in 1800 
at the age of forty-six. Their children 
were Garrett, Catharine, William, Jane, 
Sarah, Ursilla, Daniel, John, De Nise, 
Elias, deceased, 1896 ; Benjamin, and 
Mary Ann, all deceased. 

The father of our subject, John Schanck 
De Nise, was born on the old homestead 
in the old mansion house, in 1796, and 
resided there up to the time of his retire- 
ment to Freehold, where he lived until 
the time of his death. He was a farmer 
and a man of ample means, a republican 
politically, and served as town commis- 
sioner of Freehold for many years. He 
was a member of the Reformed church at 
Freehold, held many important offices, 
among which were deacon, elder and oth- 
ers, and was a liberal financial supporter 
of the church. He was also a member 
of the Home Guards, taking part in the 
drill and duties of that organization. He 
married Catharine Thompson, and died 
Dec. 31, 1881, aged eighty-seven years, 
two years later than his wife, who passed 
away in 1879, aged seventy-nine years. 
The following 'ihildren were the result 
of this union : Tunis, William, deceased ; 
Daniel, Margaret Ann, Avho died at six 

7 



years of age ; Sarah Jane Jackson, John 
H., who resides at Freehold ; Rusha, who 
died at three years of age ; Sydney, de- 
ceased; our subject, and Rusha, deceased. 

Our subject received his education in 
the public schools and at Freehold Insti- 
tute. After leaving school he married 
and started farming on his own account 
in Freehold township, on a farm upon 
which the battle of Monmouth was 
fought, one mile from Freehold, and still 
owns and operates this farm, making a 
specialty of fruit growing. He owns two 
hundred and twenty-five acres, comjjris- 
ing the old homestead farm, on his ma- 
ternal side. Having resided on this farm 
six years, our subject removed to Free- 
hold, where he has since lived, but still 
operates the farm, located near the town. 

Our subject is a republican in politics, 
and has always been solicitous for the 
success of his party. He was elected a 
member of the legislature in 1893, dur- 
ing the celebrated "race track" cam- 
paign, and was the first republican as- 
semblyman elected in his district. As 
president of the Citizens' Reform League, 
comprised of both democrats and re- 
publicans, he received strong support. 
He was elected on the platform of the 
anti-race-track foi'ces, thus making his 
election one of the most notahle in the 
history of the district. In 1894 he was 
re-elected by a twelve-hundred majority 
against a four-hundred majority for the 
first term, when the county was strongly 
democratic. One of Mr. De Nise's victoi'- 
ies in the legislature was the defeat of the 
bill for the division of the county. He 
prepared and secured the passage of the 
Dog License bill, which has saved the 
state many thousands of dollars. He 
championed the famous Tuberculosis 
bill and secured its passage by a A^ote of 



100 



Biographical Sketches. 



forty-three for and nine against. Mr. 
De Nise became very popular and was 
very favorably mentioned for speaker of 
the house. He was a member of the com- 
mittee on railroads during the second 
term. He is a member of the board of 
commissioners of Freehold and is presi- 
dent of the New Jersey state board of ag- 
riculture, with which organization he has 
been connected for fourteen years, serv- 
ing six years as treasurer. Mr. De Nise 
has always been very actively identified 
with the agricultural interests of the 
country, and is chairman of the state 
tuberculosis commission, established in 

1894 by the legislature. He is a mem- 
ber of the state museum commission, 
which was created by the legislature in 

1895 for the purpose of establishing said 
museum at Trenton. Our subject intro- [ 
duced this bill in the house during his 
second term, and has ever since been a 
very active worker on the committee, 
which consists of five members appointed 
by the legislature. He is one of the 
directoi's of the New Jersey experimental 
stations at New Brunswick, and a mem- 
ber of the board of visitors to the State 
Agricultural College, both of the above 
positions being by appointment by the 
governor. Mr. De Nise has always taken j 
an active interest in the county agricul- 
tural institutes of the state ; has been a 
member of the farmers' grange of Mon- i 
mouth county, and has done much to ] 
improve the administration and workings 
of the state agricultural associations, 
which liave been more or less under the 
vitiating infiuences of politicians. He 
inaugurated an administration by the 
farmers, and his recent election to office 
marks the beginning of the prosjaerity of 
the associations in the state, all of which 
now compare very favorably with the 



agricultural associations of the country. 
His purpose is to improve the condition 
of the farmer and raise the standard of 
agriculture in general. 

The subject of our sketch was an ac- 
tive member of the Valiant fire depart- 
ment at Freehold for fourteen years, and 
since has been a member of the Exempt 
Firemen's Association, serving as presi- 
dent for several years and at present. He 
has been a member of the Holland Soci- 
ety since March 9, 1888. Following the 
religious instincts and traditions of his 
family and his early training, Mr. De Nise 
became a member of the Reformed church 
at the age of eighteen. He was a regu- 
lar attendant at Sunday school, served 
as superintendent of the same for many 
years and as teacher for ten years, con- 
tinuing thus at present. He has held all 
church offices within the range of lay- 
men, ably filling the positions of deacon 
and elder. On Jan. 20, 1864, he married 
Miss Julia P., daughter of Abel Taylor, 
the result of this union being one child, 
Edith, who died at the early age of three 
years. 

n^HEODORE AUMACK, clerk of the 
-*~ courts of Monmouth countj', and a 
prosperous carriage-builder of Kej'port, 
is a son of John and Elizabeth (Stillwell) 
Aumack, and was born Oct. 30, 1831, 
near Mt. Pleasant, Mattawan township, 
Monmouth county. He received a com- 
mon-school education, but left school at 
the age of seventeen years to serve an 
apprenticeship at carriage-making with 
James Tice, near Holmdell, Monmouth 
county. After serving a short time here 
he worked at Mattawan and afterwards 
at Keyport under instructions, and, 
finally, in 1851, became foreman for ]\Ir. 
Timothy Cashart, which position he filled 



Biographical Sketches. 



101 



for five years. He next formed a co- 
partnership with Hon. J. W. Herbert, 
ex-lay judge of Monmouth county, and 
under the firm name of Herbert & Au- 
mack, conducted the largest carriage 
factory in the county for ten years, em- 
ploying twenty-five men, and doing an 
extensive order business. In 1872 this 
firm was dissolved, and Mr. Aumack con- 
tinued the business alone up to the time 
when he was elected to his present posi- 
tion. He is a staunch democrat, and has 
always been active in the local councils 
of that party. He served for two years 
as a chosen freeholder of Raritan town- 
ship, for three years as a trustee of the 
Raritan township graded school, and 
for several years as a member of the 
township committee. He was one of the 
commissioners for the borough of Key- 
port for several terms, and in 1884 was 
elected sheriff of Monmouth county for \ 
one term. In 1892 he was appointed 
county clerk to fill the vacancy of eleven 
months' unexpired term caused by the 
death of John T. Height, and in Nov., 
1893, was elected to the office over his 
opponent, Peter Freeman, the candidate 
of the Citizens' league. Mr. Aumack is 
a recognized leader in county politics, 
having been in the forefront of all party 
movements during the past thirty years. 
He is a popular man socially, and is a 
member of Csesarea Lodge, No. 64, F. 
and A. M., and of Delta Chapter, Royal 
Arch Masons. He was married in March, [ 
1854, to Catherine E. Stoney, and they 
have two children. Norma and GifFord B. 
The Aumack family is of Holland 
Dutch origin, and the original American 
ancestors were two brothers who came to 
this country prior to the Revolution, and 
settled temporarily on Long Island. All 1 
of the name in the United States are de- 



scendants of these two brothers. One of 
them subsequently removed to Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, and located at Port 
Monmouth, and many of his descend- 
ants, of whom our subject is one, still live 
in that vicinity and at Tom's River. 

Jacob Aumack, the paternal grand- 
father of our subject, was a native of 
Port Monmouth, and was a miller by 
trade, following this occupation during 
all the active portion of his life. He 
operated the Arrowsmith mills at Port 
Monmouth for many years, and after- 
wards the Peacock mills at Mt. Pleasant 
up to his retirement, many years prior to 
his death. He was a democrat, and took 
an active part in the training of the local 
militia. His wife was Miss Lydia Cole, by 
whom he had seven children : Garrett, 
Richard, Stephen, Joel, John, Catherine 
Simmons, and Lydia. He died at the age 
of eighty-four years, highly respected and 
universally esteemed for his sterling 
worth as a man and citizen. His wife fol- 
lowed him at the same age, and the family 
generally has been noted for longevity'. 

John Aumack, father of our subject, 
was born at Port Monmouth, and was a 
carpenter and builder, following that 
trade all his life. Like the other male 
members of the family, he was a demo- 
crat in politics, and an active participant 
in local public affairs. Early in life he 
removed with his father to Mt. Pleasant, 
and passed the greater part of his career 
there. He was married to Elizabeth 
Stillwell, and they had three sons and 
one daughter : Watson, deceased ; Lydia, 
wife of William Bailey, a waterman re- 
siding at Oceanic, New Jersey; Theo- 
dore, our subject, and William, deceased. 
He died at the age of seventy-tw^o years, 
his wife having preceded him at the age 
of thirty-five years. 



102 



Biographical Sketches. 



QOUTHWELL ROYCE FARRINGTON, 
^ a. son of David and Mary V. (Many) 
Farrington, was born on May 23, 1849, 
at Denning, Ulster county, in the state 
of New York. 

Tiie family is of Ii'ish descent on pater- 
nal side, and on the maternal side of \ 
German origin, the immigrant ancestors 
having come to this country two hundred 
and fifty years ago. The paternal side 
located at Freyburg, in the state of Maine, 
and maternal side in Ulster county. New 
Y^ork. John Farrington, the paternal 
great-grandfather, came from Concord, ; 
New Hampshire, when a young man. 
He married Nancy, a daughter of Captain 
Vere Royce, and by wdiom he had the 
following children: John, born Nov. 4, 
1794, died Oct. 24, 1822; Vere Royce, 
born Jan. 4, 1797, died Sept. 8, 1869; 
Jonathan, born Jan. 30, 1799, died Nov. 
9, 1820; Henry Stevens, born March 10, 
1801, died Dec. 29, 1802; Nancy Royce, 
born March 30, 1803, died Jan. 14, 1886; 
Henry, born March 5, 1805, died 1828; 
Southwell, born Feb. 27, 1807, died Aug. 
14, 1872; Samuel Ayer Bradley, born 
March 26, 1811, died Oct. 5, 1882; Enoch 
Chandler, born Dec. 14, 1813, died Dec. 
13, 1870; Mary Ann Chandler, born Aug. 
21, 1818, and Jonathan Edward. John 
Farrington died on Jan. 11, 1833, being ; 
survived l)y his wife twenty years, she 
dying on March 21, 1853. They are 
both buried at Fall Bridge, so called 
Freyburg, in the lot of Southwell R. Far- j 
rington, their son. The maternal great- 
grandfather of Southwell R. Farrington 
was Captain Vere Royce, commissioned 
lieutenant in the Fortieth regiment. He 
servedwitli creditand distinction through- 
out the war between England and France 
in Canada. For services rendered in 
that war. he received the grant of a tract 



of land comprising about 2,000 acres on 
the Saco river, upon which now stands 
the town of Bartlet, New Hampshire. 
He was a profound mathematicican, and 
in times of peace followed the profession 
of civil engineer and surveyor. He was 
a musician of no mean ability, a special 
talent which the entire family seemed to 
have inherited. He was twice married; 
his first marriage to an English lady was 
without issue. He married for his second 
wife a Miss Richard, daughter of Captain 
Richai'd, a lady of rare beauty and fine 
educational attainments. He died on 
Sept. 23, 1810, and was buried near Frey- 
burg Centre. Maine. He left two child- 
ren, Vere and Nancy. 

Captain Vere Royce, maternal grand- 
father, married Miss Wiley and lived at 
Augusta, Maine, where he was engaged 
for some time in the hotel business, but 
subsequently removed to Mercer, where 
he became engaged in teaching school. 
While located here, he was appointed 
captain of the Mercer militia. He had 
five children: Henry, Vere, William, 
Southwell and Mary Ann. From Mer- 
cer he removed to Ohio, where for .some 
time he followed the ministry of the Bap- 
tist church. The daughter, Nancy, mar- 
ried John Farrington, the paternal great- 
grandfather of Southwell R. Farrington, 
the subject of this sketch. 

Vere Royce Farrington, the paternal 
grandfather of Southwell Royce Farring- 
ton, was born at Freyburg, Maine, on 
Jan. 14, 1797. He married Miss Hannah 
A. Baker, also of Freiburg, who was born 
March 28, 1813, and died April 5, 1880. 
They, lived all their lives at Freyburg, 
and were zealous su2)porters of the Con- 
gregational church, to Avhich denomina- 
tion they belonged. He was a man of 
fine intellectual ability, of genial manner, 



Biographical Sketches. 



105 



and universally loved and esteemed by 
all who knew him. Their children were 
Vere Royce, born March 18, 1821, died 
May 5, 1828; David Bradley, born Feb. 
5, 1823; Margaret, born March 8, 1826, 
died May 28,1872; John, born April 19, 
1828, died Oct., 1828; Southwell, born 
April 19, 1831; Enoch Chandler, born 
July 28, 1834; Joseph Wilson Barker, 
born Oct. 9, 1836, died Oct., 1865; and 
Eliza Gordon, born Sept. 18, 1843. 

David Bradley Farrington, father of 
subject, was born Feb. 5, 1823. at Frey- 
burg, Maine. He received his educational 
training in the public schools of Freyburg 
until he attained the age of seventeen 
years, when he went with his father to 
Massachusetts, where he resided until 
1844, when he removed to Ulster county. 
New York. Here he became at that 
time one of the pioneers in the settlement 
and development of the hitherto rich and 
fertile section about the present site of 
Denning, and became one of the founders 
of that thriving and important town. 
Here he became extensively identified 
with various industrial enterprises. As- 
sociated with Mr. J. W. Smith, he was 
for many years extensively engaged in 
the lumber business in that county. Sub- 
sequently, be became travelling agent for 
the Meti'opolitan Manufacturing Com- 
pany, of New York City, and remained | 
associated with them in that capacity up 
to 1885. In Aug. of 1889, he removed 
with his family to Perth Aniboy, New 
Jersey, where he established the lumber 
business, so ably conducted at present by 
his son, who became associated with him 
in 1889. In 1892, owing to advanced I 
years, he decided to retire from the cares 
and worries of business life, and accord- 
ingly removed to Newark, where he en- 
joys acompetencyin well-earned and quiet 



retirement. He has been a life-long 
democrat until I'ecently, since when he 
has advocated the Republican party. 
During his early life he held many local 
appointments always with credit and 
honor, and was at all times a firm up- 
holder of his party. Possessed of consid- 
erable intelligence, he always kept him- 
self well-posted in political and social 
matters, and was always keenly inter- 
ested in the welfare of his party. He is 
a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, of which both himself and wife 
are staunch supporters. During the late 
rebellion he took an active part in uphold- 
ing the constitution, raising recruits, and 
supporting it largely with time and 
money. He had four children, three 
sons and one daughter : Southwell Royce, 
born May 23, 1849; John Vicary, born 
Sept. 5, 1854; Emma G., born March 15, 
1862, and Ross B., born July 15, 1865. 
Southwell Royce Farrington received his 
education in the district schools of Napa- 
noch, Ulster county, New York, up to the 
age of sixteen, when he found employ- 
ment as package boy in a store in New 
York. He soon, however, gave that up, 
and determined on learning mechanical 
engineering. He soon became proficient, 
possessing genius and great ability. In 
1878 he settled at Little Falls, Herkimer 
county, where he remained practicing his 
profession until 1889, when he came to 
Perth Amboy to become associated with 
his father in the lumber business. Upon 
his father's retirement, George D. Runyon 
became associated with hira, and the firm 
then became the Farrington & Runyon 
Company, with Southwell R. Farrington, 
president; George B. Runyon, treasurer, 
and Bradley W. Farrington, his son, sec- 
retary. The company carries all kinds 
of lumber and building materials, and is 



106 



Biographical Sketches. 



a highly pi'osperous concern, eniploj'ing a 
number of men. He is a staunch repub- 
lican, and has taken a very active part 
in 2;)olitics. since 1880, although he has 
never sought or held office except locally, 
where his influence could do the most 
good. He has twice been elected a mem- 
ber of the board of aldermen, and is at 
present president of the board. He has 
man}- times been a member of the Re- 
publican county committee, and in 1896 
was elected a member of the board of free- 
holders of Middlesex county. He is a very 
prominent member of the Royal Arca- 
num. He is also a very active member and 
generous supporter of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church. He has always been prom- 
inent in everything for the good of the 
communities in which he has lived, and 
was the prime mover in the organization 
of the Perth Amboy board of trade, of 
which he is the able president. He is 
an excellent musician, and his musical 
talents have in no small degree descended 
upon his children, who are exceptional!}' 
brilliant performers instrumentally. In 
■ 1S71 he was married to Miss Mary A., 
daughter of Peter P. Mclntire, of Rail- 
way, New Jersey, and their union has 
been blessed with three children: Brad- 
ley W.; Augusta M., highly accomplished 
on the piano, and Clara E., who is a stu- 
dent under Prof. Gustav Dannreuther, of 
New York, an eminent violinist. 



"TAR. ISAAC STOVER LONG, a lead- 
-^-^ ing ph3sician of Monmouth county, 
practicing at Freehold, New Jersey, is a 
son of James M., whose father was Judse 
William Long, of Durham, Bucks county, 
Pennsylvania, and who.se mother was 
Salome Stover, a daughter of Henry 
Stover of the same county. 



Dr. Long was born June 28, 1839, at 
Hughsville, Warren county. New Jersey. 
Received his earl}' education in the pub- 
lic schools of Hughsville, and later at 
Easton, Pennsylvania. During intervals 
he worked upon the farm, and at the age 
of eighteen took up the occujiation of 
teaching, and for five years taught the 
Hughsville school. In 1863 he regis- 
tered with Dr. C. Shepherd as a student 
of medicine, but soon entered the medical 
department of the L^niversity of Penn- 
.sylvania, from whicli he graduated in 
March, 1866 ; the same year located 
in the practice of his profession at Eng- 
lishtown. New Jersey, and remained up 
to the spring of 1872, when he returned 
to Freehold, where he has continued ever 
since in the active practice of his profes- 
sion. He makes no specialt}-, but does a 
general practice, in which he has been 
eminently successful. He has been presi- 
dent of the Monmouth Medical Society, a 
member of the State Medical Society, the 
American Medical Association, and coun- 
ty physician of Monmouth county for ten 
years. He is a progressive, industrious 
student of his profession, and has con- 
tributed various articles on professional 
subjects to the transactions of the Medi- 
cal Society of New Jersey. He is ex- 
aminer for the following reputable insur- 
ance companies : The North Western 
Mutual, the New York Mutual Reserve, 
the Mutual Reserve Fund of New York, 
the Provident Life and Trust Company 
of Philadelphia, the Manhattan Life, be- 
sides numerous others of minor import- 
ance. He is director in the Central Na- 
tional Bank of Freehold, and is interested 
in various other civil and industrial enter- 
prises about the town. He is a trustee 
of the Young Ladies' Seminary at Free- 
hold. Politically he is a democrat, and 



Biographical Sketches. 



107 



religiously he is a member of the Presby- 
terian church at Freehold, as is also his 
wife. 



ny/TAJOR JAMES STERLING YARD, 
-^-^ son of the late Captain Joseph A. 
Yard, was born in the city of Trenton, 
April 20, 1826. He received his pre- 
liminary education from books at Tren- 
ton Academy, and left school at the age 
of fourteen to act as bookkeeper for his 
father in the auction business. He after- 
wards entered the T?nie American office 
to learn the art of printing, and spent 
several years in learning the mechanical 
branch of the trade. He was a skillful 
compositor and pressman, and at one time 
worked the entire weekly edition of the 
Trite American on a hand-press. In 1846 
he started the WeeMij Visitor in the city 
of Trenton, and, after conducting it for 
three months, sold it. In 1848 he pub- 
lished for an association in Williams- 
burgh, L. I., a campaign newspaper, the 
Kings County Democrat, and in 1850 he 
printed for Benjamin F. Yard, owner and 
editor, the first thirteen numbers of the 
Ocean Signal (now Ocean County Courier), 
at Tom's River. Subsequently he started 
the Village Record (now Oazette) at 
Hightstown. While at that place he 
was postmaster for a period just before 
1854, which position he resigned upon 
removing to Freehold. He was also post- 
master of Freehold from Oct. 1, 1855, to 
July 1, 1860, when he resigned. In 1854 
he purchased the Monmouth Democrat, 
and has conducted it to the present time. 
In 1866 Major Yard also established the 
Long Branch Neu:s, which he conducted 
for several years. He was elected a 
member of the ]\Ionmouth county board 
of chosen freeholders in the spring of 
186-3, and re-elected for two succeedmg 



years, when he declined to serve longer. 
In 1878 he w^as elected a member of board 
of commissioners of appeals for the town- 
ship, and was re-elected annually there- 
after until the spring of '9.3, when he 
declined a re-election. 

In the spring of 1888 he was nominated 
at the annual citizens' meeting for mayor 
of the town corporation, and was annually 
re-elected until the spring of 1894, when 
he declined a re-election. During his 
administration the water system for sup- 
plying the town with water and the 
sewer system were devised and con- 
structed, and put into successful opera- 
tion. The suggestion for reconstruction 
of the water system naturally met with 
considerable opposition as an enterprise 
involving a very much larger expendi- 
ture than had ever been undertaken by 
the town. It was also opposed on the 
ground that a private corporation would 
be able to construct it at less cost than 
the town corporation would be able to 
do, and involve no risk to the taxpayers 
of the town. Mayor Yard urged the 
importance of the public ownership of 
the works, and after a discussion cover- 
ing a period of over two years it was 
decided by a vote of the town in favor of 
public ownership. The result has demon- 
strated the wisdom of that course, the 
system having proved successful from the 
start. 

He was major of the third regiment 
of militia in the service of the United 
States at the outbreak of the late war, in 
1861, and afterwards was connected with 
all the military operations in the county 
for raising troops until the close of the 
war. He was appointed by Governor 
Olden to draft the militia for Monmouth 
county, and was commander of Camj) 
Vredenburgh, and assisted in raising the 



108 



Biographical Sketches. 



Twenty-eighth and Twenty-ninth regi- ; 
ments of volunteers. He was also com- 
missioned as commander of Camp Bayard, 
at Trenton, which he declined. He held 
several commissions under Governor Par- 
ker during the war, in connection with 
New Jersey troops in the field. 

Major Yard was appointed commis- 
sioner of railroad taxation by Governor 
Parker in 1873, which position he filled 
until 1883. In 1878 he received the 
appointment of deputy quartermaster- 
general from Governor McClellan, which 
position he resigned on the death ol' 
Quartermaster General Lewis Perrine, 
and was retired with the rank of lieuten- 
ant-colonel, at which time he had been 
longer in the service than any other 
officer on the rolls. 

While Major Yard has been earnestly 
engaged in business matters, and filling 
responsible military and civil places, and 
assuming responsible trusts in the inter- 
ests of his fellow-citizens, he had not been 
unmindful of other obligations to himself 
and to the community in which he has 
resided. 

While at Oightstown, in 1852, he be- 
came a member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church, and has remained in that 
communion since. He efficiently served 
there as superintendent of the Sabbath- 
school, and upon his removal to Freehold 
was appointed to the same position here, 
which he held for many years, and still 
maintains as a teacher his connection 
with the school. In this, and also in 
church work, he zealously guarded the 
interests of both morality and religion. 
For several years Major Yard has held 
a license as local preacher in the church 
at Freehold. 

On Sept. 25, 1856, he married Adaline 
Clark, daughter of Daniel D. Swift, of 



Lancaster county. Pa., by which union 
he has had seven children : Emma, wife 
of Wm. M. Ivins, of New York city; 
Mary Sterling, wife of A. Harvey Tyson, 
of Freehold, New Jersey; Daniel Swift, 
who graduated at Princeton in the class 
of 1882, died Nov. 21, 1883 ; Joseph Ash- 
ton, Adaline Swift, James Sterling, died 
April 7, 1877, and Thomas Swift, died 
June 14, 1880. 

Mrs. Yard, in addition to the usual 
cai'cs of a large family, which slie man- 
aged discreetly, has been an active and 
useful member of the church and of so- 
ciety, taking a leading jjart in the affairs 
of both ; and not only Avith her hands, 
but by her counsel and with her pen, has 
she labored efficiently and contributed 
her share in the world's work. 



■ -pvAVID VAN DERVEER PERRINE, 
j -L-^ a graduate of Princeton College, 
and proprietor of an extensive depart- 
ment store at Freehold, is a son of David 
j C. and Hannah M. Van Derveer Perrine, 
and was born May 25, 1853, at Free- 
' hold. On the maternal side he is of Hol- 
I land-Dutch origin, and on the paternal 
side the name is of French descent, the 
Perrine family being one of the oldest 
and best known in this part of New Jer- 
sey. Our subject's great, great, great- 
grandfather was John Perrine, who died 
about 1779, and whose children were 
John, Henry, James, Daniel, Joseph, 
William, Margaret, Hannah and Annie. 
Of this number John Perrine, our sub- 
ject's great great-grandfather, was born 
Oct. 20, 1722, and died April 26, 
1804. By his wife Mary Rue, born 
March 7, 1736, he had seven children, 
Anna, Rebecca, John, Hannah, Peter, 
[ Matthew and Joseph. Of these John 



Biographical Sketches. 



113 



Perrine, great-grandfather of our subject, 
was born March 30, 1762, and died 
Nov. 17, 1848. By his first wife 
Anna Stout, born Aug. 12, 1761, he 
had these children : John, David, Lewis, 
William, Enoch, Polly and Kate. By 
his second wife, Catherine Perrine, born 
Dec. 17, 1803, his children were Isaac, 
Ann, Eliza, Mary, Matilda, Catherine II. 
and George Washington. David Per- 
rine, our subject's grandfather, was born 
Jan. 10, 1784. His wife was Phoebe 
Baird, born Nov. 14, 1790, by whom 
he had twelve children : Lydia, wife 
of William Snowhill, of Spotswood, 
New Jersey ; John D., Mary, David 
Clark, Alfred, Ree Baird, Deborah E., 
wife of Gilbert W. Mount ; De Lafayette, 
Caroline, Charles, Edwin A., Stevens, 
and Margaret Cook, wife of James 
Bowry. 

David Clark Perrine, our subject's 
father, the founder of the mercantile 
establishment which his son now ope- 
rates, and for many years one of the 
most enterprising and influential citi- 
zens of Freehold, was born Oct. . 20, 
1816, near Clarksburg, Millstone town- 
ship, Monmouth county, and was edu- 
cated at Highstown. On attaining his 
twelfth year he removed to Freehold, 
and began his business career as a clerk 
with Lippincott, Davis & Co., remaining 
in that position for six years, when he 
was made a partner in the firm. In 
1833 he formed a new business relation 
as a member of the firm of Coward & 
Perrine, and in 1852, having dissolved 
this partnership, he embarked in an inde- 
pendent mercantile enterprise, and laid 
the foundations of our subject's present 
flourishing business. In addition to his 
commercial interests in Freehold he was 
engaged in extensive milling operations 



on the Matchaponix river, in Middlesex 
county, and was one of the most exten- 
sive shippers of grain in the county. His 
private affairs did not preclude him from 
taking an active interest in all projects 
connected with the public welfare. He 
was president of the Freehold Gas Com- 
pany and treasurer of the Freehold and 
Englishtown Turnpike Company. Al- 
though a zealous democrat in politics he 
was not a seeker for office, in spite of 
which he was the first treasurer of Free- 
hold. He made a liberal contribution to 
the Freehold Improvement Company to- 
wards securing the location of the shirt 
factory in that town. He was a regular 
attendant at the Freehold Presbyterian 
church, and although not a communicant 
member of the church he was always 
one of its most generous supporters. He 
died July 6, 1888, in the seventy-second 
year of his age, universally regretted by 
his fellow-citizens by whom he was 
esteemed as an energetic and useful 
member of the community. Mr. Per- 
rine was married on Feb. 5, 1851, to 
Miss Hannah Matilda Van Derveer, 
daughter of David I. and Mary Conover 
Van Derveer, of Freehold. They had 
five children : David Van Derveer, our 
subject, born May 25, 1853; William 
Conover, born April 16, 1855, died May 
6, 1856 ; John Rhea, born May 23, 1857, 
died March 23, 1861; and Mary Cono- 
ver, born April 17, 1863, died Feb. 5, 
1873. 

David Van Derveer Perrine, subject of 
this sketch, received his elementary 
education at Freehold Institute under 
Cyrus Baldwin and Rev. A. G. Cham- 
bers, and entered the Sophomore class 
of Princeton College in Sept., 1873. 
He graduated from that institution in 
1876 with the degree of A. B., and was 



114 



Biographical Sketches. 



later awarded the degree of A. M. In 
the autumn of 1876 he entered his 
father's stoi-e at Freehold, and devoted 
liiniself to assisting in superintending the 
financial affairs of the establishment. 
He continued in this position until his 
father's death, in 1888, wlien he assumed 
control of the business and has remained 
actively identified with it ever since. 
The establishment is a department store, 
built in the shape of an " L," with a 
frontage on Main street of three doors 
and four stories, and Nos. 10, 12 and 16 
in the " L " fronting on South street, 
carrying a heavy stock of general mer- 
chandise, and the business is one of the 
most extensive in the state. The new 
Perrine building at Main and South , 
streets, adjoining his store, completed in 
1896, is one of the handsomest business 
structures in Freehold. The building is 
sixty-nine feet front by one hundred and i 
sixty feet deep, three stories in height, i 
the first floor being devoted to business 
places and the upper stories to law offices 
and dental rooms. Mr. Perrine is also 
owner of a fine farm in Monroe township, 
Middlesex county, upon which is a well- 
equipped flour mill. He is a large stock- 
holder in the Freehold Electric Light 
Company and the Freehold Gas Compan3^ 
He is a democrat in politics, but liberal 
in his suffrages where local affairs are 
concerned. He is an active member of 
the A. 0. U. W., the Sons of the Revolu- 
tion, of New Jersey, the Holland Society 
of New York, and the American Insti- 
tute of Civics of New York. He is a 
generous supporter of the Freehold Pres- 
byterian church, of which he is a deacon. 
Mr. Perrine is a thoroughlj' progressive 
business man, and well endowed with 
energy, enterprise and application. He 
has been intimately identified with some i 



of the most material advances made by 
the town of Freehold in recent years, and 
both himself and his father rendered 
public services to the borough which will 
always be held in grateful recognition. 
Mr. Perrine is well read, possesses refined 
educated tastes, is a good conversation- 
alist, and is widely popular in both busi- 
ness and social circles. 



"pvAVID S. CRATER, surrogate of Mon- 
-A-^ mouth county. New Jersey, for 
a score of years, and a public-spirited 
citizen of Freehold, is a son of John A. 
and Catharine J. Jeroloman Crater, and 
was boi'ii July 19, 1846, at Clarksburg, 
Mercer county. New Jerse3^ The family 
came originally from Holland, and was 
among the early settlers of New Jersey. 
David received his education in the pub- 
lic schools at Long Branch, Monmouth 
count}^, and was afterwards placed under 
the instruction of a private tutor. Upon 
leaving school he learned the trade of print- 
ing in the office of the Monmouth Democrat 
at Freehold, where he remained three 
years. He became clerk to A. R. Throck- 
morton, the surrogate of Monmouth 
county, in 1868, and remained with that 
official until his resignation in 1882, 
when Mr. Crater was appointed surrogate 
by Governor Ludlow, to fill the vacancy 
thus created, until the regular election in 
the fall of 1882, when he was elected his 
own successor by the voters of Mon- 
mouth county, without opposition either 
for the nomination or election. He was 
re-elected surrogate in 1887 and in 1892; 
studied law with Surrogate Throckmor- 
ton ; was admitted to the bar Nov. 6, 
1879, and became a counsellor June 3, 
1886, and has been treasurer of the town 
of Freehold since 1876. In politics Mr. 



Biographical Sketches. 



115 



Crater is a democrat. He has been iden- 
tified with every movement looking to the 
welfare and development of that town. 
He is a charter member of the fire depart- 
ment of Freehold, established in 1872. He 
organized the Fii'emen's Relief Association 
of Freehold, and still remains an active 
member of that body, and has been a 
member of the Freehold board of trade 
for a number of years. He also holds mem- 
bership in a number of secret societies : 
Olive Branch Lodge, No. 16, F. and A. M., 
Monmouth Lodge, No. 26, I. 0. 0. F., 
Freehold Lodge No. 41, A. 0. U. W., 
Keith Council, No. 1501, Royal Arcanum, 
and Squankum Tribe, I. 0. R. M., of 
Farming-dale. He is entitled, by virtue 
of his descent, to membership in the 
Sons of the Revolution, but has not as 
yet sought its ranks. Mr. Crater was 
married Jan. 19, 1876, to Anna W. 
Combs, daughter of Gilbert Combs, Esq., 
of Freehold. They have two children, 
Annie M. and Gilberta. The jDaternal 
grandfather of our subject, Isaac Crater, 
was born in Somerset county, New Jer- 
sey — occupation, farmer, near Peapack, 
Somerset county. New Jersey, subse- 
quently removed to Somerville, where 
he resided until his death, in his eighty- 
seventh year. He was strictly upright 
and conscientious in every relation of life. 
John A., father of our subject, was 
born at Peapack, New Jersey, and be- 
came a lumber and grain dealer at Clarks- 
burg, Mercer county. New Jersey. He 
afterwards conducted for many years a 
seaside resort known as the United States 
Hotel, at Long Branch. He was an enthu- 
siastic democrat and active in Masonry. 
He died in Hoboken, New Jersey, at the 
age of seventy-three. His wife, Catha- 
rine Jeroloman, died in her seventy- 
second year. 



TV/TR. THEODORE B. BOORAEM, a 
-^-^ leading member of the Middlesex 
county bar, and well known in connec- 
tion with several prominent business con- 
cerns at New Brunswick, is a son of 
Theodore and Ann Foster Booraem, and 
was born April 30, 1861, at New Bruns- 
wick. He was educated in Rutgers' pre- 
paratory school in his native city and at 
Rutgers College, where he graduated with 
honors in 1881. He at once began the 
study of law in the ofiice of Hon. A. V. 
Schenck, was admitted to the bar for 
general practice in 1884 and as counsel- 
lor in 1887. He immediately entered 
upon the practice of his profession, and 
his advancement was brilliant and rapid. 
In 1892 he formed his present partner- 
ship with John S. Voorhees, and the firm 
has devoted special attention to corpora- 
tion work, the legal affairs of many of the 
principal business concerns of New Bruns- 
wick being in its hands. 

Mr. Booraem and his partner are the 
legal representatives of the People's 
Bank, the New Brunswick Electric Light 
Companj', several prominent building and 
loan associations, and various other cor- 
porations of a private character. Mr. 
Booraem is a director and treasurer of the 
Edison Illuminating Company, and a di- 
rector and vice-president of the Second 
American Building and Loan Associa- 
tion. His many companionable quali- 
ties have led him to become a member 
of various well-known organizations, in- 
cluding the Union Club of New Bruns- 
wick ; Adelphi Council of the Royal Ar- 
canum, in which he has served as regent; 
Good Will Council, Jr. 0. U. A. M., Rut- 
gers' Alumni association, in which he is 
a member of several standing commit- 
tees, treasurer of the organization as well 
as of the Alumni Fund ; and the Delta 



116 



Biographical Sketches. 



Kappa Epsilon fraternity of Rutgers | 
College. He is also a member of the 
Holland Society of New York city, an 
organization for the collection and pre- j 
servation of historical data and relics of 
the early Dutch colonists in America. 

He is a director of the Young Men's 
Christian Association of New Brunswick, 
and a member of the consistory of the 
Second Reformed church, being closely 
identified with church work. Mr. Boo- 
raem was married April 16, 1895, to 
Miss Helen Constance Randall, daughter 
of Darley Randall, of New Brunswick. 
His wife's maternal grandfather, Abra- 
ham Suydam, was one of the most promi- 
nent among the early citizens of New 
Brunswick. He was president of the 
Farmers' and Mechanics' Bank, and at 
one time owned half of the present site 
of the city. 

Mr. Booraem is active and diligent 
in the pursuit of his pi-ofession, and 
occupies a commanding position in the 
estimation of his fellow-citizens. He 
enjoys a wide measure of social popular- 
ity, and possesses the confidence and es- 
teem of the better class of the commu- 
nity to a high degree. His family is of 
Dutch origin. In 1646 William Jacobse 
Van Boerum (as the name was then 
spelled), a resident of Boerum village in 
Friesland, Holland, sailed from Amster- 
dam, accompanied by his two sons, Hen- 
drick William and Jacob William, to 
escape persecution. They located at Flat- 
bush, Long Island, and the father became 
an influential man in the community, 
being made one of the magistrates of 
Flatbush, in 1657. His son, Hendrick 
Willemse, appears as a patentee on Cov- 
ernor Dougan's patent of Flatbush, 1085. 
In 1G79 he purchased a farm near Flat- 
bushjwhere ason, Hendrick, had been born j 



two years previous. It was at about this 
time that the name changed to Booraem. 
Hendrick moved to New Jersey and lo- 
cated near Bound Brook. He had a son 
Nicholas, born 1714, who was the first of 
the famil}^ to settle near New Brunswick, 
establishing himself upon a farm at Mill- 
stone. He in turn had a son Nicholas, 
born in 1736, who was brought up on the 
farm, and who served with distinction 
through the Revolution, attaining the 
rank of captain. His son, Nicholas 
Booraem, grandfather of our subject, was 
born near New Brunswick in 1786, 
served in the war of 1812 as colonel of 
a New Jersey regiment, and lost his hear- 
ing by the explosion of a cannon during 
an engagement. He was a whig in pol- 
itics, was a member of the New Jersey 
assembly, at one time associate judge of 
the court of common pleas of Middlesex 
county, was county treasurer for fortj-- 
two years, and county clerk for twenty- 
seven years. He was a member and for 
many years an elder in the First Re- 
formed church. His wife was Miss Sarah 
Willet, descendant of a well-known Rev- 
olutionary family, and they had twelve 
children : Eliza, wife of Rev. John Van 
Arsdale ; Ellen, wife of Thomas Booraem ; 
Emeline, wnfe of Dr. Charles Smith ; 
Louisa. Nicholas, Edgar, Henry, an offi- 
cer in the United States navy, who was 
killed at New Brunswick during the great 
tornado of 1836 ; Augustus, and Theo- 
dore B. Our subject's grandfather died 
in 1869, aged eighty-three years. 

Theodore B. Booraem, our subject's 
father, was born in New Brunswick in 
1831. He studied law with Senator 
Schenck and Judge Van Djke, and sub- 
sequently engaged in the handling of in- 
surance, settling up of estates and other 
legal practice. He was a republican in 



Biographical Sketches. 



119 



politics, and for some time was collector 
of Middlesex county. 

He was a faithful member of the 
Second Reformed church. His wife was 
Miss Anna Foster, who bore him three 
children : Theodore B., our subject, Mar- 
garet, and Harriet, wife of E. V. Rich- 
ardson. 

Mr. Booraem, senior, died in 1885, at 
the age of fifty-four years. 



JOHN WAEN HERBERT, JR.— Fran- 
^ cis Herbert, the first representative 
of that name in New Jersey, and a grand- 
son of Philip Herbert, fourth earl of Pem- 
broke, with thirty associates, came from 
Long Island in 1677, and settled in Mid- 
dletown, Monmouth county. He married 
Hannah, daughter of the celebrated 
quaker, John Bowne, who located on 
Long Island in 1659. They had four 
sons — Thomas, Francis, David and Oba- 
diah, and three daughters — Elizabeth, 
Deborah and Mary. Obadiah, in 1729, 
married Hannah, daughter of William 
Lawrence, Jr., grandson of Sir Henry 
Lawrence, presidentofCromwell'scouncil, 
and son of William Lawrence, Sr. Wil- 
liam Lawrence, Jr., married Ruth Gib- 
bons. Obadiah, one of the nine children 
of Obadiah Herbert and Hannah Law- 
rence, married, in 1765, Elizabeth Warn, 
granddaughter of Colonel Thomas Warn, 
one of the proprietors of East Jersey, and 
settled in Middlesex county. Their chil- 
dren were three sons — John, William and 
Obadiah, and two daughters — Sarah and 
Elizabeth. William Herbert, father of 
John W., Sr., who was born in 1771, in 
Middlesex county. New Jersey, married, 
in 1801, Eleanor, daughter of Benjamin 
Conover, of Monmouth county, and grand- 
daughter of Garret Conover and Neeltje 



Van Mater. They had children, — Oba- 
diah, Conover, William W., John W., 
Abby E., Hannah (wife of Garret Cot- 
trell) and Eleanor. John W. Herbert, 
Sr.. father of the subject of this sketch, 
was born on the 13th of June, 1820, in 
Madison township, Middlesex county. 
New Jersey, and at the age of seven years 
removed with his father and mother to 
Wickatunk, Marlboro townshij), Mon- 
mouth county. His father, William Her- 
bert, was actively identified with the 
public interests of the counties of Middle- 
sex and Monmouth. He was an asso- 
ciate judge of the court of common pleas 
of Monmouth county; he was a farmer 
and builder, and left his children a hand- 
some patrimony. His son, John W. Her- 
bert, Sr., was married Feb. 24, 1851, to 
Agnes D., daughter of Savage and Jane 
Wright, of Piscataway township, Middle- 
sex county. Their children were Kate 
H., John W., Jr. (the subject of this 
sketch), William H., Richard W., and 
Jean R. John W. Herbert, Sr., was one 
of the leading citizens of Monmouth 
county. He was instrumental in securing 
the organization of Marlboro township in 
1848; was elected the same year its first 
freeholder; held the office of superintend- 
ent of schools from 1850 to 1863, and was 
associate judge of the inferior court of 
common pleas of Monmouth county from 
1874 to 1879. He is still living. His 
son, John W. Herbert, Jr., was born Aug. 
3, 1853, at Wickatunk, New Jersey. 
Received his elementary education at the 
public school at the Old Brick church, 
now Bradevelt, Marlboro township. Gar- 
ret A. Hobart, now a candidate on the 
Republican ticket for vice-president of 
the United States, taught at this school, 
and was his first school teacher. Mr. 
Herbert was for four years at the Glen- 



120 



Biographical Sketches. 



wood Institute, Matawan. Entered the 
scientific department of Rutgers College 
in 18G9, and was graduated a B. S. with 
honors in 1872. In 1873 he began the 
study of law in Jersey City with Captain 
Albert S. Cloke; entered the Columbia 
College law-school in 1874, and was grad- 
uated a batchelor of laws in 187G. Was 
admitted to the bar of New York as an 
attorney and counsellor in May, 1876, 
and as an attorney of New Jersey at the 
June term of the supreme court, 1876, 
and as a counsellor at the June term, 1879. 
Was appointed a master in chancery in 
1879, and a special master in chancery in 
1886. Had a large and lucrative prac- 
tice in both the civil and criminal 
branches. He was engaged as counsel in 
some of the most noted trials ever held 
in the state of New Jersey. Practiced 
law in Jersey City until the fall of 1889. 
Was married Nov. 10, 1885, to Olivia 
Antoinette Helme, daughter of Major- 
General Geo. W. Helme and Margaret 
Appleby, daughter of Leonard Appleby. 
Geo. W. Helme was the founder of Hel- 
metta. New Jersey. Died June 1-3, 1893, 
and beside building the town, which 
stands as a monument to his memory, left 
a princely fortune. The name of the 
town was adopted in honor of Mr. Her- 
bert's wife, by transposition of her pet 
name and surname. They have two chil- 
dren: John Oliver, born Dec. 26, 1886, 
and Gertrude Adeline, born Nov. 22, 
1892. In 1889 Mr. Herbert was elected 
the treasurer of The Geo. W. Helme 
ComjDany, of Helmetta, which, at that 
time, was the largest manufacturing in- 
dusti'y in Middlesex county, and is at 
present the vice-president and treasurer 
of the company. In 1890 he was elected 
president of the borough commission of 
Helmetta, and when the form of govern- 



ment was changed in 1896, was elected 
its first mayor. Mr. Herbert is a staunch 
republican. Is known throughout the 
state as an able stump speaker. Has 
always taken an active part in politics, 
but declined to accept any public office 
excejjting the one above named. He was 
elected a delegate to the National con- 
vention held at St. Louis in June, 1896. 
He is a member of St. George's Protestant 
Episcopal church, of Helmetta, New Jer- 
sey ; has lieen a vestryman since its organ- 
ization and was recently elected a warden. 
We may add that this church and the 
rectory were erected in 1895 by Mi's. Geo. 
W. Helme, Mrs. Chas. G. Strater, Mrs. 
John W. Herbert, Jr., and Mr. Geo. A. 
Helme, the widow and children of Mr. 
Geo. W. Helme, as a memorial to him. 



/COLONEL JOHN W. NEWELL, one 
^^ of the brave soldiers from the state 
of NcAv Jersey, who went to the northern 
army to protect its honor during the 
civil war, is of Irish descent, and his 
soldierly career illustrates the truth of 
the oft-rejDeated saying that the Irish is 
a fighting race. 

In our own army during the civil war 
whole regiments, including officers and 
privates, were Iiish or of Irish birth, and 
no better nor braver soldiers ever fought 
under the stars and stripes than they. 

Colonel Newell is a son of James H. 
and Eliza D. Hankinson Newell, and 
was born at the town of Franklin, War- 
ren county, Ohio, during a temporary 
residence of his parents at that place. 
His paternal grandfather, Hugh Newell, 
came from Ireland to this country in 
early manhood — twenty years — in 1764. 
He was a soldier of the Revolution, and 
is mentioned in " Lossing's History" as 



Biographical Sketches. 



121 



one of the " minute men " of Monmouth 
county, and left a striking example of 
energy, perseverance, and thrift to his 
children, of whom there were five sons 
and three daughters. 

The father of Colonel Newell, James 
H. Newell, received an academic educa- 
tion at Moorestown, N. J., which he sup- 
plemented after his graduation by con- 
tinuous reading and private study, and, 
being possessed of a more than ordinary 
lively intelligence, became, in the literal 
sense of the term, a well-educated man. 
He chose the profession of civil engineer- 
ing early in life, and, becoming very pro- 
ficient in map work, was employed to 
draft all the maps of the city of New 
Brunswick, as are now recognized and 
adopted. 

In politics he was an old-line whig. 
He was an active Christian worker, a 
deacon and an elder of the Reformed 
church. He left behind him a high 
reputation for integrity as a business 
man, a Christian, and a good citizen. 
Four children survive him, viz., Azariah 
D. Newell, M.D., Hon. William A. 
Newell, M.D., John W. Newell, and 
William D. Newell, M.D. William A. 
Newell is an ex-governor of New Jersey 
and of Washington territory. One child 
died in infancy. 

After graduating from the Plainfield 
Academy Colonel John W. Newell fol- 
lowed the profession of teaching for a 
short time, and became an instructor in 
the Plainfield, N. J., academy. He then 
engaged in commercial pursuits, in which 
he continued until the breaking out of 
the civil war, when his patriotism and 
sense of duty to his country led him to 
sacrifice a salaiied position of $6,000 a 
year to enter the army. He was com- 
missioned a major and paymaster in the 



United States army Sept. 5, 1861, by 
President Lincoln, and served three 
years with the army of the Potomac, 
and participated in all the battles of the 
Peninsula campaign under the gallant 
McClellan and his successor, General 
Hooker, and others. He was then as- 
signed to duty as paymaster of the sub- 
district of New Jersey, at Trenton, N. 
J., and was placed in charge of the 
mustering-out of soldiei-s, where he re- 
mained until June 7, 1867, when he was 
honorably discharged from the United 
States service with the rank of colonel, 
after nearly six years of service. 

In March, 1868, he received and ac- 
cepted the appointments of superintend- 
ent, secretary and engineer of the New 
Brunswick Gaslight Company, which po- 
sition he has most ably filled and holds 
at the present time. He is a republican 
and an interested worker for that party, 
is an attendant at the Second Eeformed 
church, a member of the Masonic order, 
the Sons of the Revolution, the Grand 
Army of the Republic, the Loyal Le- 
gion, and the New Jersey Historical 
Society. 

Colonel Newell may point with pride 
to his highly honorable record as a sol- 
dier, a business man, and a gentleman, 
and the knowledge that he is regarded by 
his fellow-townsmen of New Brunswick 
as being one of its best citizens should be 
a source of great gratification to him. 

Colonel Newell has one son, Walter, 
who is regarded as being an exception- 
ally bright young man. He now holds 
the position of assistant auditor of the 
Illinois Central Railroad, at Chicago. 

This sketch would not be complete 
without reference to the paternal grand- 
mother of Colonel Newell, Elizabeth 
Truax Newell, who was a daughter of 



122 



BiOGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



Captain Samuel Truax, of the Continen- 
tal army. In 1781 she was appointed 
at Trenton, N. J., one of the members 
of the Society of Ladies to aid in collect- 
ing means for the support of the revolu- 
tionary soldiers. 

So loyal and brave a woman was she 
that at the battle of Monmouth, some 
four miles from her home, she took 
charge of a six-ox load of provisions, 
and, in spite of the dangers attending the 
trip, mounted the wagon and was driven 
into camp. For this she received the 
thanks of General Washington. 

The mother of Colonel Newell was 
Eliza D. Hankiuson Newell, daughter of 
James, who was son of Captain Kennetli 
Hankiuson, of the Continental army. 



TpLIHU B. BEDLE, second son and 
-*— ^ third child of Thomas I. and Han- 
nah (Dorsett) Bedle, of Mattawan, for- 
merly Middletown Point, New Jersey, 
was born at the former place June 29, 
18-34, and is also a brother of ex-Governor 
Joseph D. Bedle, who was the first son 
and second child. 

Ancestral tradition has it that the 
name of the family most probably had 
its origin from the official title of Bedel — 
a title which appertained to an official of 
the English universities at Cambridge 
and Oxford, whose duties are somewhat 
similar to those of a marshal ; and it is 
not at all unlikely that at some early 
period an ancestor may have held the 
position, and thereby gained the surname 
of " The Bedel," whicii, in course of time, 
was curtailed by the dropping of the 
article — not an unusual thing in those 
days. 

The first emigrant ancestor came to 
Amei'ica from the island of Bermuda, and 



located at Bethany, between Keyport and 
Mattawan, in the state of New Jerse3^ 
Thomas I. Bedle, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born in the city of New York, 
however, in 1803, where he I'esided until 
the age of nineteen, when he removed to 
Middletown Point. Here he still resides, 
is ninety-three years old, hale and hearty. 
He was very active in politics, and always 
greatly interested in the welfare of his 
party. He was at one time a judge of 
the court of common pleas of Monmouth 
county, and most successfullj' filled the 
position. He had six children, two sons 
and four daughters, to wit : Emma Camp- 
bell, ex-Governor Joseph D., Elihu B., 
Henrietta, Sallie (deceased, wife of Dr. 
Giran), and Mary (now Mrs. 0. G. Kaf- 
ferty, of Brooklyn, New York). 

The subject of our sketch received his 
education at the Mattawan high school, 
and at the age of fourteen he entered a 
store at Middletown Point as a clerk with 
Garrett P. Conover, and remained in that 
position four years. In 1856 he removed 
to Freehold. Here he entered into mer- 
cantile pursuits, and continued in busi- 
ness until 1888, Avhen he sold out and 
retired from further active business. 
About this time Mr. Bedle organized the 
Central National Bank of Freehold, of 
which he became a director and its cashier, 
and has so continued ever since. Prior 
to the organization of the Central Bank, 
however, he and his brother, the e.x-gov- 
ernor', were interested in the establish- 
ment of the First National Bank of Free- 
hold, and he served as a director of that 
institution until after the organization of 
the Central Bank. 

Mr. Bedle is a staunch democrat, and 
ever active and zealous in the interests of 
the party. But the most laudable char- 
acteristic of Mr. Bedle's life is the work 



jsafe 




S ^/^--s^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



125 



he performed and the interest he takes in 
establishing the best graded school and 
educational system in the state at Free- 
hold. He greatly contributed to the pas- 
sage of a special act making an appro- 
priation for the erection of the new school, 
and devotes much of his time and ser- 
vices to the enterprise. He has been a 
school director for many years, and is at 
present district clerk of the school district 
in which he resides. Mr. Bedle is pro- 
bably the oldest business man in active 
business in Freehold to-day. He has 
been prominently identified with all the 
various measures proposed for the develop- 
ment and improvement of the town, and 
is the staunch supporter of any enterprise 
which pi'omises to accomplish that pur- 
pose. He has recently purchased a con- 
trolling interest in the Freehold Electric 
Light, and the Freehold Gas Light com- 
panies, and it is expected that under the 
new order of things, great improvements 
will be made in these plants, to the mate- 
rial advantage of the citizens of that place. 
Mr. Bedle was married Feb. 6, 1860, 
to Miss Kate E., daughter of Robert E. 
Craig, a farmer of Manalopen, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, and they have had 
eight children, two sons and six daughters, 
all living : Josephine, wife of Charles H. 
Butcher, an attorney of Freehold, New 
Jersey; Rachel, wife of Peter S. Conover, 
Jr., merchant of Atlantic Highlands, New 
Jersey; John Vought, who is a carpenter, 
and resides at Freehold; Afary, wife of 
Frederick Parker, attorney, a son of ex- 
Governor Parker, residing at Freehold; 
Harry, a plumber at Freehold ; Julia, and 
Robert. Mr. Bedle is one of Freehold's 
most highly-esteemed citizens — esteemed ; 
especially for his sterling qualities of mind : 
and heart, his strict integrity and upright- 
ness of character, as well as his genial 



temperament and generous nature. As 
a business man he has not only gained, 
but has retained, unfalteringly, the public 
confidence through all the many years he 
has spent in the business circles of that 
community, so that to-day the name of 
E. B. Bedle ranks with the most conserva- 
tive of the state. 



in English 



TOHN S. VOORHEES, prosecutor of 
^ the pleas of Middlesex county, New 
Jersey, and one of the most prominent 
lawyers in that state, is a son of the late 
John S. and Sarah Van Doren Voorhees, 
and was born Nov. 30, 1855, at Frank- 
lin Park, New Jersey. He is of Dutch 
ancestry, his earliest known progenitor 
living prior to 1600, in front of the vil- 
lage of Hees, near Ruinen, province of 
Drenthe, Holland, from which fact is de- 
rived the family name, as the equivalent 
of the Dutch word " Voor 
is "in front of" or "before." 

Mr. Voorhees, after attending the 
grammar school of Rutgers College for 
several years, entered upon an academic 
course in that institution, and was gradu- 
ated with the degree of Bachelor of Arts 
in 1876. He subsequently, in 1879, re- 
ceived from Rutgers College the degree 
of A. M. In fraternity he was a Phi 
Beta Kappa. After his graduation he 
served as secretary of the Alumni Asso- 
ciation, and for several years has been a 
member of the standing committee of that 
association. He is a member of the 
board of trustees of the Athletic Associa- 
tion of the college, and evinces a lively 
interest in all things that conduce to the 
welfai'e of his alma mater. He read law 
for the three years subsequent to his 
graduation in the office of his uncle, 
Frederick Voorhees, at Mount Holly, and 



126 



Biographical Sketches. 



in June, 1879, was admitted to the bar 
as an attorney. In tlie fall of that year 
he removed to New Brunswick, New Jer- 
sey, where he entered upon the practice 
of law. He subsequently formed a part- 
nership with Theodore B. Booraem and 
Edward W. Hicks. The latter gentle- 
man retired in April, 1895, and the busi- 
ness since that tune has been carried on 
under the name of Voorhees & Booraem. 
The firm occujDies a suite of three offices, 
which are stocked with a library of law 
volumes numbering two thousand. Their 
business is largely in the line of corpora- 
tion law. Mr. Voorhees is counsel for 
the Edison Electric Illuminating Com- 
pany, the People's National Bank, the 
National Water Tube Boiler Company, 
and other prominent corporations of New 
Brunswick and its vicinity. He is a di- 
rector of the People's National Bank, of 
the Provident Building and Loan Asso- 
ciation and of several other corporations. 
He is a trustee of the Children's Indus- 
trial Home, of the People's Mission and 
of other eleemos^ynary institutions of 
New Brunswick. In religion Mr. Voor- 
hees is a member and a deacon of the 
Second Reformed church. He is also an 
active and efficient member of the New 
Jersey State Executive Committee of the | 
Young Men's Christian Association. Mr. \ 
Voorhees was united in marriage Oct. 21, 
1886, to Mary H. Stebbins, a daughter 
of the late John R. Stebbins, of Rondout, 
New York. By this union he had three 
children. Politically Mr. Voorhees is an 
uncompromising republican, but has had 
little time as yet to devote to practical 
politics. He has by incessant study and 
trial reached a conspicuous position in 
his profession, and he prefers to direct 
his resources and energies along that 
line. Governor Griggs, in recognition of 



his ability and success as a lawj^er, ap- 
pointed Mr. Voorhees in 1895 to the 
office of prosecutor for Middlesex county 
for a term of five years. A perusal of 
brief sketches of some of Mr. Voorhees' 
forefathers may prove of interest to the 
reader. 

Coert Alberts Van Voor Hees is the 
name of the ancestor already mentioned. 
Hees, in 1666, had not outgrown a somno- 
lent infancy, her population at that time 
comprising but nine hundred inhabitants. 
Steven Coert Van Voor Hees, oldest son 
of Coert Alberts, was born in 1600, and 
in his sixtieth year emigrated to this 
country from Holland. Pie purchased, 
November 29, 1660, from Cornells Dirck- 
son Hoagland, thirtj'-one morgens of land 
at Flatlands, Long Island, for which he 
paid three thousand guilders, a sum 
equivalent to eleven hundred and forty 
dollars in our monej^ Here he, with his 
wife, whom he had married in Holland, 
settled down as a farmer. Mrs. Van 
V^oorhees, whose maiden name is un- 
known, deceased after bearing him. several 
childi-en. He had no children by his 
second wife, Willempie Roeloffse Seuber- 
ing, to whom he was married on Long 
Island. His name appears on the assess- 
ment rolls of Flatlands for the j'ears 1675 
and 1683 ; as a magistrate in 1664, and 
as the holder of a patent of land dated 
1667. He died at Flatlands, Feb. 16, 
1684, leaving a will bearing date Aug. 
25, 1677. 

His son, Coert Stevens Van Voorhees, 
was born in Holland in 1637. He mar- 
ried prior to 1666 Marretje Van Cowen- 
horen, of Flatlands, Long Island. He 
was a magistrate and captain of militia. 
Gerret Coert Van Voorhees, of Flat- 
lands, his son, was married tAvice. First 
to Mensie Janse, and afterwards, on April 



BiOGRAPHiCAi, Sketches. 



127 



20, 1685, to Willempie Pieters. He was 
a member of the Dutch church of Flat- 
lands, in 1677, and in 1687 he took the 
oath of allegiance as a native. His name 
appears in the census of the town last 
named for the year 1698. He purchased, 
Dec. 11, 1693, from Jan Hansen Van 
Norstrand and Barient Joosten, the tract 
of land at New Utrecht, Long Island, 
called Bruynnesburg, and known as the 
Anthony Jansen Van Sales patent, for 
which he paid thirty-eight thousand, 
seven hundred and fifty guilders. He 
subsequently by deed, in 1699, conveyed 
his remaining interest in that property 
to his brother, Albert Courtes Van Voor- 
hees. His will, dated Oct. 1, 1702, 
and proved Sept. 2-3, 1704, is recorded 
in the office of the surrogate of New 
York. He died in 1703. 

His son, Peter Van Voorhees, was 
born Dec. 10, 1694, in Brooklyn. He 
was married to Arenti Nevijius, and re- 
moved from Long Island to Blawen- 
burgh. New Jersey, in 1720, because un- 
willing to pay tithes to the English 
church. He died July, 1749. 

Petrus Van Voorhees was born June 
24, 1736, at Blawenburgh. His first 
wife, whom he married Dec. 1, 1757, was 
Sarah Ne^njius. She subsequently de- 
ceased, and he united himself ixi marriage, 
Oct. 24, 1761, to Lea Nevijius. He re- 
sided all his life at Blawenburgh, New 
Jersey. By his will he ordered his slaves 
to be set free and devised his land to his 
grandson, Peter. 

Martinus Voorhees, son of Petrus and 
Lea Van Voorhees, was born August 28, 
1763, at Blawenburgh. He was married 
May 2, 1786, to Elsie Van Dyke, 
daughter of John Van Dyke. He re- 
sided at Bridgeport, Somerset county, 
New Jersey, where he died July 31, 



1825. His wife, Elsie, among other ef- 
fects, bequeathed to each of her three 
daughters a negress slave. 

His son, Peter Voorhees, was born 
May 27, 1787. He lived in Blanden- 
berg. New Jersey, on the old homestead 
possessed by the family for more than a 
century. He served his country in the 
New Jersey legislature, 1843-5. He 
was an active member and one of the 
organizers of the Dutch Reformed church 
of Blawenbui'gh. He married in 1809 
Jane Schenck, a daughter of Captain 
John Schenck, who served in the Conti- 
nental army in Colonel Chamber's regi- 
ment, attached to General Dickson's 
brigade. Eight children were the fruit 
of this union : Alice, wife of Dr. J. V. D. 
Joline ; John S., father of our subject ; 
Charity, wife of Samuel D. Bergen; Mary, 
married to Reuben A. Drake ; Ada Jane, 
wife of Rev. Dr. J. B. Davis ; Peter L., 
a graduate of Princeton law school, and 
who married a sister of Hon. William L. 
Daj'ton, the first republican candidate 
for vice-president of tlie United States; 
and Frederick. Peter Voorhees deceased 
July 4, 1853. 

John Schenck Voorhees, father of our 
subject, was born March 18, 1812, at 
Blawenburgh, New Jersey. He owned 
and operated a farm of four hundred 
acres at Franklin Park, Middlesex 
county, where he resided at the time of 
his death. He was married Dec. 15, 
1846, to Sarah Van Doren, a daughter 
of Peter Van Doren, by whom he had 
four children. He died June 19, 1877. 



"DEV. S. M. WOODBRIDGE, the distin- 

-L^ guished instructor in church his- 

: tory at the theological seminary of New 

Brunswick, is of English descent, and 



128 



Biographical Sketches. 



comes from a family eminent for its 
work in the cause of religion, since for 
thirteen generations members of it have 
been ministers of the gospel. He was 
born at Greenfield, Massachusetts, April 
19, 1819, and is a son of Sylvester and 
Elizabeth Gould Woodbridge. His patei'- 
nal grandfather, Sylvester Woodbridge, 
practiced as a physician at Southampton, 
Massachusetts, for many years. To his 
married life were born three children : 
John, Sylvester and Mindwell. (?) His 
father, Sylvester Woodbridge, was born 
at Southampton, and graduated from the 
theological seminary at Andover, Massa- 
chusetts. After his graduation he moved 
to Greenville, Green county. New York, 
and served six years as minister of the 
gospel. He then removed to New York 
city, where he spent ten years. Later he 
removed to the city of New Orleans, 
where he resided until his death, in 
1862, as pastor of the Second Presbyte- 
rian church. His wife died in 1851. 
To them were born eight children, as 
follows : Sylvester, deceased ; Jahleel, (?) 
Elizabeth, deceased; Francis, Samuel M., 
John, and Mary. 

Rev. S. M. Woodbridge, subject of this 
sketch, graduated from the New York 
University in 18-39, and from the theo- 
logical seminary of New Brunswick in 
1842. For eight years after his gradu- 
ation he was located as a preacher in 
South Brooklyn, New York, and for two- 
and-a-half years thereafter at Coxsackie 
Landing. He then removed to New 
Brunswick, and was pastor of the Second 
Reformed church for five years, from 
1852 to 1857. Since that time he has 
been instructor in church history at the 
theological .seminary of New Brunswick, 
and his high attainments as a teacher, 
his profound knowledge of religious his- 



tory, and beautiful personal character, 
have added additional lustre to that dis- 
tinguished institution of learning. 

Mr. Woodbridge was for many years a 
member of the Historical Society of New 
Brunswick, but at present is quite una- 
ble to attend its meetings, held usually 
in the evenings, owing to the delicate 
condition of his health. His first wife 
was Caroline Bergen, and their union 
was blessed with one daughter, Caroline. 
His second marriage was to Anna W. 
Dayton, and to them were born two chil- 
dren : Anna D., and Mary Elizabeth. 



TDHILIP A. MEYERS, a son of Philip 
-L and Christina (Crawford) Meyers, 
is a typical representative of those man}^ 
sturdy families of German origin which 
have contributed so much to the solid 
progress of American institutions and 
our country's prosperity. He was born 
at New Brunswick on March 3, 1837. His 
paternal grandfather, Michael Meyers, 
was a native of the kingdom of Wur- 
temburg, Germany, where he was born 
March 17, 1778. While still a boy, in 
1796 he made his way to this countr}^ 
alone, but was soon followed by some of 
his sisters. He located in New" Bruns- 
wick in 1802, and established a business 
in cigars and cut tobacco, which he con- 
tinued successfully until 1852. He was 
a staunch whig in politics, and was a 
member of Christ church, being noted as 
an industrious and influential member of 
the community. In 1801 he was married 
to Mary Farner, one of the twelve chil- 
dren of Michael Farner, who was origi- 
nally from Burlington, N. J. By this 
marriage Michael Mej-ers became the 
father of seven children : William, George 
J., John, Benjamin F., Philip, Mary Ann 



Biographical Sketches. 



129 



and Michael H. His useful and honor- 
able career came to an earthly close on 
Jan. 24, 1852, at the age of seventy-four '. 
years. 

Philip Meyers, son of the foregoing, 
and father of our subject, was born Oct. 
29, 1811, in New Brunswick, in a house 
that stood opposite the present site of 
Rutgers College. He received a good 
common-school education, and early in 
life applied himself to learning the trade 
of bricklaying. This, however, he never 
practiced for any length of time, prefer- 
ring to follow his father's successful foot- 
steps in the tobacco business. He en- 
gaged in the manufacture of cigars, asso- 
ciating with him at first his brother Ben- 
jamin, and afterwards his younger brother 
Michael; but in 1857 this partnership 
was dissolved, and Philii) conducted the 
business alone with ability and profit up 
to the time of his death in 1872. This 
establishment was at the corner of Albany ' 
and Peace streets. He was a highly re- 
spected citizen, and although exceedingly 
quiet in his manner of living, took a deep 
interest in public affairs. He was a re- 
publican, and a member of the Union 
League during the rebellion. He was 
first lieutenant in the old City Guards of ' 
New Brunswick ; also a member of the 
Presbyterian church. He was blessed 
with a family of eight children : Philip 
A. (the subject of this sketch), Charles, 
Mary Elizabeth, Harry, Christina, John 
V. Crawford, William Crawford, aiid 
Marion H. He died April 2, 1872, aged 
sixty-one years. His wife (born Oct. 27, 
1819) followed him June 26, 1891, aged 
seventy-two years. 

Philip A. Meyers, our subject, received 
his education in the select and private 
schools of New Brunswick, leaving school 
when fifteen years old to learn the carpen- 



tertrade. He never followed this,however, 
but (with the inherited tendency towards 
tobacco) joined his father in cigar-making. 
In 1858 he started in business on his own 
account at the foot of Church street, and 
has continued to manufacture cigars down 
to the present time. Since 1868 he has 
been located at 34 Bayard street, where 
he handled school supplies and sporting 
goods in conjunction with cigars until 
1888, when his son, Charles V. Meyers, 
succeeded to the mercantile part of the 
business. Our subject is a man of in- 
fluence and standing, and is particularly 
noted as the possessor of a ripe fund of 
knowledge about local people and hap- 
penings, which makes him an authority 
on the history of New Brunswick. As a 
local antiquarian, by means of his camera 
he has made a valuable collection of pic- 
tures and views of many of New Bruns- 
wick's historic buildings of interest, many 
long since torn down, but reproduced 
from memory by Mr. Meyers, first with 
pen with remarkable accuracy, and then 
photographed. But his interest in the 
local history of his town does not end 
here, for he has collected an extensive 
library of reference works containing 
valuable and rich statistical information 
and facts of local interest, which makes 
him a boon to the editor and the his- 
torian. He is a republican, and was a 
valued member of the board of education. 
He is a member of the A. 0. U. W., Ra- 
ritan Lodge ; of the F. and A. Masons, 
Union Lodge, No. 19 ; of the Scott Chap- 
ter, No. 4, and is a manager of the Hu- 
mane Society of New Brunswick, an ac- 
tive charitable organization. He is a 
member of the Second Reformed church. 
Mr. Meyers was married July 13, 1859, 
to Susan H. Brokaw, daughter of Bergen 
Brokaw, an accountant of New Bruns- 



130 



Biographical Sketches. 



wick. They have one son, Charles V., 
born April 13, 1860, who was educated 
in the local high school, followed book- 
keeping for two years, and has since con- 
ducted the mercantile part of his father's 
business as above stated. Charles is a 
republican in politics, and is a member 
of the New Brunswick Gun club. 



HON. C. F. NEWTON, of Woodbridge, 
New Jei'sey, is a son of Alanson 
and Asenath Phillips Newton, of New 
Yorl< city, where he was born in April, 
1825. The Newtons were a family of 
some note in England, and the ancestral 
records trace the family pedigree to an 
eminent Episcopal clergyman of that 
name, wlio in his time gained great fame 
and repute as an eloquent divine and 
scholar. The great-grandfather, the im- 
migrant ancestor, was a strong patriot, 
Avarmly attached to the cause of the 
colonies against the " mother country." 
He early enlisted in the American army, 
and was engaged in almost all of the 
great battles fought by General Wash- 
ington. He was also one of those who 
wintered with Washington on the bleak 
hills of old Mount Joy or Valley Forge. 
The paternal grandfather Newton was a 
farmer the greater part of his life, and 
owned a fine farm at Washington, Con- 
necticut. He raised a family of five sons, 
all of whom became prominent men. 
One of these five sons was Alanson 
Newton, father of our subject. He was 
educated in the public schools of Con- 
necticut, and subsequently attended And- 
over College. Leaving college, he taught 
school in New York city for some time, 
and then was placed in charge of what 
was designated at that time as a select 
school, with which school he remained 



as its principal for fifteen years. In 
1832, when our subject was in his 
seventh year, his father bought a farm 
at Woodbridge, Middlesex county. New 
Jersey, and moved his family there. He 
then devoted the greater part of his life- 
time to the interests of his farm and sur- 
veying. He was the only one of the five 
sons who had received a college educa- 
tion. He was always a strong democrat, 
and took an active interest in the affairs 
of the township. He served as a justice 
of the peace of Woodbridge for twenty- 
five years, and as an associate judge of 
the court of common pleas for five years. 
He also filled every one of the township 
offices, such as committeeman, collector, 
assessor, etc. He was an exemplary and 
devoted Christian, a member of the Epis- 
copal church at Woodbridge, and for 
several years a vestryman. He was an 
active factor in all church-work. He 
was also a member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity, affiliating with Lafayette Lodge, 
of New York city. He was married 
to Miss Asenath Phillips, daughter of 
Henry Phillips, of Fishkill, in 1818, and 
they had born to them the following 
children : C. F., Henry, Oscar, George, 
and Mary A. The father died in the 
ninety-sixth year of his age, and the 
mother deceased in 1867, at the age of 
seventj^-six years. 

C. F. Newton, our subject, I'eceived a 
common-school education, and this was 
shortly afterwards supplemented by the 
training he received at the hands of his 
father, who was a skilful teacher. After 
leaving school he was engaged as clerk 
in a store in New York city for a time. 
Subsequently he entered the service of 
the Gold Pen and Pencil Case Manufac- 
turing Company, and was a travelling- 
salesman for that concern for some time. 



Biographical Sketches. 



131 



Afterwards he was admitted as a partner, 
and ultimately succeeded to the business. 
When the war broke out in 1861, he en- 
listed in the Thirty-eighth regiment, New 
York volunteers, served as quartermaster 
until the end of his term of enlistment, 
and was mustered out in 1862. After 
returning from the service he resumed 
his business as gold pen and pencil-case 
manufacturer for some time, but finally 
disposed of his entire interest to part- 
ners. He then purchased the farm for- 
merly owned by his father, and conducted 
the same for some time, when he dis- 
posed of it. He is a staunch democrat. 
He succeeded his father as justice of the 
peace, and has also held the office for the 
like period of twenty-five years. He 
was for ten years an associate judge of 
the court of common pleas of Middlesex 
county, and faithfully duplicated the 
splendid record made by his honored and 
much-respected father in the same posi- 
tion. He was appointed postmaster of 
Woodbridge, New Jersey, in 1893, by 
President Cleveland, and this position he 
now fills. He was chairman of the 
county committee of his party for four 
years, and has always been quite active 
in township affairs. He is a member of 
the Episcopal church of Woodbridge, and 
is alike active in all church work. Judge 
Newton is a member of several fraternal 
orders also, such as the Masonic frater- 
nity, holding membership in Metropoli- 
tan Lodge, New York city, of which he 
is a charter member and a past master. 
He is a member of Morton Commandery, 
Knights Templar, of New York city, [ 
and of New York Consistory, S. P. R. S., 
thirty-second degree. He is also an Odd 
Fellow, and is a past grand master of 
Washington Lodge, I. 0. 0. F., of New 
York. Judge Newton was married, in , 



1844, to Miss Anjanette Meryfield, by 
whom he had one child, Charles A. The 
mother died in 1848. Judge Newton 
was married to his present wife. Miss 
Josephine Gorisse, of Woodbridge, in 
1886. 



TTTILLIAM HALL, a wealthy retired 
^^ merchant of Perth Amboy, Mid- 
dlesex county. New Jersey, and one of 
I the most influential and public-spirited 
men of that city, is a son of Isaac and 
Elizabeth Strimple Hall, and was born 
I March 10, 1816, at Basking Ridge, Som- 
' erset county. New Jersey. The family 
name is of English origin, the primitive 
American ancestors having settled in 
Massachusetts. John Hall came from New 
; England to New Jersey in ante-revolu- 
tionary times, and was an extensive farm- 
er near Basking Ridge, owning over six 
hundred acres of land, all of which has 
since passed out of the family's posses- 
sion. He was one of the first settlers in 
Somerset county and received his title 
I deeds direct from William Penn. One 
of his sons, Richard Hall, grandfather of 
our subject, was a farmer all his life on a 
portion of the ancestral estate at Basking 
Ridge ; had been a paymaster-general in 
the revolutionary army, and was a mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church. By his 
wife, whose maiden name was Whitta- 
ker, he had several children. He died 
when eighty years of age. 

Isaac Hall, our subject's father, was 
born at Basking Ridge, and was a well- 
known farmer there all his life. He was 
an enthusiastic anti-Jackson man in pol- 
itics, and a staunch supporter of the 
Presbyterian church. He married Miss 
Elizabeth Strimple, by whom he had ten 
children : Samuel, William, Piatt, Isaac, 
E. W., an artist at Lyons, N. J. ; Jane, 



132 



Biographical Sketches. 



Eliza, Sarah, Kate, and Helen. He died 
at the age of eighty years. 

William Hall, our subject, was educa- 
ted in the public schools at Basking 
Ridge. When sixteen years of age he 
became clerk in a store at Liberty Coi'- 
ner, Somerset county, where he remained 
for six years. In 1840 he removed to 
Perth Amboy, and purchased a lot of 
ground on Smith street, upon which he 
erected a handsome brick store. Here 
he conducted an extensive and profitable 
general mercantile business for forty-five 
years, retiring in 1891, thus making him 
one of the oldest merchants in Perth 
Amboy. He still owns his original store 
property, although the business has been 
transferred by purchase to other hands. 
Mr. Hall has been identified with the 
most notable business and municipal im- 
provements in Perth Amboy for half a 
century. He was at one time treasurer of 
the Perth Amboy Savings Institution and 
subsequently he organized the Middlesex 
County Bank, obtained its charter, erect- 
ed the bank building, and was elected its 
first president, which position he occu- 
pied for eight years, resigning in 1881. 
He was also very active in establishing 
and erecting the gas-works and water- 
works of the city, and was a member of 
the board of trade. He is a democrat 
in politics, and served as an alderman, 
city recorder, and in other offices during 
the period of about sixteen years. He 
is a member of the First Presbyterian 
church, and has always been a liberal 
supporter of the church, and an active 
worker in general religious affairs. He 
is a member of a lodge of I. 0. 0. F., of 
Milford, Connecticut. Mr. Hall was 
married to Miss Charlotte Clark, a daugh- 
ter of Jonathan Clark, of Milford, Con- 
necticut, by whom he had three children : 



Ella J., wife of N. J. C. English, a well- 
known lawyer at Elizabeth, New Jersey ; 
Marietta, deceased in childhood, and 
William H., a prosperous druggist. Al- 
though no longer engaged in the active 
affairs of life, Mr. Hall is widely known, 
popular and respected, and is a man of 
strong, decided opinions, sound intellect 
and genial disposition. His name will 
always be notable as one of the founders 
of Perth Amboy. 



D RIG.- GEN. STEWART VAN VLIET, 
-*-^ a veteran of the Mexican and Civil 
wars, now on the i-etired list, and resid- 
ing at Shrewsbury, New Jersey, is a son 
of Christian and Rachel Huff Van Vliet, 
and was born July 21, 1815, in Ferris- 
burg, Vermont. The name is of Dutch 
origin, and the branches of the family 
tree flourished in unbroken succession in 
Holland until the year 1600. In that 
year the founder of the family in this 
country emigrated hither. The paternal 
grandfather, John Van Vliet, was a 
tanner, near Fishkill, Dutchess county. 
New York. He was a whig, a member of 
the Dutch Reformed church, and the 
father of four children : John, Peter, 
Frederick, and Christian, father of our 
subject. 

Christian Van Vliet was born at Fish- 
kill, New York, in 1790, where he re- 
ceived a common-school education, and 
subsequently became a farmer. In reli- 
gion he was a baptist. He was twice 
married. His first wife, Rachel Huff, 
whom he wedded in ISl-l, bore him one 
son and one daughter: Stewart, after- 
wards the general, and Rachel. Maria 
Cromwell, to whom he was married in 
1825, gave him one daughter, Hannah 
Maria, who mari-ied Henry Rooseveldt, of 
New York. 




^4yf^M^' ^-t^^ ^^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



135 



General Van Vliet received a common- 
school education at first, and was reared 
on a farm near Fishkill, New York. He 
subsequently, through the influence of 
Hon. William Jackson, a member of Con- 
gress from Fishkill county secured for him- 
self an appointment to a cadetship in the 
West Point Military Academy. He en- 
tered that noted school in 1836, and was 
graduated in the class of 1840. The 
class that year contained more than six 
score students, of which only one-third, 
forty- two, were graduated. The General 
graduated in the same form with Generals 
Sheridan and Thomas and Governor 
Hebert, of Louisiana. His first active 
service was in Florida, where he spent 
two years, engaged in the Indian River 
campaign as second lieutenant of Com- 
pany A, Third U. S. artillery. In one 
battle he engaged and slew an Indian 
warrior in a personal hand-to-hand en- 
counter. He was subsequently stationed 
at Savannah, Georgia ; Charleston, South 
Carolina, and at Oglethorpe barracks, 
and was in Mexico with General Taylor 
in 1846. He was engaged in the siege 
of Monterey, and led the final assault on 
that place, where he turned the onset of 
General Ampudia's forces into a retreat 
and captured their flag. He then marched 
to the Rio Grande, where, in front of 
Vera Cruz, he commanded a battery of 
four ten-inch mortars, and his efficient 
work was largely instrumental in secur- 
ing the capitulation of that city, after 
four days' hard fighting. So environed 
was he by danger that at his side fell his 
nearest and dearest friend, Maj. John R. 
Vintos, mortally wounded by a ball from 
the cannon of the enemy. In 1846 he 
received a quartermaster's commission, 
with the rank of captain, and he was 
ordered to duty at Leavenworth, Kansas. 



He built Fort Kearney in 1847, and in 
1848 completed the construction of Fort 
Laramie. By special orders from the 
War Department he was sent with a de- 
tachment of General Johnson's army to 
quell the Mormon difficulties at Salt Lake 
City. General Van Vliet was at Fort 
Leavenworth at the beginning of the 
civil war. He received and faithfully 
carried out instructions from Secretary 
Stanton to organize for immediate service 
the Army of the Potomac, and during 
the Peninsular campaign he was at the 
front in active service as quartermaster- 
general. He was subsequently stationed 
at New York, Baltimore and Philadel- 
phia, where successively he had charge 
of the quartermaster's department. The 
General has had a wonderful exemption 
from wounds and sickness during his en- 
tire military and civil life. He has 
never received so much as a scratch from 
the enemy, and he has not suffered even 
one day's illness. He was retired Jan. 
22, 1881, after reaching the retiring age 
prescribed by law, and he spends his win- 
ters in Washington, D. C, and his sum- 
mers at Shrewsbury, New Jersey. Like 
the majority of United States army offi- 
cers he has never availed himself of the 
right of suffrage, and has yet to cast his 
first vote. General Van Vliet was reared 
a quaker, but he has never identified him- 
self with the church. He is a modest and 
a very unassuming man, but he boasts of 
one thing : that he has never injured 
man, woman or child in all his life. He 
is connected with several social and ben- 
eficial associations, among which are : the 
Army and Navy Club, Union and St. 
Nicholas Clubs — in honorary member- 
ship ; Holland Society, Loyal Legion, 
Aztec Club, of which he is president; the 
Masons, and the Odd Fellows. He was 



136 



Biographical Sketches. 



united in marriage March 6, 1851, to Sarah 
Jane Brown, a daughter of Major Jacob 
Brown, who was killed at the assault of 
Fort Brown, on the Rio Grande, opposite 
Matanioras, and for whom Brownville 
was subsequently named. They are the 
parents of two sons : Dr. Frederick C. 
and Lieut. Robert Campbell. 



S TELLE FITZ RAXDOLPH, one of 
the most respected citizens of New 
Brunswick, Middlesex county, New Jer- 
sey, was born Nov. 23, 1823, in that 
city. He came from a fine old revolu- 
tionary stock, for his grandfather fought 
in the war for independence, and was 
wounded at the battle of Monmouth. 
This jDatriotic ancestor was a farmer, as 
well as a staunch republican, and upon 
his decease left issue : Ephraim, Simeon, 
Eliza, Isabella, Ambrose, and Rachel, 
now deceased. Ambrose Randolph, father 
of the subject of this sketch, after receiv- 
ing all the education the common schools 
could afford him in his native place, came 
to New Brunswick, and was initiated 
into the arts and mj^steries of the print- 
ing trade at the office of the Fredonian, 
and so conscientiously did he apply him- 
self to the mastery of the details of his 
profession, that he eventually became the 
manager of the printing office. 

Leaving the office of the Fredonian he 
went to New York city, where he worked 
at his trade for two j'ears. During this 
time he was solicited by the proprietor 
of the Fredonian, to return to New 
Brunswick, and resume charge of the 
office, but could not accept. Later, how- 
ever, he came to New Brunswick and 
embarked into the grocery business, and 
showed such signal ability in mei'cantile 
affiiirs that he was soon in command of 
one of the largest concerns in the city. 



\i\ late years he retired from all partic- 
ipation in active business and confined 
his attention to investments. 

The subject of this sketch, Stelle Fitz 
Randolph, received all the advantages 
which an educational course at the public 
schools could give, supplemented by a term 
at the school of Samuel Aaron, in this 
state, and for four years attended a theo- 
logical seminaiy at New Hampton, New 
Hampshire. Thus prepared and quali- 
fied intellectually for the battle of life, he 
returned to his native town and resumed 
all the responsibilities of his father's busi- 
ness. He retained this connection for 
five years, but taking advantage of an 
oppoi'tunity for a wider business opera- 
tion, he went to Chicago in 1858, remain- 
ing west for four years. During his col- 
legiate course Mr. Randolph was librarian 
of one of the literary societies. In poli- 
tics he was at first an adherent of the 
whig party, finally joining the ranks of 
the republicans. 

]\Ir. Randolph married Mary A. Way. 
Thej' have one daughter, Jeannette Free- 
man Fitz Randolph. 



TpUSEBEUS W. ARROWSMITH, a pro- 
-'-^ minent attoi'ne3-at-law. is a resident 
of Freehold, New Jersey, and is the son 
of Thomas V. and Elizabeth Arrowsmith, 
and was born at Ke3port, New Jersey, in 
1843. He is of English descent, his 
ancestors having been among the very 
early settlers of Long Island, New York. 
His grandfather, on the paternal side, Avas 
Joseph Arrowsmith, who fiirmed on a 
large scale in Honesdale township, and 
was a considerable owner of land. He 
had a particularly successful career, al- 
though dj'ing at an early age. 

Thomas V. Arrowsmith, our subject's 
father, was born on his father's farm in 



Biographical Sketches. 



139 



Honesdale township ; was educated in the 
common schools, and, after his graduation, 
entered into a mercantile business at 
Matawan in 1875. After some years of 
business experience, he accepted a clerk- 
ship on a line of steamboats running from 
Newport to New York, and after three 
years of service was advanced to the 
position of captain of a steamer. Resign- 
ing from this position, he was elected 
county clerk on the democratic ticket of 
Monmouth county, being twice thereafter 
re-elected, and served a total of fourteen 
years, finally resigning from office on ac- 
count of ill health. His son Joseph, now 
deceased, filled the unexpired term. Upon 
his resignation he retired from active life, 
and remained in Freehold until his de- 
cease, which occurred at the age of sixty- 
five years. Although in politics he was 
a strict party man, he was not a politi- 
cian. He married Elizabeth Walling, of 
Keyport. and to them were born six chil- 
dren, four sons and two daughters : 
Joseph (deceased), James S., Eusebeus 
Walling, Alfred W. (deceased) , Charlotte, 
and Annie. 

Eusebeus Walling Arrowsmith received 
his early education in the public schools 
of Keyport, and then engaged in busi- 
ness with his father, in which he con- 
tinued for three years. He then entered 
mercantile life in New York city, in 
which he remained for two years, resign- 
ing therefrom to accept a position with 
his father as assistant county clerk at 
Freehold. He read law with William H. 
Vredenburgh, and after four years, of 
study, at the age of twenty-eight, com- 
menced the general practice of law at 
Freehold. He has achieved an eminent 
position in his profession, and is recog- 
nized as being a particularly clear-headed 
and painstaking lawyer. While he makes 



no specialty, his criminal practice has 
been most brilliant, and as such, he ranks 
among the foremost of the state. He 
has always been attached to the Demo- 
cratic party, and although not a politician, 
is always ready to serve his party. From 
1891 to 1894 he was counsel for the 
Monmouth county board of freeholders. 
He was united in marriage to Mary A. 
Johnston, of Keyport, whose family came 
from the state of Maine, and their union 
has been blessed with six children, five 
sons and one daughter : Thomas V., now 
practicing law at Long Branch, New 
Jersey; E. W., Jr., attorney-at-law, and 
assistant in county clerk's office at Free- 
hold; Leon J., Isabella, Alfred W., and 
James. 



JOHN BAWDEN.— A splendid exam- 
ple of the possibilities open to in- 
dustry and ability has been wrought out 
in the history of the life and success of 
the subject of this sketch, John Bawden, 
the founder and one of the proprietors of 
the Freehold Foundry and Machine shop 
at Freehold, New Jersey. He is a son 
of John and Sallie (Malachi) Bawden, 
and was born in the town of Gwincar, in 
the county of Cornwall, England, on the 
lOth of April, 1827. His mother having 
died when he was but nine years of 
age, the care of the children devolved 
upon the elder sisters. Young Bawden 
was, even at this tender age, thrown 
largely upon his own weak resources for 
earning a livelihood. He, however, found 
employment with a gold-beater, and after- 
wards as an errand boy in a shoe store, 
and as an assistant in a rope-walk, at- 
tending irregularly the public schools 
during the intervals. He continued until 
the age of fifteen years, when he entered 
for the first time upon the employment of 



140 



Biographical Sketches. 



his subsequent life vocation, the foundry 
business. He accordingly entered the 
brass foundry of William Buckley, in 
New York, and after having worked in 
various foundries, and having very pro- 
ficiently mastered the details of the busi- 
ness as apprentice and as journej'man in 
the last-named city, he came, in 1856, to 
Freehold, New Jersey. Here, in the fall 
of the same year, he established himself 
in similar business on a modest scale, 
in a structure twenty-four by thirty-six 
feet, on the site of his present main build- 
ing. Here for several years, by persever- 
ing industry and strict economy, he was 
only able by the fruits of his small en- 
terprise to supply the modest wants of 
his family. In fact, he was more than 
once on the verge of abandoning his ven- 
ture. Subsequently, however, he asso- 
ciated with him in a co-partnership rela- 
tion Mr. Gilbert Combs, and the business 
was made to include the sale of agricul- 
tural implements and farm machinery. 
Being now relieved from a certain portion 
of the general conduct of the business, 
Mr. Bawden was enabled to give more 
attention to the development of its me- 
chanical side, in which he excelled. The 
superiority of his work, especially in the 
line of small castings, soon attracted wide 
attention and favorable comment from 
the mechanical world, and their trade so 
increased as to demand increased fiicili- 
ties. They have enlarged from time to 
time to such ample proportions until now 
tliey occupy (juite an extensive and com- 
modious brick plant, consisting of a foun- 
dry and machine shop, located on the 
tracks of the Pennsylvania railroad near 
tlie Freehold station, employing as many 
as si.xty men at a time, and regularly 
from thirty to forty men. Their special 
line is fireplace or grate and fender work. 



To Mr. Bawden's superior mechanical 
ingenuity and practical knowledge of the 
manufacturing details of the business is 
due the credit of its success and long- 
continued prosperity. Mr. Bawden is 
superintendent of the manufacturing de- 
partment, and general manager of the 
entire business. 

He was one of the projectors and prime 
movers in the organization of the Central 
National Bank, chartered in 1890, and 
has served as a director ever since. 

Since 1883 he has served as the efficient 
president of the board of health of Free- 
hold. 

In political texture Mr. Bawden is a 
liberal republican, not bound bv party 
ti'ammels, but supporting men and prin- 
ciples, rather than part}^ or party men. 
He has never sought either civil or politi- 
cal preferment, but in 1874 he was ap- 
pointed chief engineer of the fire depart- 
ment of Freehold. During his term he 
represented the department at the annual 
conventions of engineers of the United 
States and Canada, at Boston and Rich- 
mond. At the disastrous fire which 
visited Freehold in 1873, Mr. Bawden 
demonstrated, by his cool and deliberate 
disposition, his eminent fitness for the 
position of engineer. His intelligent 
efforts put forth, and the skill with which 
he directed the control of the spread of the 
fire, called foi'th encomiastic comment. 

Religiously Mr. Bawden is a zealous 
and useful member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church at Freehold, having 
served many years as a member of its 
official board; as steward and trustee. He 
has always been a supporter of the various 
Christian and benevolent movements 
brought forward by the church and its 
institutions, and is a liberal contributor 
to their financial needs. 



BioGRAPHicAiv Sketches. 



141 



Fraternally he is a member of Mon- 
mouth Lodge, No. 20, I. 0. 0. F., and 
Olive Branch Lodge, No. 16, F. and A. 
M. 

Mr. Bawden was married July 26, 
1846, to Miss Eleanor H. Blair, of New 
York city. She died Dec. 9, 1856, at 
Greenpoint, now a part of the city of 
Brooklyn. To this marital relation were 
born four children, but two of whom are 
living : John H., who is associated with 
his father in business, and Eleanor H., 
wife of E. B. H. Tower, who is an official 
of the Pension Department at Washing- 
ton, D. C, where he resides. Mr. Baw- 
den's present wife was Miss Charlotte L., 
daughter of Cornelius D. Conover, this 
county. They were married Dec, 7, 1859. 
Her maternal grandmother was Mary 
Freeman, born in the old Tennent par- 
sonage, on the site of the battlefield of 
Monmouth, and died in 1865, aged over 
eighty-eight years. Her parents resided 
in the parsonage at the time of the battle, 
and it is a family tradition that they 
sought refuge in the woods to escape the 
awful scene. j 

Mr. Bawden, of whom the accompany- i 
ing portrait is a true likeness, is enjoying 
the full vigor of life, and remains in the ac- 
tive and personal discharge of his business, j 
Personally Mr. Bawden possesses great i 
individuality and strength of character. [ 
In his manner, though dignified, render- 
ing him a little hard to approach, he is 
courteous and affable. He resides in a 
handsome and elegantly-appointed man- 
sion at the corner of Broad street and 
Manalapan avenue, fitted up with the 
most modern improvements, and taste- 
fully and luxuriously furnished. A large 
and well-kept lawn surrounding it lends 
to the external adornment of one of the 
most attractive and comfortable homes 



in Freehold. Here Mr. Bawden resides, 
in the enjoyment of well-earned prosper- 
ity, the esteem and respect of the com- 
munity and all who know him. 



TTTARREN HARDENBERGH, a promi- 
^ ^ nent lawyer and real estate opera- 
tor, belongs to a fiimily of great distinc- 
tion, which for many years has been 
closely identified with educational and 
religious work in New Brunswick, Mid- 
dlesex county. New Jersey. He is a 
native of that city, having been born 
there April 25, 1827, and is the son ot 
Cornelius L. and Mary H. Warren Har- 
denbergh. His grandfather was Jacob 
R. Hardenbergh, who was born at Som- 
erville. New Jersey, June 19, 1767, a 
lawyer of great distinction and judge of 
the court of common pleas. 

Judge Hardenbergh was a graduate of 
Rutgers College, and for a number of 
years was closely identified with the 
work of that educational institution, 
serving as one of its trustees. He was 
also president of the New Brunswick 
Bank, and owner of extensive powder 
mills at Spots wood, New Jersey, as well 
as a large OAvner of landed interests. He 
took an especial interest in religious 
work, and for many years was a member 
and an elder of the First Reformed 
church of New Brunswick. His politi- 
cal principles were those of the Demo- 
cratic party. His wife was Mary Mar- 
garet Low, and their union was blessed 
with ten children : Cornelius L., Jacob 
R., Catherine Low, John, who died 
young ; Dina Maria, who also died while 
of tender years ; James, Louis D., Fred- 
erick F., Joanna, and Theodore F. He 
died Feb. 13, 1841, at the ripe age of 
seventy-four years, leaving as a legacy to 



142 



Biographical Sketches. 



his children the deserved reputation of 
an unblemished life, nobly spent in the 
uplifting of his fellow-men. Cornelius 
L. Hardenbergh, father of the subject of 
this sketch, passed through all the grades 
of the public schools, graduated from Rut- 
gers College in 1809, and in 1812 i-eceived 
the degree of A. M. He practiced law 
in New Brunswick and was elected pro- 
fessor of law in Rutgei's College. His 
patronage was very extensive, and he 
continued in active practice until his 
death. 

Seventeen years before that event took 
place he lost his eye-sight, but defended a 
man in court after he became blind with 
signal ability. He was a life-long demo- 
crat, an active politician, a member of 
the legislature and at one time mayor 
of New Brunswick. He was also presi- 
dent of the Bank of New Bruns- 
wick, a trustee of Rutgers College, 
from which he received the degree of i 
L.L. D., and a member of the First 
Reformed church. His activity in 
church matters was continuous through- 
out his life, and for many years he held 
the office of deacon or elder. For his 
first wife he married Mary Catherine 
Richmond and to them was born one 
son, James R., deceased. His second 
wife was Ellen M. Crook, and their 
union was blessed b}- the birth of a 
son, Jacob R. Mary H. Warren gave 
her hand in marriage to him as his third 
wife, and to them were born seven chil- 
dren, the eldest being Warren, the sub- 
ject of this sketch. The others were : 
Augustus A., deceased ; Nancy, deceased ; 
Cornelius L., Mary and Susan, twins, 
both deceased, and Evalina, deceased. 
He died July 14, 1860, his wife having 
preceded him on Sept. 21, 1851. 

Warren Hardenbei'gh was well ground- 



ed in the rudiments of his education in 
the grammar school at New Brunswick 
and at various private boarding schools, 
finishing at Rutgers College after a four 
years' course. He read law with George 
Wood, of New York, one of the ablest 
lawyers in the country, and was admitted 
to the bar in 1847. He built up a large 
and lucrative practice in New Brunswick 
and also engaged largely in real estate 
operations. He ha.'i always been a demo- 
crat, and in the days of his eai-ly man- 
hood took an active part in the work 
of his party. He has always possessed 
in an eminent degree the respect and 
esteem of his fellow-citizens, has held 
the position of school superintendent of 
Middlesex county, and for two j'ears was 
president of the town council. He is a 
member of the Second Reformed church. 
For his first wife he married, Oct. 17, 
1853, Cornelia Rutgers, daughter of An- 
thony Rutgers, by whom he had six 
children : Mary N., married to George 
M. Wahl ; Gerard R., Elizabeth Rutgers, 
Warren, Jr., Charles J., and Annie War- 
ren, deceased. His second wife was 
Catherine M. Ashton, daughter of George 
Ashton, and to them was born one daugh- 
ter, Helen I. Ashton. 



J PRESTON SEARLE, D. D., the profes- 
• sor of systematic theology in his 
alma mater, the theological seminary of 
the Reformed church, at New Brunswick, 
Middlesex countj^. New Jersey, is the 
son of Samuel T. and Cornelia F. South- 
worth Searle, and was born Sept. 12, 
1854, at Schuylerville, state of New 
York. The Searle family is of English 
origin, and includes many divines. Rev. 
Jeremiah Searle, the grandfather of the 
subject of this sketch, was born at Atkin- 





^ ^uc/r<Uu<y> 



Biographical Sketches. 



145 



son, New Hampshire, and graduated | 
from Union College in 1829. He entered ' 
the ministry of the Reformed church, at 
Rotterdam, New York. He was the 
father of eight children, of whom three 
became ministers. He died May 28, 
1801. Samuel T. Searle, his oldest son, 
was born at Salem, New York, in 1825, 
and was graduated from Union College in 
1845. He then pursued a course of study 
at the theological seminary at New 
Brunswick, and was graduated in 1848. 
Like his father, he entered the ministry, 
and has had nearly a half century of 
faithful, efficient service. 

J. Preston Searle, the subject of this 
sketch, graduated from Rutgers College 
in 1875, and completed a course of study 
at the theological seminary of New 
Brunswick in 1878. He received a call 
to the pastorate of the Reformed church 
at Griggstown, Somerset county, New 
Jersey, where he remained two and a 
half years, and in 1881, he entered upon 
a broader field of usefulness as pastor of 
the First Reformed church of Somerville, 
New Jersey. He was honored by hav- 
ing the degree of Doctor of Divinity con- 
ferred upon him, by Rutgers College 
in 1893, and in the same year accepted 
the professorship of systematic theology 
in the theological seminary at jSew 
Brunswick. Dr. Searle is an active mem- 
ber of the New Brunswick Historical 
Society. In 1882 he married Miss Susan 
Bovey. Their union was blessed by the 
birth of four children : Helen E., Fred. S., 
deceased; Raymond B., and Robert W. 



TOHN W. BORDEN, a prominent and 
'-' progressive real estate and insur- 
ance man of Manasquan, and an influen- 
tial figure in public affairs of that town, 
is a sou of Aaron and Sarah Ann Em- 



mons Borden, and was born May 16, 
1843, in Howell township, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey. The name is of 
English origin, and the American line is 
descended from five brothers who came 
to this country in colonial times, some 
of them settling in New York state, and 
others at Shrewsbury and Bordentown, 
New Jersey, giving the latter place its 
name. The Shrewsbury branch were 
among the most thriving farmers and 
extensive land owners of Monmouth 
county. Amos Borden, grandfather of 
our subject, was a prospei'ous hatter, and 
a widely-known citizen of Farmingdale, 
Howell township, where he died in 1855. 
Aaron Borden, our subject's father, 
was a farmer near Middletown for many 
years; subsequently a shoemaker, and 
finally a conveyancer, and generally a 
successful man of business at Howell. 
He was a democrat in politics, and was 
a school trustee of Howell township for 
many years, being noted as a very pro- 
gressive man in educational matters. 
He was a baptist in early life, but after- 
wards joined the Methodist Ej)iscopal 
church at Howell, and later the Jersey- 
ville church, where he was a trustee and 
an active Sunday-scchool worker for 
years. He was married twice, his first 
wife being Miss Sarah Emmons, a daugh- 
ter of David Emmons, of Howell, who 
died in 1860, after having borne him 
three children : Daniel Schenck, a farmer 
in Howell township ; James A., a con- 
tractor and builder at Howell, and John 
W., our subject. In 1861 he married his 
second wife, who was Miss Esther Rob- 
bins, daughter of John Robbins, of How- 
ell, by whom he had one son, Aaron, a 
farmer in Howell township. Mr. Borden, 
Sr., died in January, 1894, at the age of 
eighty years. 



146 



Biographical Sketches. 



John W. Borden, our subject, was ed- 
ucated in the district schools of Howell 
township. When fifteen years of age he 
became a school teacher at what is now 
Asburj Park, and remained at this occu- 
pation for seven yeai-s. In 1865 he es- 
tablished a general mercantile business 
at Manasquan, on Main street, which he 
conducted successfully for four years, 
after which he was a school teacher at 
Manasquan for three years. In 1874 he 
laid the foundation of his present thriv- 
ing business at Manasquan. He is an 
agent for real estate and insurance and 



is a surveyor and 
auctioneer, a notary 



for conveyancing ; 
civil engineer, an 
public and commissioner of deeds. Mr. 
Borden owns considerable real estate in 
and around Manasquan and elsewhere, 
and resides at a liandsome place outside ■ 
the town limits in Wall township. He 
is a democrat in politics and is active in 
local affairs. He was elected justice of 
the peace of Manasquan in 1864, when 
but twenty-one years of age, and served 
for five 3'ears. He has been a member 
of the board of education for some time ; 
was clerk of the board for a time, and 
organized the school districts under the 
new law in 1893. He was also on the 
building committee of the new school at 
Manasquan. He is a member of the 
board of trade, and is a director of the 
First National Bank of Manasquan, of 
Avhich he was one of the organizers in 
1883. 

He has been many years an elder 
in the Presbyterian church of Mana- 
squan, where for about twenty-five years 
he served as superintendent of its Sun- 
day-school. He has also been a member 
of the board of committee of his town- 
ship, and filled many important positions. 
For twenty years he has been secretary 



of the Manasquan village building and 
loan association. 

He is a member of Excelsior Lodge, 
No. 88, I. 0. 0. F. ; Unity Encampment, 
No. 25 ; and is one of the organizers of 
the lodge of I. 0. R. M. He is a Knight 
of Pythias, a K. of G. E., and is a past- 
officer in all these orders at Manasquan. 

Mr. Borden has been married twice. 
In 1868 he wedded Miss Elizabeth Os- 
born, daughter of Captain John Osborn, of 
Manasquan, who died in 1871, after the 
birth of one daughter, Lottie, deceased in 
infancy. His second wife was Miss 
Hannah V. Curtis, daughter of Osborn 
Curtis, whom he wedded in Feb., 1874, 
and by whom he has had one son, John 
Curtis. Another member of his family 
is an adopted daughter, Miss Bertha B. 
Curtis, a niece of Mrs. Borden. When- 
ever energy and enterprise are needed to 
advance public interests in Manasquan, 
Mr. Borden is among the first to respond. 
He is both public-spirited and progres- 
sive, and has attained a populai'ity in 
both business and political circles. 



TDETER FRANCIS DALY, counsellor- 
-L a1>law, was born in New York city 
May 19, 1867, and has lived in New 
Brunswick, Middlesex county, New Jer- 
sey, since he was seven ^'ears of age. 
He is of pure Irish extraction, his 
parents, Timothy E. and Catharine 
0' Grady Daly, being both born in Ire- 
land. 

After receiving a sound, thorough and 
practical education, primarily at St. 
Peter's school and subsequently at the 
New Brunswick high school, he entered 
the law office of the Hon. James H. A'^an 
Cleef, and after reading four 3'ears was, 
in the twenty-first year of his age, at 



Biographical Sketches. 



147 



the November term, 1888, admitted to 
the bar. He was a member of the law- 
firm of Van Cleef, Daly & Woodbridge 
from Jan. 1, 1893, until its termination, 
Jan. 1, 1896, since then having an office 
in the Janeway building. 

Mr. Daly has been deputy and attor- 
ney of the Hon. Leonard Fui'man, surro- 
gate of Middlesex county, since Dec, 
1892, and is counsel for the townships of 
Sayreville, East Brunswick and Pisca- 
taway, and counsel to the Workingmen's 
Building and Loan Association and other 
important business firms and organiza- 
tions. 

Mr. Daly has an extensive and general 
practice. He has been engaged in nearly 
every criminal case of exceptional im- 
portance tried in Middlesex county dur- 
ing the past five years, particularly " The 
Dabney Murder Case " and " The Barry 
Arson Trials." Civil practice receives 
his first consideration, and ho has made 
a special study of probate law. 

Mr. Daly was married, Sept. 27, 1893, 
to Mary Rose Mansfield, there being one 
child, Margaret Rosina. 



TTENRY B. COOK, a representative 
-'—*- member of the Middlesex county 
bar, ex-city clerk of New Brunswick, and 
a respected citizen of that place, is a son 
of William J. and Julia Rhoades Cook, 
and was born in New Brunswick, Nov. 7, 
1860. He was educated in the common 
schools of New Brunswick. At the age 
of eighteen years he engaged in manual 
labor, at first superintending the con- 
struction of a bridge near New Bruns- 
wick, and subsequently working in a shoe 
factory for a short time. In 1879 he 
entered the office of J. K. Rice as a law 
student, and was but a little past his 

9 



majority when he was admitted to prac- 
tice in 1882. He was admitted as a 
counsellor in 1885. He remained with 
Mr. Rice until that year, when he opened 
an office of his own, and has retained his 
independent practice ever since. 

Mr. Cook has devoted his talents prin- 
cipally to criminal practice, and many of 
his cases have become noted in the Mid- 
dlesex county courts. In 1892 he secured 
the discharge of a woman from an insane 
asylum by taking out a writ of habeas 
corpus thi'ough her brother and his friends, 
a case which excited wide-spread interest 
at the time, and established an important 
precedent. Upon another occasion he 
established the innocence and secured 
the discharge of a man who had already 
been committed in default of heavy bail 
on the charge of operating in " green 
goods." He has also participated suc- 
cessfully in a number of well-known rail- 
road trials. 

Mr. Cook is a democrat, and, in 1885, 
was appointed to the position of city clerk 
of New Brunswick, occuiDying the office 
for five years. He is a member of the 
order of Elks, and for fourteen years has 
been a member of the Jr. 0. U. A. M. 
He was happily married, Aug. 14, 1889, 
to Miss Minnie Florance, daughter of 
John Florance, a well-known resident of 
New Brunswick. His wife died Jan. 
18, 1891, leaving one daughter, Minnie. 

Mr. Cook has won high standing as a 
criminal lawyer by his many successes at 
the bar. He possesses engaging manners, 
eloquence and clear-cut positiveness in 
j speaking, a high degree of polished cour- 
tesy, which elements make hiin a com- 
manding figure in his profession. Samuel 
C. Cook, paternal grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was a native of New Brunswick, and 
postmaster of the city under President 



148 



Biographical Sketches. 



Harrison. He was a ijlanemaker by 
ti'ade; was an active whig in politics; 
served as collector and assessor for a num- 
ber of years, and was a devoted member 
of the Presbyterian church. He died in 
1859, leaving three children : Ann Eliza- 
beth, William J. and Jehil, 

William J. Cook, our subject's father, 
was also born in New Brunswick ; re- 
ceived a private school education in that 
city, and was a booklieeper by occupation. 
He served faithfully during the civil war 
in one of the New Jersey regiments. 
His affiliations were with the Democratic 
party, and he was an active member of the 
First Presbytei'ian church. He was mar- 
ried in 1853, to Miss Julia Rhoades, of 
New Brunswick, and died in June, 1888, 
leaving two children : Jetta, wife of Wil- 
liam H. Barnes, of Topeka, Kansas, and 
Henry B., our subject. 



r^ ILBERT S. VAN PELT, vice-presi- 
^^ dent of the National Bank of New 
Jersey, and a director of the New Bruns- 
wick Fire Insurance Company, of that 
place, is a son of the late Gilbert S. and 
Margaret Chambers Van Pelt, and was i 
born near Davison's Mills, Middlesex 
county. New Jersey, on the 11th of 
April, 1838. His father was a highly 
respected farmer in Middlesex county, | 
N. J., and prospered to the end of his 
life. He had been an old-line Avliig, but 
with the advent of the Republican party 
he cast his fortunes with the latter. He I 
was a foithfiil and active member of the ! 
Dutch Reformed church at Franklin 
Park, N. J., and served several times as 
an elder. He died in 1874 at the age of 
eighty-two years. His children were : 
Gertrude, deceased ; John D., deceased ; 
Reuben G., deceased, and Gilbert S., our 



! subject. The mother died in 1875, at 
the age of seventy-two years. 
I Our subject was reared upon the farm 
in Middlesex county, and attended the 
public school of his native township until 
he entered a store at Prospect Piainss 
I This position he held for three years. He 
next found employment with Dayton & 
Co., in New Brunswick, with Avhom he 
remained for seven years. He then 
clerked for Hagaman & Dunham, of New 
Brunswick, for a brief time, after which 
he went to New York city, and entered 
the establishment of A. T. Stewart & Co., 
: where he was employed for a time. He 
was subsequently employed by Arnold, 
Constable & Co., with Avhom he remained 
until 1864, when he returned to New 
Brunswick and formed a co-partnership 
with William C. Stoddard and Kenneth 
J. Duncan, under the firm name of Stod- 
dard, Duncan & Van Pelt, to carry on 
and conduct a dry goods and carpet trade. 
This firm did a thriving business from the 
very start, and soon were established 
upon a sound and prosperous foundation. 
They continued the business until 1890, 
a term of twenty-six years, when the 
firm was dissolved by the death of the 
senior partner, William C. Stoddard. Our 
subject was made one of the executors of 
the deceased partner's estate. He was 
elected a director of the National Bank of 
New Jersey, at New Brunswick, in 1891, 
and is now the vice-president of that in- 
stitution. He is also a director of the 
New Brunswick Fire Insurance Com- 
pany. In 1875 he Avas elected treasurer 
of the First Reformed church of New 
Brunswick and still holds that office. He 
has long been an active and earnest 
member of that church, serving as elder 
and deacon at different times. He Avas 
superintendent of its Sabbath-school for 



Biographical Sketches. 



151 



eight years ; was a teacher for twenty 
years and its chorister for the same 
length of time, and in his earlier years 
was also a member of the church choir. 
He is not now engaged in active business, 
but is interested in such matters only as 
pertain to the different offices which he 
holds. 

He married Cornelia Beekman, daugh- 
ter of the late Isaac Voorhees, deceased, 
of New Brunswick, N. J. He is a very 
domestic man and thoroughly enjoys his 
home. As a citizen he occupies an hon- 
orable station in business circles and en- 
joys the unlimited confidence of the com- 
munity. 



JAMES V. MULDOON, a former civil 
^ engineer and railroad contractor 
of distinction ; until recently an exten- 
sive coal dealer at Fi^eehold, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, and whose memory- 
lingers as having been one of the most 
popular and prominent citizens of that 
town, deceasing in 1896, was a son of 
Patrick C. and Mary McCue Muldoon, j 
and was born Sept. 17, 1845, at Brook- ' 
lyn. New York. The name is of Irish 
origin, and our subject's father, Patrick 
C. Muldoon, was born and educated in ' 
County Athlone, Ireland. He came to 
the United States, and located at New 
York city, where for many years he 
was a prosperous contractor and builder 
in mason-work. In 1858 he retired to a 
farm near Marlboro, Monmouth county, 
where he lived a quiet, honored life until 
his death, in January, 1895, at the age 
of ninety-one years. He was the father 
of four sons and one daughter, our sub- 
ject being the eldest of the family. 

James V. Muldoon, subject of this 
sketch, spent the early years of his life 



at Brooklyn, New York, and received 
his early education at the Christian 
Brothers' school there. He subsequently 
attended Cooper Institute, New York 
city. At the outbreak of the civil war 
Mr. Muldoon, who was then seventeen 
years old, enlisted in the Twenty-thii-d 
New York regiment as a private, and 
served one hundred days. He then re- 
enlisted at Keokuk, Iowa, in the Forty- 
fifth Iowa Infantry, subsequently sta- 
tioned at Memphis, Tennessee. In 1863 
he received a commission as first-lieuten- 
ant, which he obtained by passing a gov- 
ernment examination, and was trans- 
ferred to the Fifty-fifth U. S. Infantry, 
colored troops, stationed at Vicksburg. 
At the close of the war in the spring of 
1865 he returned to Brooklyn, and was 
levelman with the park engineering 
corps of that city for two years. He 
then served two years in Texas as civil 
engineer in the employ of the Great 
Northern and International Railroad 
Company, during which he was engaged 
in preliminary surveys and construction 
work, and was a division engineer in 
charge of a fifteen-mile section of the 
road. He subsequently returned to his 
father's farm near Marlboro, and resided 
there several years. In 1877 he entered 
the employ of the Freehold and New 
York Railroad Company as division en- 
gineer, in charge of construction between 
Keyport and Wickatunk, and also as 
inspector of bridges. Upon the comple- 
tion of the work he was located at Free- 
hold until 1879 as station agent for the 
company. Mr. Muldoon established his 
retail coal business at Freehold in 1879, 
and conducted an extensive and success- 
ful trade until the time of his death. So 
rapidly did his business develop that in 
1893 he was compelled to build a coal 



152 



Biographical Sketches. 



pocket to facilitate the unloading of cars 
and the loading of wagons, the first 
structure of its kind in this section of 
the country. Mr. Muldoon was a large 
real-estate owner, and was an active par- 
ticipant in all local public matters. He 
was a republican in politics, a staunch 
party man, and had served on election 
boards and in other minor offices. He 
was an attendant of the Freehold Baptist 
church. He was very active in society 
matters; was a member and past-com- 
mander of Conover Post, No. 63, G.A.R.; 
a member and past chancellor of Tennent 
Lodge, No. 49, K. of P.; a member of 
Monmouth Council, No. 25, Jr.O.U.A.M.; 
past workman in the local lodge of A. 0. 
U. W., and a member and collector of 
Keith Council, No. 1501, Royal Ar- 
canum. He was a member of Engine 
Company No. 2, and had served as presi- 
dent of the Freehold Fire Department. 
Mr. IMuldoon was married March 26, 
1881, to Miss Martha Pearsoll, daughter 
of William Pearsoll, of Freehold, and a 
representative of one of the best known 
pioneer families of Monmouth county. 
They had five children ; thi-ee deceased 
in inl'ancy; Annie T. and Ralph B. The 
two surviving children and Mrs. Muldoon 
still reside comfortably at Freehold. 

Mr. Muldoon was one of Freehold's most 
popular and influential citizens. He was 
industrious and thriving in his business, 
kindly and genial iu his bearing towards 
his fellow-men, and was filled with the 
true spirit of Christian charity which 
seeks to relieve distress wherever it may 
be, without regard to class or creed. He 
was open-hearted in his benefactions, and 
was both loved and respected by the 
community which never ceased to feel 
the stimulus of his benign influence while 
he lived. 



"jSTEILSON TAYLOR PARKER.— Al- 
-'-^ though but still a young man, 
Neilson Taylor Pai'ker, in the compara- 
tively short time that he has been en- 
gaged in active business in New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, has become one of the 
representative men of his city and of his 
occupation. He has been so successful 
in his profession of fire insurance, in 
building up from small beginnings his 
present extensive brokerage and agency 
business, that his I'eputation in insurance 
circles is more than local. The lineage 
of Mr. Parker can be traced back manv 
hundreds of years, but for the purposes 
of this sketch it is sufficient to start only 
with Richard Parker, gentleman, of Barn- 
wood, Gloucestershire, England, Avho was 
born in 1578. Thence we trace the line 
through several generations to Thomas 
Parker, rector of Welsh Bicknor and 
Taynton, Gloucestershire, the first of a 
line of Parkers bearing this Christian 
name. His son, the Rev. Thomas Par- 
ker, rector of Saintbury and vicar of 
Churcham, lies buried in Gloucester 
cathedral. 

Thomas F. B. Parker, the latter's 
grandson and the father of the subject of 
this sketch, came to this country in 1852, 
and married Julia C. Taylor. And it is 
on his mother's side that he is more 
closely connected, not only with the his- 
tory of New Jersey, but with our na- 
tional independence, for two of his great- 
grandfathers. Col. John Taylor and Col. 
John Neilson — the latter twice elected a 
member from New Jersey of the Conti- 
nental Congress — were oflicers from the 
beginning until the end of the Revolu- 
tion. Upon the completion of his ser- 
vice as lieutenant-colonel of the Fifth 
New Jersey regiment. Colonel Taylor 
became professor of mathematics at Rut- 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



153 



gers College, and later at Union College, 
New York. His son, Augustus Fitz 
Randolph Taylor, a prominent physician ' 
of New Brunswick, who married a daugh- ' 
ter of Col. John Neilson, mentioned 
above, was the father of John Neilson 
Taylor. Mr. Parker's grandfather, well 
known as the author of that standard 
legal work, " Taylor's Landlord and 
Tenant," was an influential citizen of 
>"ew Brunswick upon retiring from ac- 
tive professional life in Brooklyn. 

Thus it will be seen that although not 
a native of the state, Mr. Parker comes 
from good New Jersey stock, and the 
achievements of his ancestors in the Rev- 
olution make him justly proud of his 
membership in the Society of the Sons of 
the American Revolution. He w^as born 
in Brooklyn, New York, June 9, 1860, 
where he received his elementary insti'uc- 
tion at the Polytechnic Institute. Later 
his parents sent him to Hellmouth Col- j 
lege, London, Canada, and he completed [ 
his studies at St. John's College, Annapo- 
lis, Maryland. His choice always in- j 
clined towards a business career, and hav- 
ing acquired a liberal education, he 
obtained a clerkship in the importing 
commission merchant house of Galwey & 
Casado, in New York city, which did a 
large business with foreign countries, par- 
ticularly Spain. After six years of faith- 
ful work, broken only by a trip to Spain 
and northern Africa, he spent nearly a 
year on a large cattle and horse ranch in 
Texas. With another adventurous 
spirit he determined to ride the greater 
part of the way home. Each mounted 
on a tough Texan pony and with a pack 
horse to carry provisions, they rode con- 
tinuously for nearly two months, sleeping 
at night on the bare ground, depending 
largely for food on the game they shot. 



Finally after many vicissitudes they 
reached home, hardened and rugged from 
their rough experience. Returning to New 
York Mr. Parker entered the office of 
Roosevelt & Boughton, of that city, fire 
insurance agents and brokers, where he re- 
mained for eight years, gaining a general 
knowledge of the business in its various 
branches. Li 1886 he determined to 
start for himself, and opened in a modest 
way, an agency in New Brunswick. His 
business increased, and he gradually ab- 
sorbed several of the large rival agencies, 
until feeling the necessity of more com- 
modious quarters for conducting his now 
extensive business, he purchased in 1891 
and remodelled the building at Nos. 379- 
381 George street, since known as the 
Parker building, one of the best j)ieces of 
office and business property in the city. 
In 1888 Mr. Parker married Miss Ellen 
E. Porter, daughter of Mr. Lucius P. 
Porter, of New Brunswick, a sketch of 
whose life is given in the history of Mid- 
dlesex county, and their union was 
blessed by the birth of a daughter, but 
after two years of wedded life his wife was 
taken from him, and the child died soon 
after. As might be expected in a man of 
his positive character in the conduct of 
business and in the affairs of life, Mr. 
Parker has studiously observed his social, 
political and religious obligations. He is 
an episcopalian, and an active member 
of Christ church, having served the same 
faithfully as treasurer and vestryman. 
He is also a member of the City Club, a 
non-partisan organization for the purifica- 
tion of local politics, and one of the char- 
ter members of the Union Club. Althou2;h 
Mr. Parker's career has just begun, its 
bright inception gives promise of future 
usefulness that shall make him a power 
in the community in which he lives. 



154 



Biographical Sketches. 



-pROF. FRANCIS C. VAN DYCK, Ph. 
-^ D., of Rutgers College, New Bruns- 
•^wick, New Jersey, is a son of Jacob C. 
and Mary Bogardus Van Dyck, of Cox- 
sackie, New York state, and was born 
at that place June 3, 1844. 

Abraham Van Dyck, the grandfather 
of our subject, was a jiromment lawyer 
of Coxsackie, and enjoyed a large and 
lucrative practice. He was an exemplary 
citizen and Christian gentleman, and, as 
his ancestors were before him, was a 
worshipper in the Dutch Reformed 
church. His death occurred in 1835. 

Jacob C. Van Dyck, the father of our 
subject, was born at Coxsackie, and after 
receiving a preparatory training at home 
he entered Union College, Schenectady, 
N. Y., where, after completing the 
usual classical course, he was graduated 
about the year 1840. He then entered 
upon the study of law, and in due time 
was admitted to the bar of Greene county, 
N. Y., where he pursued his profession 
Avith mai'ked success. He also served as 
cashier of the National Bank at Cox- 
sackie for some years immediately prior 
to his death. 

He was a democrat in politics, and 
ardent in his religious convictions. He 
too was a member of the Dutch Reformed 
church, and one of its most respected 
elders. He died in 1874 leaving three 
children — Francis C, William H , and 
Clinton. 

Our subject, the oldest of the three 
brothers, enjoyed the usual advantages 
afforded by the schools of Coxsackie and 
Schenectady, and after a brief prepara- 
tory training entered Williams College, 
Massachusetts, whence he went to Rut- 
gers College, at New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, where he av as graduated in 1865. 
He acted as tutor until he went in 1870 



to Europe, where he spent one year, 
studying in several universities. 

After his return from Europe he be- 
came professor of chcmistrj' in Rutgers 
College, New Brunswick. Subsequently 
he became professor of physics in the 
same institution, and this chair he has 
occupied to the present time with great 
distinction. 

Professor Van Dyck takes no active 
interest in politics, but his affiliations are 
with the Democratic party. He is a de- 
vout and consistent Christian gentleman, 
a communicant of the Second Reformed 
church of New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
of which church he has been both a 
deacon and an elder. He was one of the 
founders of the New Jersey State Micro- 
scopical Societ}' of New Brunswick, and 
is an active spirit in that organization. 
He is a member of the Ancient Order of 
United Workmen, of New Brunswick, 
and his counsels are highly esteemed in 
all matters touching the administrative 
functions of the organization. 

Prof. Van Dyck ranks j^re-eminently 
high as an instructor, and is deemed a 
most thoroughly equipped scholar and 
master of philosophy. Socially he is a 
most pleasant and companiable man, and 
in his domestic relations he is kind, gen- 
erous and warm-hearted. 

He married on Dec. 27, 1871, Miss 
Rebecca Jane Van Bei-gen, daughter of 
Andrew G. Van Bergen. They have 
had three children — Francis C, Jr., Wil- 
liam Van Bergen and Mary, since de- 
ceased. 



A BNER S. CORIELL, for twenty-eight 
-^-^ years postmaster of New Market, 
Middlesex county. New Jersey, and a 
prosperous dealer in coal and wood at 
that place, is a son of Richard and Sarah 



Biographical Sketches. 



165 



Smalley Coriell, and was born Nov. 11, 
1820, in Piscataway township, about a 
mile and a half from New Market. The 
name is of French origin, and tradition 
traces the ancestry of the New Jersey 
branch of the family back to three bro- 
thers: Elias, Emmanuel and David, who 
came to America from the Island of 
Corsica in 1663, one of them settling near 
Lam bertville. New Jersey. From the latter 
was descended Abram Coriell, great-grand- 
father of our subject, who settled in Pis- 
cataway township about the middle of 
the last century. He spent most of his 
life near Newtown, and reared a family 
of twelve children. He was a widely 
known man, and was one of the leading 
supporters of the Presbyterian church at 
Bound Brook. During the Revolution- 
ary war he served as a baker in General 
Washington's army. 

Abner S. Coriell, our subject, was edu- 
cated in the district school at Harris Coi'- 
ner, near Bound Brook. When fifteen 
years of age he went to work on his 
fathex''s farm at that place, where he re- 
mained until his first marriage in 1842, 
whereupon he removed to New Market. 
Here he established a general store which 
he conducted for twenty-five years, dur- 
ing which lengthy period he was univer- 
sally regarded as one of the leading men 
in the affairs of Piscataway township. 
He has always been a staunch, unflinch- 
ing republican in politics, and was first 
appointed postmaster at New Market by 
President Lincoln in 1861, serving con- 
tinuously thereafter under every Re- 
publican administration for twenty-four 
years. He was appointed by President 
Harrison in 1888 and served for four years 
more. He was also assessor of Piscata- 
way township for twenty-two years, pres- 
ident of the board of borough commis- 



sioners and commissioner of deeds for a 
number of years. At the present time 
Mr. Coriell does an extensive business as 
a wholesale and retail dealer in coal and 
wood. He resides in a handsome house 
in New Market, which he purchased in 
1870, and has about five acres of land for 
general farming. He is a member and 
a liberal supporter of the Presbyterian 
church at Dunellen. On Nov. 11, 1842, 
he was married to Miss Margaret Gilds, 
daughter of Samuel Gilds, of Bound 
Brook, who died in 1847, after bearing 
him two children: Andrew S., a store- 
keeper at Bound Brook and an elder in 
the Bound Brook Presbyterian church, 
married to Miss Mary E. Carmen, of 
Bound Brook, and Samuel G., a store- 
keeper at New Brunswick, married to 
Miss Mary E. Vail, of New Brunswick. 
In 1849, Mr. Coriell married his second 
wife, Miss Catherine Blue, daughter of 
Jacob Blue, of New Market, by whom he 
has had eight children : Charles A., dealer 
in ship timber at Dunellen, married to Miss 
Serena Boice, of Dunellen; Mary E., wife 
of Melvin R. VanCuen, of Plainfield ; 
George W., a surveyor at New Market; 
married to Miss Elizabeth Hey don, of 
New Market; Sarah, wife of Benjamin 
G. Elliott, of Scott's Plains; Kate E., 
residing at New Market; William L., a 
painter at New Market, married to Miss 
Fannie Gaskill, of New Market ; Nellie, 
residing at New Market, and Abner S., a 
civil engineer and surveyor at Dunellen, 
married to Miss Mary Allen, of Dunellen. 
Mr. Coriell possesses strength and char- 
acter, vigor of physique and energy of 
purpose. He is one of the best known 
and popular citizens of New Market, and 
the fact that he has been almost the only 
postmaster of the town, within the mem- 
ory of the present generation, has given 



156 



Biographical Sketches. 



him au influential position in the com- 
niimit}'. He has always been active and 
prosperous in his business affairs and has 
attained a comfortable situation in life. 



TT7ILLIAM STEPHEN STRONG is one 
' * of New Brunswick's most influ- 
ential business men. He has been en- 
gaged in the hardware business in New 
Brunswick, Middlesex county, New Jer- 
sey, for a long term of years. He is not 
only a success as a merchant, but he also 
holds a high place in the social and 
official circles of this city. He was born 
at South Amboy, June 17, 1830, and is 
a son of T. J. and Anna Thompson 
Strong. 

He is of distinctly American ancestry, 
the family having for many generations 
been residents of New Jersey. His 
grandfather, Stephen Strong, was en- 
gaged in the hotel business at Hopewell 
for many years, and then moved to Land- 
ing, where he subsequently deceased. 

T. J. Strong, the father of our subject, 
Avas born in 1800, and lived until 1851. 
He was born at Hopewell and was pro- 
prietor of a hotel at the time of his death. 
He was a firm supporter of democratic 
principles and was prominent in party 
work, having served as constable of New 
Brunswick for a number of years. He 
was a charter member of New Brunswick 
Lodge, No. 6, I. 0. 0. F., and held a 
number of offices in that lodge. His 
death occurred in 1851, the same year as 
that of his estimable wife. 

AVilliam Stephen Strong received his 
scholastic training in the public schools 
of New Brunswick up to the age of four- 
teen years, at which time he entered 
upon a clerkship in the hardware busi- 
ness at New Brunswick, which after- 



wards became the store of Letson & 
Strong. This firm was soon after merged 
into the firm of C. P. Strong & Co. The 
business was conducted under this name 
until 1894, when Mr. Strong purchased 
the entire business of the firm and has 
since conducted it in his own name. Mr. 
Strong has built up one of the most ex- 
tensive hardware entei'prises in New 
Brunswick or Middlesex county. 

Mr. Strong has served fifteen years in 
the State Guard, and has successively 
held the offices of second and first lieu- 
tenant of Com2:)any D, Third Regiment. 
As an officer in the State Guard he 
served during the riots that followed the 
strike on the Central railroad of New 
Jersey in 1886. Politically he is a 
democrat, has always been a party 
workei', and for eight years he was mayor 
of New Brunswick. He has been chief 
I of the fire department of that city during 
four terms. 

In secret societies Mr. Strong has al- 
ways taken a deep intei'est. He is a 
member of Union Lodge, No. 19, F. and 
A. M.; Scott Chapter, Ko. 4 ; Scott Coun- 
cil, No. 1 ; Hugh De Payens Command- 
ery, No. 1, of Jersey City, and of New 
Jersey Consistory. He is also a noble of 
the Mystic Shrine, Mecca Temple, New 
York city; a prominent Knight of Pyth- 
ias, and a member of New Brunswick 
Lodge, No. 324, Benevolent Protective 
Order of Elks, and one of its most active 
members. 



TPRANK M. DONOHUE, M.D., a prac- 
-L ticing physician, and vice-president 
of the People's National Bank of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
James and Jane Reynolds Donohue, and 
was born at New Brunswick, Aug. 17, 
I 1859. Our subject's parents were both 



Biographical Sketches. 



159 



natives of County Meath, Ireland, and 
came to this country when quite young. 

James Donohue, father, was born in 
County Meath, Ireland, in the year 1812, 
and received his early education in the 
common schools of his native place. Some 
time after he emigrated to America he 
located in New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
where he established a grocery store, 
which he conducted during a long series 
of years and became quite a prosperous 
man. 

James Donohue was a member of the 
St. Peter's Catholic church of New Bruns- 
wick, and was one of its most liberal sup- 
porters until his death, which occurred in 
the year 1880. Mother Donohue deceased 
four years later, aid the remains of both 
lie interred at New Brunswick, New Jer- 
sey. They were the parents of six chil- 
dren in addition to Dr. Frank M. 

Frank M. Donohue, subject, has had a 
remarkably successful career. He re- 
ceived his elementary instruction in the 
parochial schools of his native place, and 
after spending some time at Rutgers 
grammar school attended the St. Francis 
Xavier College of New York, until 1875, 
when he entered Rutgers College and 
took a special course in chemistry, subse- 
quently reading a course in medicine 
under the supervision of Dr. Cliflford 
Morrogh. In 1879 he had made suffi- 
cient preparation to enter the medical 
department of the University of New 
York, and was graduated from that insti- 
tution with the class of 188 1. Dr. Dono- 
hue began the practice of his profession at 
New Brunswick as assistant to Dr. Mor- 
rogh, his medical preceptor, and re- 
mained with him until the latter's death, 
in 1882, when he entered into practice 
on his own account, continuing up to the 
present time, and has built up a large 



and remunerative patronage. Our sub- 
ject is widely known in medical circles 
and is a member in good standing of the 
Middlesex county and New Jersey state 
medical societies, and served one year as 
president of the former. In 1893, Dr. 
Donohue was elected an honorary mem- 

j ber of the Somerset Medical Society. In 
addition to his private practice our sub- 
ject is attending surgeon at St. Marie's 

i Orphan Asylum, and also of the New 
Brunswick city hospital. Dr. Donohue 
is prominent in business circles of his 
city, being vice-president and a director 
of the People's National Bank, and also 
vice-president and a director of the Fourth 
Excelsior Building and Loan Association. 
On Oct. 10, 1883, Dr. Frank M. Donohue 
married Mary E., daughter of Geo. Butt- 
ler, of New Brunswick, New Jersey, and 
became the father of two children, one 
who died in infancy, and Mary, now ten 
years of age. Mrs. Donohue died May 5, 
1892, and is buried in New Brunswick. 
Dr. Donohue is a public-spirited man, 
and continues to be successful in the 

! practice of his chosen profession, as well 
as in business affairs. He is a member 
of the Catholic Benevolent Legion and 
of St. Peter's Catholic church at New 
Brunswick. 



OHAS. E. SPENCER, the well-known 
general superintendent of the Norfolk 
and New Brunswick Hosiery Co., at New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of Chris- 
topher V. and Hannah C. Eldredge Spen- 
cer, of Providence, R. I. He was born 
May 16, 1851, at East Greenwich, R. I., 
and is descended from an estimable and 
highly respected quaker family. His 
grandfather, Christopher V., was a native 
of Providence, R. I., where he dealt in 
real estate for some years, then moved to 



160 



Biographical Sketches. 



the state of New York and located at 
New York city until 1864. In the latter 
year he removed to Plain field, Union 
county. New Jersey, and retiring from 
active business pursuits, spent his remain- 
ing 3'ears in the enjoyment of ease and 
comfort. He had always been an old-line 
whig prior to 1856, and Avhen the ReiDub- 
lican part}' was organized he readily gave 
unto it his allegiance. He was a consist- 
ent member of the Society of Fi'iends. 
He died at Plainfield, New Jersey, in 
1869, greatly respected and esteemed by 
friends and neighbors. He had the fol- 
lowing children : Sarah, now deceased ; 
Chi'istopher V., Charles L., Samuel A., 
Mary, married to Dr. T. M. Franklin ; 
Thomas H., James A., now deceased; 
AnnaL. and William Penn, now deceased. 
Christopher V. Spencer, father of our 
subject, was born March 14, 1823, at 
Providence, R. I., and was educated in 
the public schools of his native town. 
Later he prepared himself for a college 
course and entered Friends' College, from 
which he subsequently was graduated. 
He was engaged for some time in business 
with his father, but finally went to Wash- 
ington, D. C, where he filled a position 
in the war department. From Washing- 
ton he removed to Providence, R. I., where 
he was engaged in the brokerage business 
for eighteen years. He has now retired 
from active business, and is living in com- 
fortable circumstances in the home of his 
ancestors. He had been an ardent demo- 
crat until the civil war broke out, when 
he joined the republican ranks and became 
an active politician, serving as town clerk 
and occupying other township offices. He 
was married Dec. 21, 1847, to Miss Han- 
nah C. Eldredge, daughter of Dr. Chas. 
Eldredge, of East Greenwich. R. I. They 
had the foUoAving-named children: Elea- 



nor L., now deceased; Charles E., Ed- 
wai'd E., Cornelia Anna, now deceased; 
and George L. 

Charles E. Spencer, our subject, received 
his education in the common schools of 
his native town and came to New Bruns- 
wick when yet a boy. He entered the 
emplo}' of the Norfolk and New Bruns- 
wick Hosiery Co. as an errand boy. He 
worked faithfully and performed his work 
with promptness, care and fidelity, and 
won the confidence of his employers in a 
most eminent degree. Promotion followed 
promotion, and year after year found him 
in a more responsible position, until at 
length he became such a thorough master 
of the business, in its every detail, that 
the company made him the general sup- 
erintendent of their extensive establish- 
ment and business. He has been with 
this corporation for a period of thirty-one 
years. He is also connected with the 
Savings Bank, the Mutual Fire Insurance 
Co., of New Brunswick, and is president 
of the Homestead Building and Loan As- 
sociation of New Brunswiclv. He was a 
member of the board of education of New 
Brunswick for six years, and for three 
years was president of the board. He is 
an ardent republican and an active poli- 
tician, and his first presidential vote was 
cast for Gen. U. S. Grant. He is also 
identified with, and is an active spirit in, 
a number of social and practical oi'gani- 
zations, principal among which are the 
orders of I. 0. 0. F., the Royal Arcanum, 
and the Ancient Order United Workmen. 

Mr. Spencer mari'ied Miss Sarah A. 
Conover, daughter of John V. and Cathar 
rine A. Conover, of New Brunswiclv, New 
Jersej^, May 16, 1877, and they have the 
following children: Elizabeth C, born 
July 1, 1878; Chas. E., Jr., born Dec. 17, 
1882; and Eleanor L.,born June 18, 1888. 



Biographical Sketches. 



161 



nnHOMAS N. ACKEN, the late ex-sheriff ! 
-*- of Middlesex county and for many | 
years an active, progressive, and successful ' 
business man of New Brunswick, enjoyed 
a career replete with practical financial 
success and filled from time to time with 
valued expressions of his townsmen's 
confidence and respect. He was a son 
of Jonathan H. and Elizabeth B. Noe 
Acken, and was born at Perth Amboy, 
May 25, 1843. His grandfather, Thomas 
Acken, received a sound common-school 
education, was a farmer by occupation, 
and remained so during his entire life. 
In politics he was a democrat. He died 
at the ripe age of eighty years. To him 
and his wife were born eleven children : 
John, Joseph, William, Jonathan H., 
Moses, deceased; Isaac, Samuel, David, 
Lockie, Abbie, deceased ; and one child 
which died in infancy unchristened. 
Jonathan H. Acken's father received 
his education in the common schools, 
and on leaving school turned his atten- 
tion to farming, in which pursuit he 
passed the whole of his life at South 
Amboy. He was an active politician of 
the democratic faith. His children were : 
Alonzo, Hannah, married to George C. 
Monday ; Elizabeth, married to William 
Van Sickle ; and Thomas M., the subject 
of this sketch. Realizing all the benefits 
which a thorough course at the public 
schools could give him, our subject 
availed himself of these advantages by 
faithfully attending school from the time 
he was able to walk until he was within 
four years of his majority. 

Thomas N. Acken commenced farm- 
ing at the age of seventeen. This occu- 
pation he continued for a number of 
years, but finding it uncongenial to his 
active mind he finally abandoned it and 
entered into the employ of the New Jer- 



sey Fire Clay and Brick Company, at 
Bonhamtown. Of this concern he was 
foreman for three years, then superin- 
tendent, and later leased it for a term of 
five years. During his possession of it 
he did a large and profitable business, 
and although it subsequently passed 
from under his control he retained a 
financial interest in it up to his death. 
He also secured some profitable contracts 
in connection with cutting and grading 
on the Pennsylvania railroad system. 
He was a democrat and an active worker 
for his party. He was honored with a 
trusteeship of Bonhamtown public school; 
was a member of the board of freeholders 
for four years and an overseer of roads. 
In 1890 he was elected sheriff of Middle- 
sex county, and served one term Avith 
marked credit. He was for a time a 
member of the Masonic order at Wood- 
bridge, but withdrew from that lodge to 
found one at Metuchen. 

Mr. Acken was joined in marriage to 
Elenora TajDpen, daughter of Luther J. 
Tappen, and two children, Thomas L. 
and Bertha May, blessed their union. 
As a citizen of the community in which 
he resided Mr. Acken stood deservedly 
high, and commanded the universal 
esteem of all who knew him. In his 
domestic relations he was a devoted hus- 
band and an affectionate father. He died 
May 5, 1896, at his late residence, on 
New street. New Brunswick, aged fifty- 
three years. 

JAMES E. LIPPINCOTT, well known 
^ as a prosperous farmer and business 
man in the vicinity of Long Branch, is 
the son of Elisha and Ann Lippincott, 
and was born at Long Branch, New Jer- 
sey, July 24, 1825. The Lippincott fam- 
ily is of English ancestry and has become 



162 



Biographical Sketches. 



one of the most u,seful and substantial 
families in the United States. 

John Lippincott, paternal grandfather, 
was a native of Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, and with the instruction afibrded 
by the schools of his day, began life as a 
farmer and carried on a tannery in Eaton- 
town township, and continued the same 
up to the time of his decease. He was a 
republican and an active member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. His wife 
was a Miss Rebecca Slocum, daughter of 
John and Rebecca Slocum, and their 
children consisted of: James, Ann, wife 
of William Saire; Elisha, Tyler, Susan- 
nah, who married Rev. William Smith ; 
and Benjamin. All of the above are de- 
ceased. Our subject's grandparents are 
both interred at West Long Branch. 

Elisha Lippincott, father of James E., 
was born at Long Branch, New Jersey, 
Jan. 25, 1791. His first business venture 
was the transportation of fish by wagons 
from Long Branch to Philadelphia, before 
the day of railroads. This proved a 
stepping-stone to a large business, and in 
1810 Mr. Lippincott opened a general 
store in Long Branch, and bj' application 
and attention to his custom he established 
a large trade, was very successful, and 
acquired quite a competence. Mr. Lip- 
pincott was a public-spirited citizen, and 
actively engaged in the affairs of the Re- 
publican party. . His effective work in 
behalf of his party raised him to the place 
of a leader, and these valuable services 
were rewarded by many offices ; among 
which were the freeholdership of Mon- 
mouth county for several years, and a 
term in the assembly. In his church re- 
lations he was a methodist. On Dec. 9, 
1813, Elisha Lippincott married Ann 
Wardell, daughter of Samuel and Rebecca 
Howe Wardell, of Long Branch, and they 



reared a family of six children : Rebecca 
Ann, deceased; Harriet, deceased; Mar- 
garet, deceased; Harriet, James E., and 
Lydia, deceased. Mother of subject died 
May 12, 1858, and the father April 12, 
1870. Both are buried at West Long 
Branch. 

James E. Lippincott, subject of this 
sketch, was a pupil in the public schools 
of Long Branch until he reached the age 
of seventeen years. He then entered his 
father's store and remained in his employ 
until 1858, when he began farming near 
Long Branch. He afterward inherited 
the farm, and since that time has turned 
his attention chiefly to its management. 
Our subject has had a wide experience in 
settling up estates. He attends with his 
wife the Friends meeting at Shrewsbury, 
and politically is an active worker for the 
cause of the Republican party, under 
which he has held local offices. Mr. Lip- 
pincott is a member of Washington Lodge, 
No. 9, of Masons; Arioch Lodge, No. 77, 
I. 0. 0. F., where he held the treasurer- 
ship for twelve years, and at present is 
one of the trustees, which office he has 
held since he joined the oi'ganization in 
1854 ; Ocean Lodge, No. 87, and Long 
Branch Encampment, No. 49. He was 
one of the originators of the Long Branch 
Building and Loan Association, being the 
first vice-president ; holding that office 
until Mr. Wm. N. Maps resigned the 
presidency, and since that time he has 
held the president's chair; and was one of 
the incorporators of the Long Branch 
Banking Co., having been vice-president 
of it ever since its organization in 1872. 
Dec. 31, 1857, James E. Lippincott was 
united in marriage to Mary E. Woolley, 
daughter of Eden and Elizalx'th Woolley, 
of Poplar, Monmouth county. New Jer- 
sey, and this union has been blessed by 




/ 




. <^. <&•< 



«;:?>*;/' 



Biographical Sketches. 



165 



the birth of three sons and one daughter : 
Elisha E., Anna L., wife of Charles R. 
Commelin; George A., and Charles I. 



JE. SAYRE, M. D.— The medical pro- 
• fession, than which, probably, no 
profession has made such great strides of 
advancement during the present century, 
takes rank with the leading pi'ofessions 
of the world — theology, the law and the 
arts. One who is abreast of the most 
advanced art of healing, and who stands 
amongst the very foremost medical ad- 
visers of Monmouth county, New Jersey, 
is the gentleman whose name heads this { 
sketch. Dr. J. E. Sayre was born at 
Cape May, in the state of New Jersey, ; 
Oct. 18, 1852. His maternal ancestors 
were of English stock, and were among 
the early settlers of this state, and his 
paternal ancestors have lived in the vi- 
cinity of Cape May for at least three 
generations. They were sturdy agricul- 
turists, prosperous and contented. 

Dr. Sayre was reared upon the farm 
near Cape May, upon which his parents 
now reside; but agricultural pursuits not 
being to his tastes, he decided on a pro- 
fessional career. He attended the public 
schools near the place of his birth, and 
afterwards entered the Trenton State 
Normal School, from which he was grad- 
uated in the class of '78. After his 
graduation he engaged in teaching, and 
at the same time read medicine under 
the preceptorship of Dr. J. Chittenden, 
now of Addison, N. Y. Having com- 
pleted the required course of reading, he 
entered Jefferson Medical College, of 
Philadelphia, from which old and re- 
nowned institution he was graduated in 
1883. Subsequent to his graduation he 
practiced one year at Atlantic Highlands, 
and then located at Red Bank, this state, 



where he has since practiced. Politically, 
he is a republican, but takes no active 
part in politics. He is now a member of 
the board of education, and takes a deep 
interest in all educational matters, be- 
lieving that the education of the masses 
is the only true safeguard of the state 
and nation. He is an active member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church, and 
served that organization in the capacity 
of trustee and steward for a number of 
years. July 7, 1880, Dr. Sayre and Miss 
Lizzie H. Ivins, a daughter of Charles E. 
Ivins, were united in the bonds of mat- 
rimony, and to their union have been 
born four bright and promising children : 
Charles H., Edith M., WilHam D., and 
J. E., Jr. 

Dr. Sayre is an earnest and energetic 
man, of pleasant address and dignified 
bearing, a close student and careful ad- 
viser, and easily inspires confidence in 
his patients. He has a large and aj)pre- 
ciative patronage, which is rapidly in- 



1\ /riLO H. CREGO, a prominent busi- 
-'-'-L ness man and politician of Bel- 
mar, New Jersey, was born in Jordan, 
Onondaga county, N. Y., March 1, 
1848, and is a son of Stephen and Jane 
Crego. The family is of Holland and 
English ancestry. 

Stephen Crego, father, was born in Mar- 
cellus, and died in Cayuga county, N. Y., 
June 1, 1873. He passed his life in the 
occupation of a farmer. He was a mem- 
ber of the Democratic party, of the Bap- 
tist church, and a past master in the Ma- 
sonic order. The children by his first 
wife were : Evelyn, Ann E., Harriet, and 
Esther. To his second marriage were 
born : Laura, Milo, and Hulda, deceased 
in infancy. 



166 



Biographical Sketches. 



Milo H. Crego had but limited educa- 
cational advantages during his early years, 
having been employed on a farm from his 
childhood until he had reached the age 
of twenty-two. Determined to possess an 
education, liowever, he managed to ac- 
cumulate money enough to carry him 
through the Union Seminary at Red Creek, 
N. Y., and the Normal school at Albany. 
He then learned the trade of a mason, 
which he followed for three years. He 
then turned his attention to farming and 
managed a farm near the town of Con- 
quest, Cayuga county, N. Y., and there 
remained for two j'ears, until 1871, when 
he became a teacher in the district school 
at Weedsport. He taught for four years 
at difterent schools in the state of New 
York, and in 1875 he removed to Manas- 
quan, New Jersey, and taught in the 
Union District schools at that place for 
two years. The succeeding year he taught 
in the Usquan village, and for the follow- 
ing two years he, in association with his 
Avife, had charge of the Lakewood schools 
at Bricksburg. During the succeeding 
ten years, from 1881 to 1891, he was 
principal of the schools at Manasquan, 
Ocean Beach and Belmar. He subse- 
quently taught for one year at Red Bank, 
two years at West Long Branch, and one 
year at Ocean Port in Monmouth county. 
In 1886 he established himself in business 
at Belmar, independent of his profession 
of teacher, as a conveyancer, notary pub- 
lic and insurance agent, and has so suc- 
cessfully conducted that business as to 
permit ol' his resigning teaching altogether. 
Mr. Crego is a democrat and an active and 
able politician. He has three times been 
elected justice of the peace at Belmar, in 
1886, 1891 and 1896, and served as coun- 
cilman from 1890 to 1894. He was the 
originator of the re-incorporation borough 



act of 1890. He is an active and promi- 
nent member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, one of its trustees and treasurer 
of its financial board. He is one of the 
charter members of the Order of Red Men 
at Belmar, and its present treasurer. He 
is a past master and treasurer of Ocean 
Lodge, No. 89, F. and A. M., and a com- 
panion of Goodwill Chapter, No. 36, R. A. 
M., and a past grand of United Lodge, 
No. 199, I. 0. 0. F. Mr. Crego was one 
of the originators of the fire department 
at Belmar, and is ex-secretary and fore- 
man of Union Engine Company, No. 1. 
He is also treasurer of the local branch 
of the Republic Building and Loan Asso- 
ciation of Newark, and was its organizer. 
Mr. Crego was first married in March 
1876, to Miss Louisa Osborne, daughter 
of John Osborne, of Manasquan. Her 
death occui'red in Feb., 1879. In 1887 
he married her sister Miss Augusta Os- 
borne. Mr. Crego is one of the most ac- 
tive, energetic and public-spirited citizens 
of Belmar, and has thorough native abil- 
ity, perseverance, integrity and tact, won 
for himself such a position in the business 
and social life of Belmar as to stamp him 
a remarkable man. 



TTANDERBILT VOORHEES, an exten- 
* sive real estate owner at New 
Brunswick, and an influential and re- 
spected citizen of that place, is a repre- 
sentative of one of the oldest and best- 
known families in East Jersey. He is a 
son of Charles and Charlotte A. (Bournon- 
ville) Voorhees, and was born Sept. 7, 
1858, at New Brunswick. The Voor- 
hees famil}- is of Holland Dutch origin, 
and were among the pioneer settlers of 
this section, having contributed largely 
in their industry and enterprise to the 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



167 



advancement of many flourishing com- 
munities. 

Ira C. Voorhees, paternal grandfather 
of our subject, was a well-known citizen 
of New Brunswick for a number of years, 
having been born there in 1799. Dur- 
ing the early part of his life he was en- 
gaged in the wholesale grocery and feed 
business, in which he amassed consider- 
able means. During his later years he 
was interested in the various manufacto- 
ries of the cit}^ He was a staunch Jackso- 
nian democrat in his political convictions, 
and was a member of the First Reformed 
church of New Brunswick. He died in 
1878 in the seventy-eighth year of his 
age. His wife was Miss Anna Rolfe, 
whose ancestors were among the early 
settlers of Staten Island, by whom he 
had three children : Charles, Mary, de- 
ceased in childhood ; and Ira, deceased. 

Charles Voorhees, M. D., father of our 
subject, was for a long period one of New 
Brunswick's leading physicians, and is at 
present living quietly in that city, hav- 
ing retired several years ago. His ele- 
mentarj' education was acquired in the 
New Bi-unswick public schools, and he 
subsequently took a college preparatory 
course at Rutgers College Preparatory 
school. He then entered the College of 
Physicians and Surgeons at Philadelphia, 
where he graduated. He entered upon 
the practice of his profession at New 
Brunswick, and was for many years one 
of the most prosperous physicians of that 
city. He has retired from active prac- 
tice, although he still keeps in close touch 
with all the advancements of his profes- 
sion. Dr. Voorhees is a democrat in 
politics, but has never been a seeker after 
public office. He fosters his interest in 
the historical and genealogical matters 
by membership in the Holland Society of 



New York city and in the Sons of the 
Revolution, and is also one of the most 
active members of the Middlesex County 
Historical Society. He is a member of 
the Union Lodge, F. and A. M. ; Union 
Club ; and of the New Brunswick Gun 
Club. He is one of the leading sup- 
porters of St. John's Protestant Episco- 
pal church of NeAv Brunswick. 

Dr. Voorhees was married to Miss 
Charlotte A. Bournonville, daughter of 
Antoine Bournonville, of Philadelphia, 
a descendant of a family prominent in 
the history of France ; she died in Jan., 
1890, after bearing him four children : 
Ira C, Vanderbilt S., Anthony B., and 
Louis A. 

Vanderbilt Voorhees, subject of this 
sketch, received a good common school 
education at New Brunswick. He then 
entered Rutgers College, New Brunswick. 
Since leaving college he has lived a quiet, 
retired life in New Brunswick, devoting 
his attention to the large real estate in- 
terests which he controls. In politics he 
is a democrat, but has never ui'ged him- 
self forward prominently into public life. 
He is a leading member of Lodge No. 
324, B. P. 0. E., of New Brunswick. On 
Feb. 1, 1879, Mr. Voorhees was married 
to Miss Ida C. Smith, a daughter of 
Michael Smith, a prominent dry goods 
merchant of New York city. Mr. 
Voorhees is possessed of quiet, refined 
tastes, of good bearing and address, and 
is eminently popular throughout the 
count}'. His name and talents make him 
welcome in the best society, and he is 
highlj' regarded not only for his intel- 
lectual qualities, but also on account of 
his congenial and sj-mpathetic character. 
He is a charter member of both the 
Brunswick Gun club and the New Bruns- 
wick Boat club, two very flourishing in- 



168 



Biographical Sketches. 



stitutions, an ardent sportsman and an 
entlmsiastic yachtsman, very hospitable 
and counts his friends by the score. 



TpDWARD H. RADEL, especially pro- 
-*—^ niinent as a street-railway mana- 
ger, of New Brunswick, Middlesex comity, 
New Jersey, was born of German parent- 
age in the city of Newark, June 30, 1866. 
He is a son of John and Mary Bruckner 
Radel, the latter being the daughter of 
Joseph and Mary Bruckner, of Newark. 
The father of our subject, John Radel, 
was a native of Bavaria, Germany, he 
having l^een born in that cit}', November 
22, 1822. He immigrated to the United 
States in 1845, and selected Newark as 
the place in which to begin his fortunes 
in the new world. At that time his 
total monetary assets amountedto twenty- 
five cents. But what he lacked in money 
after-events proved he made up in his 
native shtewdness, diligence and perse- 
verance. His first employment was in a 
baker}' ; later he resigned this to engage 
in the coal business, and still later in the 
grocery trade, in each of which he was 
phenomenally successful. In 1875 he 
purchased the Newark and South Orange- 
street raihvay, of Eugene Kelly, the well- 
known New York banker, and this he 
operated on his own account until 1893, 
when he sold it to a corporation organized 
for its purchase, and of which Elias Ward 
was elected president. Of the bonds issued 
by this corporation, Mr. Radel was paid 
a large portion as part of the purchase 
price. He has now retired from all active 
participation in business aft'airs upon the 
fortune thus accumulated. To his mar- 
ried life were born three daughters and 
two sons, as follows : Mary, married to 
John F. McDonough ; Blondina, married 



to Edward Groeken ; Andrew, president 
of the Bridgeport Traction Co., superin- 
tendent of the Newark and South Orange 
Traction Co., and a director of the Bruns- 
wick Traction Co. ; Agnes, married to 
John McKenna; and Edward H. 

Edward H. Radel, our suljject, received 
his preliminary education at St. Mary's 
Catholic school, Newark. He afterwards 
attended St. Benedict's College, and the 
New Jersey Business College of Newark, of 
which Professor C. T. Miller is principal. 
During his attendance at this latter col- 
lege, Mr. Radel was financially interested 
in the Newark and South Orange Rail- 
way Co., of which his brother Andrew 
was the superintendent, and on his gradu- 
ation he Ijecame its treasurer. This posi- 
tion he retained until 1893, when the 
road was sold hy his father. In May, 
1891, he was elected secretary and treas- 
urer of the Brunswick Traction Co.. and 
secretary and treasurer of the New Bruns- 
wick City Railway, as well as general 
manager of both corporations. Under the 
administration of Mr. Radel the motive 
power of both these roads was changed 
from horse to electric, largely- to the bet- 
terment of their service, the profits of 
their shareholders, and to his credit as a 
railroad manager. 

Mr. Radel' s business affairs are too 
onerous to permit of his giving much time 
to political work, but he is a meml>er of 
the Democratic party, and is ardently in- 
terested in its success. In religious mat- 
ters he takes a deep interest, and is an 
active member of St. Peter's Roman 
Catholic church. He was mari-ied April 
23, 1889, to Annie M. Fisher, daughter 
of Valentine and Mary Fisher, of Newark, 
and their marriage has been blessed hy 
the birth of one son, Edward H. J., who 
was bom August 8, 1890. 



Biographical Sketches. 



173 



"|q"ON. AARON E. JOHNSTON, ex- 
^-*- member of the legislature of New 
Jersey, and one of the most prominent 
and successful members of the Monmouth 
county bar, is a son of James E. and 
Elizabeth Corlies Johnston, and was born 
at West Farms, Howell township, Mon- 
mouth county, April 18, 1857. The 
family name is of English origin, his an- 
cestors having come to this country over 
a century ago. They settled in the cen- 
tral part of New York state. His great- 
great-grandfather, James Johnston, came 
to Howell township, where he was a 
prosperous tiller of the soil. His great- 
grandfather was named James, and lived 
all his life on the homestead farm in 
Howell township. His grandfother, who 
bore the family name of James, owned a 
general store at West Farms. He was a 
whig, and was very active in politics. 
He was also an active worker in the 
Methodist church. He married Mary 
Mount, and their union was productive 
of seven children, all of whom are dead, 
except the father of the subject of this 
sketch. The grandfather died at the age 
of sixty years. 

James E. Johnston, father of Aaron, 
was born in Howell township, and re- 
ceived a common-school education. For 
some years hq was engaged in forming, 
and then entered into real-estate specu- 
lation at Farmingdale, buying and selling 
lands and property, and made considera- 
ble money. He retired from active busi- 
ness pursuits in 1873, and has since con- 
tinued to reside - at Farmingdale, where 
he has a comfortable home. He is a 
democrat in political belief. His marriage 
with Elizabeth Corlies was blessed with 
seven children : James J. and Sadie, who 
died in infancy; Eichard C. and Lizzie 
C, who died at the respective ages of 

10 



twenty-one and twenty-three years; and 
Sarah, Mary R. and Aaron, still living. 
He is still living, but his wife died in 
1893. 

Aaron E. received his preliminary 
education in the schools of Farmingdale, 
and graduated from the preparatory 
course of Pennington Seminary in 1875. 
He entered Princeton College the same 
year. In 1878 he was compelled to 
abandon his studies, having contracted 
typhoid fever. After recovering his 
health he resumed his studies, and dur- 
ing one year of his collegiate course he 
taught school. He retained his position 
as school teacher for a year after he had 
entered the law office of Robbins & Harts- 
horne, of Freehold, New Jersey, as a stu- 
dent of the law. He Avas admitted to 
the bar from their office, Feb. 12, 1884, 
and was made a counsellor in Nov., 1887. 
He immediately opened up an office in 
Freehold, and commenced the general 
practice of his profession and rapidly 
gained a profitable patronage. He has 
large real-estate interests in various 
places, and his law practice extends over 
Monmouth county. Northern Ocean 
county and a large part of Middlesex- 
county. His practice has been of a 
varied, and, in^many instances, of a very 
important character. He represented 
Louis Kearney, who was tried for the 
murder of Mrs. Margaret Purcell, at 
Long Branch, on Feb. 12, 1888, having 
been appointed for that purpose by Judge 
Scudder. Kearney was tried in June of 
the same year, was found guilty and paid 
the death penalty. He was also ap- 
pointed, with William H. Vredenburgh, 
to defend Louis Harriott, who murdered 
Mrs. Leonard, at Atlantic Highlands, in 
1893. A careful defense was made, but 
Harriott was convicted and hung. Mr. 



174 



Biographical Sketches. 



Johnston also defended Robert Estell for 
the manslaughter of William Hart, hav- 
ing run over the latter with a team of 
mules. The defendant was convicted Ijy 
the county court, but the case was car- 
ried to the supreme court, and lie se- 
cured a reversion of the verdict in Nov., 
1888. He was engaged for the defense 
in the I'amous Hamilton murder cases, of 
Long Branch, but these cases never 
came to trial. 

Mr. Johnston is one of the most prom- 
inent democrats of his district, and has 
filled several oflices of importance. For a 
period of four years he was clerk of 
Howell township. In 1890 he was 
elected a meml)er of the state assembly 
by a majority of 1160, the largest demo- 
cratic majority ever given in the district. 
While a member of the legislature he 
served as chairman of the judiciary com- 
mittee, the most important committee of 
the House. During his term he also 
served on other important committees, 
and assisted in the passage of a number 
of acts that were of great benefit to the 
state. He subsequently Avas appointed 
assistant prosecutor of the pleas of Mon- 
mouth county, and served for two years. 
He has also been counsel for Freehold, 
Howell and Marlboro townships for sev- 
eral years, and for a period of five years 
was counsel for South Amboy. He is par- 
ticularly well equipped in corporation 
law, and is at present acting as attorney 
for various private companies. In a 
fraternal way Mr. Johnston holds a very 
important place in his district. He is a 
member of Olive Branch Lodge, No. 16, 
F. and A. M. ; Tennent Lodge, No. 69, 
Knights of Pythias ; Windsor Castle, 
No. 59, Knights oi' the Golden Eagle, of 
Farmingdale ; Squankum Tribe, No. 39, 
Improved Order of Red Men ; Freehold 



Lodge, No. 41, Ancient Order United 
Workmen, and Keith Council, No. 1501, 
Royal Arcanum of Freehold. Few men 
have made such a successful advance in 
early manhood as Mr. Johnston, or at- 
tained such a prominent place in his 
particular locality. He is not only a 
leader of the bar, but a progressive citi- 
zen, commanding the highest esteem of 
his fellow-townsmen and legal colleagues, 
and with the promise of many 3ears of 
vigorous action in the political and legal 
arena before him, he is fiist becoming one 
of the foremost men of his state. 



T3 C. CONOVER, founder of the firm 
-L^* of Conover & Purdy, extensive 
merchants at Manasquan, New Jersey, 
is a son of Cornelius and Catherine Hu- 
lett Conover, and was born March 8, 
1864, at Lower Squankum, Howell town- 
ship. His grandfather, Cornelius Cono- 
ver, was a life-long and prosperous farmer 
near Tennent, Manalapan township. His 
father, Cornelius Conover, was also a suc- 
cessful farmer in Howell township, and 
was married to Catherine Hulett, daugh- 
ter of Samuel Hulett, of Lower Squan- 
kum, by whom he had seven children : 
Awilda, George T., Nelson. Josephine, 
R. C, our subject, John B. and Mary. 
Our subject's father died in 1892; his 
mother in 1880. 

Our subject was educated in Squankum 
township, and passed his early lite on his 
father's farm. He then became a me- 
chanic apprentice, and spent ten years as 
an iron moulder and journeyman in the 
Bawden foundry, Freehold. In March, 
1892, he moved to Manasquan, and es- 
tablished his present Inisiness. He began 
on a small scale, occupying the first floor; 
but the business grew so rapidly that he 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



175 



soon took in the second and third floors 
of the building, and added another front. 
Mr. Purdy was taken into the business, 
and the present firm formed, in March, 
1892. Mr. Conover is a very active mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church at 
Manasquan, assistant superintendent of 
the Sunday school, and president of the 
Epworth league. He is a meml^er and 
past officer of Monmouth Castle, No. 51, 
Knights of the Golden Eagle, of Freehold. 
In 1889 he was married to Miss Mary E., 
daughter of Edwin Bawden, of Freehold, 
and the}' have three children : Ada, Ed- 
win and Stanlej^ 

Mr. Conover resides in a handsome 
property on Church street. He is a 
popular and progressive citizen, possesses 
business talents which have made him 
eminently successful, and is an ardent 
supporter of his church. 



TpREEMAN WOODBRIDGE, a compe- 
-*- tent young member of the Middle- 
sex county bar, at New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, is a son of Rev. Dr. John and 
Helen Freeman Woodbridge, and was 
.born at Saratoga Springs, N. Y., June 2, 
1866. 

He traces his ancestry directly back to 
John Woodbridge, a follower of Wick- 
liffe, in England, born in the year 1493. 
His first ancestor in this country was Rev. 
John Woodbridge, of Andover, Mass., 
who came to America in 1634, filled with 
the Puritan spirit, and was a son of the 
famous non-conformist minister, of Stan- 
ton, Wiltshire, England, of that name. 
He is also a lineal descendant of Thomas 
Dudley, deputy governor of the colony of 
Massachusetts, and a lineal descendant of 
John Dudley, Earl of Warwick and Duke 
of Northumberland, a family distinguished 



in the " wars of the roses." He also 
traces a direct ancestry to John Eliot, the 
famous apostle to the Indians, whose 
grand-daughter, Jemima Eliot, was mar- 
ried to John Woodbridge in 1698. On 
his mother's side his ancestors are of revo- 
lutionary fame, among them being the 
Woodruffs, of Albany, N. Y. His great- 
grandfather, Jonathan Freeman, was a 
member of the First Congress of the 
United States from New Hampshire, and 
his grandfather, Samuel Freeman, a 
prominent physician of Saratoga Springs, 
N. Y., well-known through all that part 
of the state. 

Rev. John Woodbridge, D.D., is a 
native of Connecticut, and was born at 
Sharon, in that state, in 1824. His wife 
was born in 1826, at Ballston Spa, 
N. Y., and after their marriage, in 1861, 
she became a wise and efficient help-mate 
to her husband in his church and parish 
work. He is a presbyterian minister of 
great mental and oratorical ability, which 
resources he has used to marked advan- 
tage during many years in preaching the 
gospel and saving souls. After remain- 
ing in charge of the First Presbyterian 
church, at Saratoga Springs, for many 
years, he removed, in 1872, to New Bruns- 
wick, where his long and uninten-upted 
pastorate of the Second Presbyterian 
church for twenty-four years is better 
than a cloud of witnesses in the testimony 
of the esteem and devotion of his people. 
Dr. Woodbridge i-etired from his active 
pastorate in the spring of 1895. 

Freeman Woodbridge acquired his pre- 
liminary education at the Rutgers Gram- 
mar school, in New Brunswick, now 
known as the preparatoiy school, and 
subsequently entered the New York Uni- 
versity, of New York city, where he was 
a member of the Zeta Psi fraternity and 



176 



Biographical Sketches. 



from which university he was graduated 
with honors, after a four years' course, in 
1889. After the acquisition of his diploma 
Mr. Woodbridge began the study of his 
chosen profession, the hvw, under the able 
direction of the law firm of Judge Wood- 
bridge & Strong, at New Brunswick, and 
was admitted to the New Jersey )jar 
in Nov., 1892. He at once began the 
practice of la^v, which he carried on for a 
few weeks in an office of his own, when 
he associated himself with Hon. James 
H. Van Cleef and Peter F. Daly, Esq., 
two prominent lawyers and practical 
leaders of Middlesex count}', in a law 
partnership staled Van Cleef, Daly and 
Woodbridge. This wa;s a decisive stejD in 
the life of our subject and one that Avill 
doubtless throw a marked influence upon 
his future career, inasmuch as the firm 
was in close touch with the peojjle through- 
out a populous district, and their office 
was the centre of a busy legal industry. 
On Jan.l, 189G, the law firm dissolved 
partnership, and since that time Mr. 
Woodbridge has continued a growing- 
practice of law at New Brunswick. 

Mr. Woodbridge, although young in 
years and young in law, possesses legal 
attainments of a superior nature and has 
already won some important cases before 
the courts. In politics lie is a democrat, 
and in religious matters lie takes an active 
and prominent part. He is a member of 
the church and superintendent of the 
Sunday-school of which his father was 
the pastor, and is a director in the Y. M. 
C. A., of New Brunswick. 



plHARLES ELLIS.— The history of the 
^^ forefathers of Charles Ellis, a pros- 
perous business man of Freehold, New 
Jersey, is closely identified with the his- 



tory of the early acquisition and settle- 
ment of West Jersey. His paternal 
ancestry was of English Episcopalian 
stock, and came to this country with 
that peaceful, brave pioneer, William 
Penn. 

They settled at Burlington, New Jer- 
sey, and here the iainil}- resided for 
many generations. Charles Ellis was 
born in that town, and is a son of Jacob 
and Sarah (Erwin) Ellis. His paternal 
great-grandfather was Daniel Ellis, and 
he was one of the original proprietors of 
West Jersey. His grandfather was a 
merchant in Burlington, and for many 
years served as postmaster at that place. 
Jacob Ellis, his father, was born at Bur- 
lington. For seven years lie was a mer- 
chant in Philadelphia, removing at the 
end of that time, in 1855, to Freehold, 
where he became engaged in the lumber 
business. He Avas a man of fine busi- 
ness capacity, and remained active in 
mercantile circles until his death on 
July 4, 1888. He was identified with 
all of the enterprises of the town, and 
was looked up to as a leader and a wise 
counsellor. His fiimily was identified 
with the Episcopal church, and he served- 
as a vestryman up to the time of his 
death. Although a staunch republican 
in political affiliation, he never sought 
after nor would accept office. His re- 
mains are at rest in Laurel Hill ceme- 
tery, Philadelphia. 

Charles Ellis, our subject, received his 
early education in the schools of Burling- 
ton. He afterwards attended the Tre- 
mont seminary at Norristown, Pa., and 
after leaving that school he went to Phil- 
adelphia, where he attended the public 
schools of that city. In 1856 he went 
with his father to Freehold, where he 
became a clerk in the latter's office. In 



Biographical Sketches. 



177 



1873 he returned to Philadel^ihia and 
was made secretary of the Rue Manu- 
facturing Co., which position he held 
until 1888, when, owing to the death of 
his father, he resigned and returned to 
Freehold. He toolt his lather's place in 
the lumber firm, and has carried on that 
business ever since. 

Mr. Ellis is a careful, broad-minded 
man of business, and has been very suc- 
cessful in all his undertakings. He is a 
progressive citizen and a member of the 
Freehold board of trade, and is also 
prominent in fraternal circles. He is a 
member and treasurer of Olive Branch 
Lodge, No. 16, F. and A. M., is a past 
chancellor of the Knights of Pythias, 
and enjoys the distinction of being the 
first charter member of Tennent Lodge, 
No. 69, of Freehold. He is also a past 
grand of Monmouth Lodge, No. 20, I. 0. 
0. F., and past grand master of the 
Grand Lodge of the State of New Jer- 
sey. In political belief he is a republi- 
can, but not a politician. He is an 
advocate and attendant of the Ej)iscopal 
church at Freehold, and is now serving 
as a vestryman. He was married in 
March, 1894, his wife being Lydia M., 
daughter of James Lloyd, a prominent 
business man of Freehold, New Jersey. 



WS. BURTIS, an extensive dealer 
• in pianos, bicycles and sporting 
goods at Freehold, and well known 
through his association in business with 
A. A. Zimmennann, of bicycle renown, is 
a son of Benjamin S. and Rachel A. (Nutt) 
Burtis, and was born Dec. 4, 1857, at 
Wrightstown, New Jersey. He was edu- 
cated in the public schools of his native 
town, and subsequently worked on his 
father's farm near that place until he 



was eighteen years old. Li 1880 he be- 
came engaged in the piano and organ 
business in connection with his brother, 
H. J. Burtis, at Mount Holly, New Jer- 
sey, where he remained until the spring 
of 1882. He then removed to Freeliold, 
and located his business in the Perrine 
building on South street, his brother re-^ 
maining in the firm for one year, when 
our subject purchased his interest. He 
is a dealer in pianos, organs, sewing ma- 
chines, bicycles, carriages and sporting 
goods, and has a large and constantly 
increasing patronage, extending to all 
parts of the community. In 1892 he 
became associated with A. A. Zimmer- 
mann, the famous bicycle rider, who is 
now engaged in the manufacture of bicy- 
cles at Freehold. Mr. Burtis is ti-easurer 
of the Zimmennann Manufacturing Co., 
and is also interested in the George 
Pierce Lamp and Saddle Co. 

Mr. Burtis is a prohibitionist in poli- 
tics, and has always taken an active part 
in the councils of that party in New Jer- 
sey. He is a member of the Freehold 
Baptist church, and was clerk of the 
church for two years. In 1886 he was 
married to Miss Lizzie Perrine, daughter 
of John Perrine, of Dutch Neck, New 
Jersey, and they have two children : 
John Woolsey and Aline R. 

Mr. Burtis is a diligent and energetic 
business man, and has achieved success 
in all his various business enterprises. 



DR. WILLIAM ELLSWORTH TRUEX, 
the leading dentist of Freehold, is 
a son of Charles and Matilda (Simpson) 
Truex, and was born in Freehold, Aug. 
15, 1861. Dr. Truex received his ele- 
mentary education in the public schools 
of his native town, after which he took 



178 



Biographical Sketches. 



the advanced course at the Freehold In- 
stitute, graduating from there with merit 
in 1878. In 1880 ho entered the College 
of Dentistry, New York city, where he 
took the full course and became known 
as one of the most popular students in the 
college. He graduated in 1882, immedi- 
ately returned to Freehold, where he as- 
sociated himself with Dr. J. P. Geran, 
now of Brooklyn, N. Y. The partner- 
ship with Dr. Geran lasted for two years, 
at the end of which time the latter with- 
drew, and Dr. Truex has since continued 
alone. He occupies roomy and hand- 
somely furnished parlors in the Perrine 
building, on West Main street, where he 
enjoys one of the largest and most desir- 
aljle clienteles in the state. Dr. Truex 
is a member of the Holland Society, the 
Freehold fire department, and has been 
identified with all the best interests of the 
town during the past thirteen years. He 
was married on August 5, 1885, to Miss 
Matilda Buckalew Perrine, a daughter of 
James A. Perrine, of Freehold, and their 
union has been blessed with two chil- 
dren : Matilda Perrine, and Frederick 
William. 

Charles Truex, father of our subject, 
who is the proprietor of a large harness- 
making estaljlishment in Freehold, and 
one of the leading men of the town, is a 
.son of Joseph and Marie (Parker) Truex, 
and was born Jan. 19, 18-31, at Tinton 
Falls, Shrewsbury township, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey. After receiving 
the elementar}^ education afforded by the 
common schools of his native place he 
entered upon an apprenticeship to learn 
the harness-making trade at Mattawan. 
This was when he was sixteen years of 
age, and after serving four and one-half 
years he launched in the business at 
Turkey, Monmouth county. On his own 



account, where he remained for two 
3'ears. In 1854 he removed to Freehold 
and opened his present harnes.s-inaking 
establishment at No. 13 South street, 
one of the oldest and best-known business 
places in the town. He has always been 
very warmly interested in public mat- 
ters, and is a strong republican. He 
served as town commissioner of Freehold 
for fifteen 3'ears, and was tendered the 
office of mayor, but he declined the 
honor. At present he is serving his sec- 
ond term as a member of the board of 
education. A conscientious and zealous 
christian, he has been for the last thirty 
years a member and deacon of the Free- 
hold Baptist church. In 1856 he was 
married to Miss Matilda Simpson, daugh- 
ter of Judge Andrew Simpson, of 
Turkey, an ex-memljer of the legislature 
and a prominent politician of this count}'. 
They have^ had eight children : Maggie 
L., Mary Elizabeth, William Ellsworth, 
the subject of this sketch ; Abram Simp- 
son, who is in the drug business at Mor- 
ristown ; Kate Ward, Helen S., Ger- 
trude, and Anna. 

The Truex family is of French origin, 
the name having originally been spelled 
Du Trieux. William Truex, the pater- 
nal great-grandfather of our subject, 
lived nearly all his life at Tinton Falls. 
His Avife was Miss Mary Goodenough, 
and their children were : Joseph, grand- 
father of our subject ; William, Asher, 
John, Mary Vandusen, Catherine, and 
Ann Williams. 

Joseph, our subject's grandfather, was 
born on the family farm at Tinton Falls, 
received a good common school educa- 
tion, and, besides owning a farm in this 
vicinity, was a successful contractor and 
builder during the greater part of his life. 
He was a leading democrat of the county, 



Biographical Sketches. 



179 



and was a member and deacon of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. He was 
twice married, his first wife being Marie 
Parker, by whom he had : Mary E., John, 
William, Henry, Jacob, Joseph, Samuel, 
Charles, our subject's father, aiid Anna 
Maria Bray. By his second wife, who 
was Mrs. Mary Crum, nee Taber, he had 
one child, Mary, who married James 
Lambertson, of Monmouth county, and 
afterwards lived in Newburgh, N. Y. 



BISMARCK HOXSIE, the leading phar- 
macist of Englishtown, Monmouth 
county, and a prominent citizen of that 
borough, is a son of Arthur P. and Eliza- 
beth Hendrickson Hoxsie, and was born 
April 1, 1869, at Albany, N. Y. His 
paternal ancestry was of Welsh origin, 
and some of the family were early settlers 
in New York and New England. His 
great-grandfather, Benjamin Hoxsie, was 
a lieutenant in the Rhode Island militia, 
and served through the war of 1812. His 
grandfather, George W. Hoxsie, was a 
prosperous bottler of Albany, N. Y., and 
overseer of the poor for many years. His 
maternal grandfather, ^Michael Hendrick- 
son, was born in Upper Freehold town- 
ship, in 1808, and was a successful and 
well-known farmer in Manalapan town- 
ship during the greater part of his life. 
He was an elder in the Manalapan Pres- 
byterian church for a number of years. 
His children were: Edward and Eliza- 
beth, our subject's mother. Arthur P. 
Hoxsie, father of our subject, was born in 
Albany, N. Y., and was well-known there. 
He died when only twenty-two years old, 
shortly after his marriage, our subject 
being the only child. 

Bismarck Hoxsie, our subject, spent the 
early years of his life at Albany, and is a 



graduate of the High school of that city, 
being the honor man of his class. He 
subsequently took a course at the Albany 
College of Pharmacy, where he gr^^uated 
in 1888. He removed to Manalapaii vil- 
lage, Monmouth county. New Jerseyji in 
1890, but remained there only a short 
time, finally locating at Englishtown, 
where he purchased the drug store of 
Nicholas McDonald. This is the only 
pharmacy in the town, and Mr. Hqxsie 
does alarge and lucrative business through- 
out all the surrounding country. He is 
past chancellor of Columbia Lodge, No. 
88, K. of P., and junior past councillor 
of Tennent Council, No. 78, Jr. 0. U. A. 
M. In 1891 he was married to Miss 
Huldah Van Doren, daughter of John C. 
Van Doren, of Manalapan township, and 
a descendant of a well-known Holland 
Dutch family, which was among the early 
settlers at Griggstown, Somerset county, 
New Jersey. 

Mr. Hoxsie is one of the foremost and 
progressive citizens of Englishtown, and 
takes an active intei-est in everything that 
concerns the welfare of the borough. He 
has built up a highly successful business 
and is popular and highly respected. 



yOHN THOMPSON LOVETT, a horti- 
^ culturist and nurseryman of inter- 
national repute, and the head of The 
Lovett Co., whose extensive plant is at 
Little Silver, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Robert Pitfield and 
Mary Calbraith (Thompson) Lovett, and 
was born April 30, 1852, in a house 
on Penn's Manor, which, as its name in- 
dicates, was formerly the property of 
William Penn, in Bucks county, Penn- 
sylvania. The immigrant ancestors of 
the Lovett family were Daniel, James, 



180 



Biographical Sketches. 



and John. They came to thi^; country 
with William Penn on the occasion of 
his second voyage in 1683. The two 
brothers of Daniel settled in New Jersey, 
on the Delaware, between Camden and 
Burlington; while the direct ancestor of 
our subject located on a tract of one 
thousand acres adjoining Penn's Manor. 
The homestead, now consisting of two 
hundred and fifty acres, remains in the 
possession of the Lovett family, and the 
old house is yet standing. 

The paternal grandfather was also 
named Daniel. He resided in Bucks 
county. Pa., and was a sturdy agricul- 
tui'ist, thrifty, prosperous and contented. 

Robert P. Lovett, father of our subject, 
was born in 1801, in Falls township, 
Bucks county, Pa., and died near there 
in 1862. He owned an extensive farm, 
to the cultivation of which he devoted 
the greater portion of his life. In poli- 
tics he was a whig, subsequently a re- 
publican, and became one of the most 
prominent and influential leaders of his 
party in Eastern Pennsylvania. He 
served as justice of the peace for many 
years. In I'eligion, he was a member of 
the Society of Friends, having been a 
birth-right member. His first wife was 
a Miss Brown, who bore him four chil- 
dren : Joseph, Anna M., Daniel, and 
Robert P., all of whom have deceased, 
except the las1>named. He was subse- 
quently married to Mary C. Thompson, 
by whom he reared a family of three 
sons and three daughters : Hector T., 
owner of a cattle ranch in Dakota ; Ben- 
jamin T., a banker at Bristol, Pa.; Eliza- 
beth L., married to Robert Hance, residing 
at Red Bank, Ncav Jersey ; John T., our 
subject, and Margaret T., wife of Prof 
Charles C. Georgeson, of the Kansas Ag- 
ricultural College. 



John T. Lovett acquii'ed a good Eng- 
lish education at the Friends' Institute, 
Langhorne, formerly known as Attleboro, 
Pa., and later he attended the Bristol 
seminary, at Bristol, in Bucks county. 
After leaving school in 1870, he remained 
on his mother's farm until January 10, 
1872, when he removed to Red Bank, 
New Jersej^, and entered into the employ 
of A. Hance & Son, proprietors of the 
then well-known Rumson nurseries, with 
whom he served an apprenticeship of six 
years. He was then engaged by E. P. 
Roe, writer and novelist, to take charge 
of his nurseries at Cornwall-on-the-Hud- 
son, but the subsequent financial embfir- 
rassment of that gentleman caused Mr. 
Lovett to retire from his service, and 
return to jNIonmouth county. New Jer- 
sey, where, in the autumn of 1878, he 
went into business for himself, and issued 
his first annual catalogue. His first es- 
say was with small fruits, and, being suc- 
cessful in that line, he shortly after un- 
dertook, in addition thereto, the cultiva- 
tion of fruit trees of every variety. The 
business developing, he added, in 1883, 
the handling of ornamental trees and 
shrubs, and, in 1885, erected green-houses, 
and commenced to raise plants for the 
garden. In 1888, the business outgrow- 
ing its facilities for meeting the demands 
of trade, he formed the J. T. Lovett Co., 
to which he admitted Oliver Gandy, 
of Gloucester county. New Jersey, and 
Hon. W. T. Parker,'of Little Silver. In 
1894 this corporation was dissolved, and 
the present corporation, The Lovett 
Co., formed, of which Mr. Lovett is 
president. The plant covers an area of 
two hundred and fifty acres, on which 
an average force of one hundred and 
twenty-five workmen is employed. The 
aimual sales aggregate $60,000 per an- 



Biographical Sketches. 



181 



num, and the establishment has no equal 
in size in the state of New Jersey. The 
company's market is in every state in the 
Union, nearly every country in Europe, 
and a number of countries in Asia. 

Mr. Lovett is a republican and an influ- 
ential party worker. He is the present 
president of the Shrewsbury Republican 
club at Red Bank, and, during President 
Harrison's administration, he was the 
postmaster at Little Silver. He is a 
quaker by birth, but became a member 
of the Reformed church, though now he 
attends the Presbyterian church. Mr. 
Lovett was united in marriage Oct. 4, 
1877, to Julia E., a daughter of Freder 
ick H. Kennedy, a resident of Deal Beach, 
New Jersey. To their union have been 
born seven children : Mary, Alida K., 
Lester C, Julia E., John T., Jr., Irving 
K. and Robert P. . 

Mr. Lovett enjoys the reputation of 
being the leading expert in small fruits 
in this country ; and at a national gath- 
ering of horticulturists, a few years since, 
he was declared the " Small Fruit Prince." 
His success has been rapid and pro- 
nounced, beginning, in 1878, on a five- 
acre patch, developing increased busi- 
ness, and absorbing farm after farm, from 
year to year, until the requirements of 
his business involved an area of fifty times 
the original acreage. 



T EVI G. IRWIN, Je., a member of the 
-'-^ well-known firm of Irwin & Nesbitt, 
dealers in hardware, plumbing materials, 
and other house-furnishing materials, at 
Sea Bright, Monmouth county, New Jer- 
sey, is a son of Levi G., Sr., and Carrie 
(Havens) Irwin, and was born at Turkey, 
Howell township, in said county, Oct. 2, 
1853. The family is of Irish lineage, all 



the members of which, prior to the time 
of the subject's father, having been na^ 
fives of the Emerald Isle. 

Anthony B. Irwin, the paternal grand- 
father, was born in the north of Ireland, 
of Scotch-Irish parentage, in 1783, and 
subsequently came to this country with 
his first wife, Ann, and their four 
children : Edward, William, Thomas, 
and Margaret, and settled in Monmouth 
county. His trade was that of a manu- 
facturer of woolen-cloth, and soon after 
his advent in this country he acquired 
and operated a woolen factory at Tur- 
key, of which he retained the control, 
carrying on a successful business, until 
his death, which occurred in 1861, at the 
age of seventy-eight years. Many years 
prior to his death the helpmate of his 
earlier years deceased, and he again 
married. His second wife, Sarah Clark, 
whom he married June 6, 1818, also 
bore him four children : Levi G., sub- 
ject's father; Mary, who married John 
C. Barklow; Sarah A., wife of Charles 
Henderson, and Grace, who became Mrs. 
Abram Sherman. The grandmother of 
the subject deceased in 1871. 

Levi G. Irwin, Sr., was born Aug. 25, 
1819, in Monmouth county, and was 
there reared and educated. He acquired 
a thorough knowledge of the manufac- 
ture of woolen goods, succeeded to his 
father's business, and continued operat- 
ing the establishment until about 1860, 
when he concluded to make a change 
from manufacturing to mercantile pur- 
suits. In that year he opened a store at 
Turkey and became a dealer in general 
merchandise. Success attended this new 
departure through a series of from eight 
to ten years, at the end of which time 
he was enabled to retire from further 
active business, and he sold out and 



182 



Biographical Sketches. 



wound up his affairs in that line. In 
politics he was alwaj^s an active demo- 
crat, and although well nigh fourscore 
years had effectually whitened his hair, 
his interest in that party remained un- 
abated up to his death. In 1864 he was 
elected justice of the peace, and held that 
office during thirty successive years at 
Turkey. He was a member of the town- 
ship committee for twenty years, and 
served several years as treasurer of the 
township. In religion he was a member 
of the Freehold Baptist church, and he 
could recall with pardonable pride the 
time when with his assistance the church 
at Turkey was founded, and the years he 
spent as treasurer, steward, and trustee 
of its temporal affairs ; and he remained a 
zealous member up to his death, which 
occurred Sept. 10, 1896. His first wife, 
Carrie Havens, was born at Turkey, 
1829, married March 12, 1846, and 
deceased Aug. 20, 1880, aged fifty-two 
years. She was the mother of five chil- 
dren : Mary, wife of William L. John- 
son, of Turkey, New Jersey ; Sarah E., 
wife of John E. Bark low, also of Tur- 
key ; Levi G., Jr., the subject; William 
C, a farmer, at Freehold ; and Thomas 
Clark, deceased at an early age. His 
second wife was Elizaljeth Havens, widow 
of Abraham Havens, a former resident 
of Trenton, New Jersey, to whom he 
was married Oct. 12, 1882, and who died 
Dec. 18, 1893. 

Levi G. Irwin, Jr., subject of this 
sketcli, attended the public schools at 
Turkey, and later a select school in the 
same town conducted by Miss Cooper. 
He acquired a thorough English educa^ 
tion at these schools, and in 1874 he 
went west on a prospecting tour which 
embraced in its scope the states of Ohio, 
Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, and Wiscon- 



sin. In 1880 he settled down at Sea 
Bright, on the Atlantic coast, where he 
was engaged for two years in the service 
of the CloughU' Brothers, lumber mer- 
j chants. In 1882 he opened an establish- 
ment of his own, devoted to dealing in 
hardware, plumbing supplies, and gen- 
eral house-furnishing goods. The busi- 
ness is now conducted by Mr. Irwin and 
j Ebenezer S. Nesbitt, under the firm name 
' of Irwin & Nesbitt, and in addition to the 
( line of merchandise enumerated above 
i the house does plumbing work, con- 
] structs drainage sj'stems, puts on tin 
roofs, and all other work in sheet iron 
and copper. Their facilities for the suc- 
cessful prosecution of the business are 
excellent, and both Mr. Irwin and his 
partner are enterprising and pushing 
men . 

Mr. Irwin is an influential factor in 
democratic politics in Monmouth county, 
and especially in Sea Bright, in which 
town he has held important public offices. 
He was elected a member of the town- 
ship committee, and served eight years. 
He was also made treasurer of his town- 
ship, in which responsible office he served 
faithfully and efficiently during a period 
of seven years. He also contributed 
several years of his life to his party as a 
member of tlie township democratic com- 
mittee. In 1892 he was appointed post- 
master at Sea Bright by President Cleve- 
land, and he assumed charge of the office 
April 1 3tli of that year. 

Mr. Irwin is not a church member, 
but he occupies the positions of trustee 
and treasurer of the Methodist Episcopal 
church at Sea Bright. He is a member 
of the Royal Arcanum and of Lodge 
No. 78, Free and Accepted Masons, both 
of Long Branch ; a member of Adelphi 
Lodge, No. 65, Knights of Pythias, at 




^ .C-4r^OU ^:^>^ ^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



185 



Turkey, and of Ashland Council, No. 28, 
Jr. 0. U. A. M. at Sea Bright. 

Mr. Irwin is one of the foremost of Sea 
Bright's citizens, public-spirited, progres- 
sive, and popular. In business he is 
capable and honorable, and in office he 
has ever been clean-handed and cour- 
teous. He is a man of generous disposi- 
tion, equable temperament and liberal 
mind. The union of these qualities in his 
person has brought to him success in 
business and many warm and genial 
friends. 



'yHOMAS A. WARD, cashier of the 
-*~ Freehold Banking Co., one of the 
most public-spirited citizens of Freehold, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey, is a son 
of Thomas R. and Elizabeth Worth 
Ward, and was born Sept. 25, 1851, at 
Freehold. The name is of English 
origin. Lieutenant William Ward, pa- ; 
ternal grandfather of the subject, was by 
occupation a lieutenant, in rank, of a 
company of the Queen's Regulars, of the 
English army, and, after many years of 
faithful service, was retired on a pension 
for the remainder of his life, and re- 
sided, up to his death, near Eaton Col- 
lege. He was the father of a large fam- 
ily of children, most of whom came to 
this country and settled in various parts 
of the United States. One of his sons, 
Thomas R., father of the subject, was 
one of the middle children, and was born 
May 21, 1825, near Plymouth, Devon- 
shire, England. He received a common- 
school education, and at the early age of 
sixteen years became a cabin-boy on a 
sailing vessel which visited American 
ports, and while on his first trip to this 
country resolved upon making it his fu- 
ture home. Upon his marriage he set- 



tled at Freehold, where he has resided 
ever since. 

At the age of twenty-seven years he 
became a captain, and, altogether, spent 
forty-four years in seafaring life. It is 
noteworthy that in all his life at sea he 
met with but one accident in merchant 
marine service, and this one — the foun- 
dering of his vessel, "The Pizarro," 
seven hundred miles from land — was 
due to a leak, which caused it to sink 
two days after, one hour subsequent to 
the rescue of her crew by a passing 
steamer. In 1886 he abandoned the 
water, and became interested in his pre- 
sent business, that of carpets and oil- 
cloths, with Mr. William A. Thompson, 
in the firm of Ward & Thompson, where 
he has continued in successful business 
ever since. He is now one of the oldest re- 
sidents of the town, is highly esteemed as 
a citizen and a business man, and stands 
deservedly high in his community. He 
is a democrat and an attendant of the 
Presbyterian church. He was married 
December 23, 1849, to Elizabeth Worth, 
at New York. They have three children : 
Thomas A., the subject ; Mary, wife of 
Charles Golden, a merchant; and Eliza- 
beth, wife of William E. Frick, a mer- 
chant at Pittsburg. 

Thomas A. Ward received his earlier 
training in the public schools of Free- 
hold, and subsequently attended the 
Freehold Institute, where he finished his 
education. • He left school at the age of 
eighteen years, and entered upon a clerk- 
ship in the general mercantile business, 
conducted by Brown & Clark at Free- 
hold. At the end of three years in the 
service of this firm, Mr. Ward became an 
office boy or messenger in the banking 
house of the Freehold Banking Co., and 
was afterwards promoted to the position 



186 



Biographical Sketches. 



of corresponding clerk. Eight years later 
he was elected cashier of the bank, a 
rapid stride in assuming a position of 
recognized intliience in a couiuuuiity. 
His services, since that time to the pre- 
sent, have been faithfully and efficiently 
given to the directors and stockholders 
of the bank, and have been as faithfully 
rewarded by them in re-electing him from 
year to year. During this time he has 
served as president of the Freehold Im- 
provement Co. ; is at present a director | 
and treasurer of the Freehold Mutu.al 
Building and Loan Association ; a di- 
rector in the bank of which he is cashier ; I 
a director and vice-president of the 



Manufacturino; Co. at Free- 



Stokes Bros, 
hold; was a director in the Monmouth 
County Fair Association during its exist- ; 
ence; organized the Atlantic Highlands 
Bank at Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, 
and was a director until he resigned; and 
was a director in the Co-operative Build- 
ing Association and its treasurer. He 
was also one of the originators and in- 
corporators of the Freehold fire depart- 
ment, of which he is now an exempt 
member. 

Mr. Ward has, during this busy life, ' 
doubtless built more houses in Freehold 
than any other man within her borders, 
and has certainly done more for the in- 
dustrial development of the town than 
any other one man. He has always been 
in the front ranks of various enterprises , 
inaugurated for bringing new industries 
into Freehold and for her general build- 
ing up and improvement. Since his ad- 
vent into Ijusiness life the town has as- 
sumed a new garb, its beauty an evolu- 
tion from liis busy brain, and its textile 
strength developed by his nerveful hands. 
Mr. Ward has always been very actively 
identified with the Freehold Board of 



Trade, and is an influential factor in the 
materialization of all its plans and move- 
ments looking to increased immigration, 
augmented commei'ce, additional manu- 
factures and better trade facilities for the 
town. In all his undertakings in this 
direction he has been ever successful, and 
all the enterprises thus far established 
are in a flourishing condition. In poli- 
tics Mr. Ward is a democrat, and in 
church relations he is a baptist. He 
attends the church of that denomination 
at Freehold, and is one of the trustees. 
He is a member of Olive Branch Lodge, 
No. 16, F. and A M., a member of Ten- 
nent Lodge, No. 69, Knights of Pythias, 
and of Freehold Lodge, No. 41, A. O. 
U. W. Mr. Ward was married, Feb. 2, 
1883, to Rena N., daughter of Levi Sol- 
omon, a farmer at West Freehold. They 
are the parents of four children : Lee T., 
Eleanor E., Caroline, and Elizaljeth 
Morris. 



rpHOMAS P. McKENNA, a rising and 
-L popular young member of the Mon- 
mouth county bar, and counsel for the 
commissioners of Long Branch, is a son 
of Thomas and Mary Farrel McKenna, 
and was born at Allentown, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, July 8, 1871. The 
McKenna family originated in the Emer- 
ald Isle, where the paternal grandfather, 
Patrick McKenna, was born, and resided 
in the county of Derry all his life. He 
was instructed in the public schools, and 
later became a wheelwright and a wood- 
turner, which constituted his life-long 
emploj ment. In religious afl'airs he and 
his family were strong supporters of the 
Roman Catholic church, in which he was 
an active member to the time of his death 
in 1850. To Patrick McKenna and his 
estimable wife were born eight children : 



Biographical Sketches. 



187 



Katharine, Mrs. Eugene Fay; Bridget, 
Mrs. Patrick McKenna; Thomas, Pair 
rick, Bernard, Rose, Margaret, and Jane. 
Thomas McKenna, Sr., was also a na- 
tive of Ireland, being born in the county 
of Derry, Nov. 29, 1839. With a com- 
mon-school education he began to learn 
the many turns of his father's trade and 
worked about his home until twenty years 
of age, when the opportunities of winning 
a fortune and perhaps honor in the west- 
ern world led him to embark for America. 
Upon reaching this side of the Atlantic 
he went to Trenton, New Jersey, where 
he soon found employment in a machine 
shop. He remained here but a short 
time when he was drafted into the civil 
war, and taken to Washington, D. C, 
but being an unnaturalized citizen he was 
not pressed into active war service, but 
was retained to work in the government 
repair shops. When the great oil fields 
of Pennsylvania were being first devel- 
oped, he went to Oil City, Pa., and was 
concerned in the oil business for a space of 
three years, when he again went to Tren- 
ton, New Jersey, and soon located on a ! 
farm at Allentown, New Jersey, where 
he remained until 1872. After another 
sojourn in Trenton Mr. McKenna finally 
removed to Long Branch, where he has 
since resided, and for many years has 
been one of the most substantial and en- 
terprising residents of the place. His 
first business venture was to establish a 
mineral water and bottling business in 
which he became very successful. In 
.1876 he disposed of said business and 
built a hotel, which he has since been 
managing. In connection with this and 
other interests, Mr. McKenna deals very 
largely in real estate, and has done much 
to improve the natural interests and prog- 
ress of the town. Thomas McKenna, Sr., 



is well known in political circles in his 
county and state, and ranks as a leader 
and counsellor in the local conflicts and 
formal conventions of the Democratic 
party, having served ten terms as city 
councilman. Mr. McKenna is a stock- 
holder in the Long Branch Building and 
Loan Association, and also holds stock in 
the National Bank of Long Branch. In 
religious views he adheres to the Roman 
Catholic church. He is also connected 
with the Catholic Benevolent Legion. 

Thomas McKenna, Sr., married Mary 
Farrel in 1870 and they have three sons 
and three daughters : Thomas P., Frank 
J., who died Aug. 21, 1892; Kate, Maria, 
Bernard and Rose. He still resides in 
Long Branch, as stated, and where he 
takes as active a part in promoting the 
welfare of his town as ever. 

Thomas McKenna, subject, attended 
the public schools of Long Branch until 
sixteen years of age, and graduated from 
the High school of said place in the class 
of 1888. He at once entered the office 
of W. A. Heisley, Esq., Long Branch, 
where he read law for two years and then 
entered the Columbia Law School, New 
York city, and graduated from the same 
in 1893, with the degree of LL.B. Im- 
mediately after leaving Columbia Uni- 
versity he entered the law ofiice of Ap- 
plegate & Hope, of Red Bank, New Jersey, 
and was admitted to the bar in Nov., 
1893. After his admission to the bar he 
was employed with Applegate & Hope 
until June 1, 1895, when he opened an 
office and began the practice of law in 
Long Branch, where he rapidly rose in 
favor as a lawyer, and his success and 
ability have gained for him the confidence 
of the people and a good patronage. 

Politically, Mr. McKenna is a democrat, 
always reserving the. right of voting for 



188 



Biographical Sketches. 



the best man, and thus exemplifies the 
typical American citizen. He is a mem- 
ber of the Catholic church of Long 
Branch ; belongs to Lodge No. 158, Or- 
der of Red Men, Long Branch ; to the 
Tutelos Club, and is also a corporal of the 
Second Troop of Cavalry of the National 
Guard located at Red Bank, in Monmouth 
county. He is a young man possessing 
amiable qualities, and abilities that will 
assure him further successes. 



G^ EORGE H. LIPPINCOTT, a prosper- 
^ ous agriculturist and oysterman of 
Little Silver, is a son of George and Sarah 
Dennis Lippincott, and was born at Little 
Silver, in Shrewsbury township, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, May 15,1864. 
The Lippincott family is of English origin, 
and figured conspicuously in the pioneer 
life of this section of New Jersey. For 
complete details of the family genealogy, 
see the biography of James E. Lippincott, 
a leading business man of Long Branch, 
this county. 

George Lippincott, the father of the 
subject, was a native and life-long resident 
of Monmouth county, having been born 
at Rumson, now Little Silver, on Dec. 28, 
1814. He died here July 23, 1892, hav- 
ing followed the combined avocation of 
fai-ming and oystering, as did most of the 
inhabitants of his immediate vicinity. 
Politically he was a republican, but never 
took an active part in politics. And 
whilst he was not identified with any re- 
ligious organization, he was 3'et a pious, 
straightforward, and conscientious man, 
of liberal and generous disposition. His 
marriage with Sarah Dennis was cele- 
brated on Aug. 18, 1842, and they be- 
came the parents of nine children, four 
sons and five daughters : Benjamin, 



Georgianna, Jennie, Henry, who died 
very young; Olivia, the wife of Taber 
C. Parker, a retired carpenter of Red 
Bank, this county ; Frances, married 
to William Muller, a farmer of Little 
Silver; Amanda, the consort of Hon. 
William T. Parker, an ex-assemblyman 
and prominent citizen of Little Silver, 
whose sketch will be found elsewhere in 
this volume ; Charles C, of Little Silver, 
married to Jane White, of Little Silver ; 
and George H., the youngest member of 
the family. 

Mr. Geo. H. Lippincott was reared upon 
a farm, acquired a good common school 
education, and learned farming and oys- 
tering under the directions of his father, 
with whom he remained until his father's 
death, in 1892. Subsequently he em- 
barked in the same line of business on his 
own account, and has continued therein 
up to the present time (1896). He is 
possessed of good judgment, industrious 
and frugal habits, and from the energy 
already displayed, we predict that he will 
take rank with the leading and prosper- 
ous business men of Monmouth count}'. 
Politically he is a republican, and frater- 
nally he is a member of the Jr. 0. U. A. 
M., and is now serving as treasurer of 
Council No. 200, of Little Silver. 

On Nov. 2, 1887, the nuptials which 
made George H. Lippincott and Margaret 
Laurie, of Sea Bright, New Jersey, hus- 
band and wife, were celebrated, and they 
have since lived happy together in Little 
Silver. They have one son, G. Howard 
Lippincott, who was born Nov. 22, 1892. 



JOSEPH E. ARROWSMITH, M. D., a 
^ prominent medical practitioner and 
well-known citizen of Keyport, Mon- 
mouth county, is a son of Thomas and 



Biographical Sketches. 



189 



Eiama Van Brackle Arrowsmith, and 
was bom Jan. 26, 1823, near Middle- 
town, Monmouth county. The name is 
of English origin, and the Arrowsmith 
family is one of the most noted in the 
annals of this section of the country. The 
original Arrowsmiths came from Eng- 
land towards the latter end of the seven- 
teenth century, and settled on Staten 
Island about the year 1683. The family 
has always occupied a prominent place 
in society, and has rendered distinguished 
public services, both military and judicial 
in character. 

Thomas Arrowsmith, father of the 
subject, was born near Middletown, 
where he owned and operated a fine farm 
during his lifetime. He had limited 
educational advantages in his youth, but 
was possessed of high natural abilities 
which enabled him in after life to acquire 
a full stock of knowledge on all import- 
ant subjects. He was an apt conversa- 
tionalist, an eloquent public speaker, and 
possessed the confidence of his fellow- 
citizens to a high degree. In 1835 he 
was elected a member of the legislative 
council of New Jersey, a position cor- 
responding with the present position of 
state senator, which he occupied for two 
3'ears. In 1845 he was elected state 
treasurer of New Jersey. From 1848 to 
1850 he was a member of the board of 
chosen freeholders of Raritan township. 
From 1852 to 1858 he was. one of the lay 
judges of the court of errors and appeals 
of New Jersey. He was also assessor of 
Middletown township for a number of 
years. He died Dec. 27, 1866, at the 
age of seventy-two years. His wife was 
Miss Emma, a daughter of Matthias Van 
Brackle, of Holmdell, and they had nine 
children : Joseph E., the subject ; John 
M., a resident of Keyport ; Eleanor, wife 



of Daniel Roberts, of Keyport ; Cordelia, 
deceased ; Thomas, who served through- 
out the civil war and retired with the 
rank of major ; Stephen, deceased ; 
Emma, deceased ; George, a brave sol- 
dier during the civil war, whose bio- 
graphy has been written by Hon. J. S. 
Applegate; and Stephen V. 

Dr. J. E. Arrowsmith, subject of this 
sketch, received his elementary educa- 
tion in the Middletown district schools, 
and subsequently attended the Collegiate 
Institute at Matawan for two years and 
the Erasmus Hall Academy school at 
Flatbush for one year. In 1838 he 
Ijegan the study of medicine in the office 
of Dr. Edward Taylor, at Middletown, 
and after one year he entered the medi- 
cal department of the University of New 
York city, and attended the first course 
of lectures ever given at that institution, 
in 1839. He graduated in 1843, and 
spent one year in hospital practice in 
New York city. In 1844 he removed to 
Keyport and entered upon the practice of 
his profession, and for over half a cen- 
tury he has been the leading physician 
of this section, with a widely extended 
and lucrative practice. At the present 
time he is resting upon his well-earned 
honors, and devotes his attention to but 
a limited number of patients. Dr. Ar- 
rowsmith was one of the army examiners 
during the war, and many thousands of 
recruits passed under his hands. He is a 
member of the American Medical Asso- 
ciation and is consulting physician for 
the Monmouth Memorial hospital at 
Long Branch, New Jersey. He has been 
twice married.- In 1846 he wedded Miss 
Maria Craig, a daughter of Archibald 
Craig, of New York, who died in 1848 
after bearing him two daughters : Emma 
D.. wife of Lorenzo G. Woodhouse, of 



190 



Biographical Sketches. 



New York, and Annie C. In 1854 he 
married Katherine W. Teer, daughter of 
Henry Teer, of New York, who died in 
1891, having born him tAvo children : 
Kate, deceased, and Henry T. Dr. Ar- 
rowsmith is one of the old-school physi- 
cians ; courteous in manner and bear- 
ing, tactful, sympathetic and thoroughly 
imbued with the dignity and importance 
of his profession. He is respected and 
beloved by a wide circle of friends and 
patients, and is universally noted as the 
worthy representative of a notable family. 



TSAAC B. ESBERG, a prominent and 
-^ accomplished teacher of music of 
Perth Amboy, is a son of Benjamin and 
Sarah Koenig Esberg, and was born July 
3, 1856, in Hanover, Germany. His 
paternal grandfather, Mendel Esberg, 
was an extensive dealer in horses and 
cattle in Germany, and a man of high 
local repute. 

Benjamin Esberg, the subject's father, 
was also a dealer in horses and cattle in 
the Fatherland. He came to the United 
States in 1866, and was for many yeai's 
successfully engaged in the liquor busi- 
ness in New York city. He was of the 
Jewish faith in religion, and was a faith- 
ful supporter of the synagogue. He died 
in 1878. His wife was Miss Sarah 
Koenig, a daughter of Isaac Koenig, of 
Felsberg, and she died in 1880, having 
born him four children : Johanna, Isaac 
B., Marianna and Moses. 

Isaac B. Esberg, the subject, received 
his education in the German common 
schools. He accompanied his pai'ents to 
the United States in 1869, and acquired 
a good English education in the public 
day and night schools of New York city. 
He learned the trade of compositor in 



that city, and was employed in the com- 
posing room of the New York Daily Neics 
for some time, and was also foreman of 
a German weekly paper for a number 
of years During this time, while work- 
ing at his trade, he was diligently study- 
ing music, giving special attention to the 
violin, under such noted masters as Bues- 
ing, Katz and Seitz. He finally gave 
up setting type, and was a teacher of 
music for twelve years. In 1884 he was 
engaged in the wholesale liquor business, 
but remained in it only a few years. He 
removed to Perth Amboy in 1890, and 
spent two years on a farm near that 
city. In 1894 he returned to the pro- 
fession of music, and has at present at- 
tained an enviable reputation as one of 
the most skillful and successful teachers 
in Perth Amboy. He has a large num- 
ber of pupils among the best class of the 
population, and his services are always 
in demand. He is a republican in poli- 
tics, and adheres to the Jewish faith of 
his ancestors. 

Mr. Esberg possesses musical talent of 
a decidedly high order, and is not only a 
fine teacher, but a rare performer on both 
mandolin and violin. He is popular and 
highly respected by his pupils, as well as 
by all with whom he comes in contact. 



FRANK O. NELSON, a well-known 
farmer, near New Market, Piscata- 
way township, is a son of John and Sarah 
Nelson, and was born November 2, 1863, 
at Stanhope, Morris county, New Jersey. 
His early education was obtained in the 
public schools of Piscataway, and he sub- 
sequently took the scientific course at 
Rutgers College, New Brunswick, whence 
he graduated in 1886. For three years 
thereafter he was engaged as a civil en- 



Biographical Sketches. 



191 



gineer. In 1890 he went to work on his 
father's farm, in Piscataway township, 
and shortly afterwards leased a fine farm 
of one hundred acres near New Market, 
which he has operated successfully ever 
since. 

Mr. Nelson is an active democrat in 
politics ; has been a member of the school 
board of his township for three years, 
and was judge of election in 1895-96. 
He is a faithful member of the New 
Market Baptist church, and is a member 
of the Jr. 0. U. A. M., and the Daughters 
of Liberty. In 1884 he was married to 
Miss Jennie R. Boice, daughter of Albert 
L. Boice, of Piscataway, and to them 
were born four children : Veradella, Lyr- 
anthia, Beatrice, and Albert B. 

Mr. Nelson has made a success of the 
practical application of scientific method 
to agriculture. His farm is well tilled 
and fertile, and is thoroughly equipped. 
He keeps fully abreast of the times upon 
all subjects relating to farming, and is 
possessed of a wide stock of general learn- 
ing upon all the topics of the day. He 
is well known throughout Piscataway 
township, is diligent in church work and 
infiuential in local political affairs. Mr. 
Nelson is a son of John Nelson, one of 
the most extensive fai'mers in Piscata- 
way township, and freeholder of the 
township, a sketch of whose life also will 
be found in this volume. 



OTEPHEN H. DE HART, a prominent 
^ architect and builder of New Bruns- 
wick, with offices at 285 and 287 Red- 
mond street, is a son of Cornelius and 
Abigail Sturgiss De Hart, and was born 
Nov. 25, 1831, at New Brunswick. He 
was educated in the common schools of 

New Brunswick, at Mrs. Hall's private 
11 



school, and at Livingston Institute. When 
fturteen years old he entered William G. 
De Hart's saw-mill in New Brunswick, 
where he worked for two years, subse- 
quently served an apprenticeship of three 
and a half years at cabinet-making, and 
afterwards an apprenticeship of three 
and a half years more at the carpenter 
trade, with D. Ammerman, New Bruns- 
wick. He went to Brooklyn, where he 
worked one year as a carpenter, and then 
removed to Jersey City, where he worked 
three years at the same trade. Upon 
returning home in 1850 he became em- 
ployed as a pattern-maker with the New 
Brunswick Rubber Works for three years, 
and afterwards entei-ed the employ of 
Jeremiah Rule, at New Brunswick, en- 
gaged in the building business, remaining 
for eight years, when the latter was killed 
in a boiler explosion. 

Mr. De Hart started in business for 
himself in 1868, at his present location, 
285 and 287 Redmond street. At first 
he devoted his attention simply to stair- 
case making, but gradually extended his 
business to comprise all branches of car- 
pentering and contracting, and he has 
erected some of the most attractive and 
substantial structures in New Brunswick, 
among them being the First M. E. church 
and the Fifth Ward school. In addition 
to his regular business, Mr. De Hart is 
an expert chemist and an adept in the 
making of fireworks, of which he always 
has a fine display on hand. He is a re- 
publican in politics, a member of the First 
M. E. church and of Palestine Lodge, 
No. Ill, F. and A. M. He has been 
twice married. His first wife, whom he 
wedded in 1853, and who died in 1885, 
was Miss Sarah Hendricks, daughter of 
A. Hendricks, who bore him four chil- 
dren : Amanda, wife of William K. Van 



192 



Biographical Sketches. 



Ostend ; Henrietta S., wife of Charles S. 
Kleist; Kachael A., and Augustus. On 
Sept. 29, 1886, he married his second 
wife, Miss Catherine Bennett, of New 
Bi'unswick. Mr. De Hart is an active, 
progressive citizen, and a skillful worker 
in his trade. He is influential in church 
work, respected in business, and popular 
in a wide social circle. 

Mr. De Hart's family is of Frencli 
origin, and his maternal grandfather, 
John Sturgiss, served all through the 
Revolutionary war. His father, Corne- 
lius De Hart, Avas born in 1792, at New 
Brunswick, and was a shoemaker in that 
town during the greater part of his life. 
He served through the war of 1812 in 
the New Jersey Light Artillery, under 
Colonel Nelson, and was a pensioner of 
that war. He was a well-known citizen 
of New Brunswick, and one of the char- 
ter memljers of Union Lodge, No. Ill, 
F. and A. M. He died in 1866, having 
been the father of ten children : William, 
Theodore, Sarah, Jane E., Caroline, Ra- 
vine, Stephen, Amanda, Adaline, and 
Abigail. 



p)HILIP WEIGEL, Jr., an eminently 
-L distinguished merchant and finan- 
cier of New Brunswick, was born in that 
city in May, 1855, and is a son of Philip 
and Anna (Silzer) Weigel. He is the 
descendant of a strong, sturdy line of 
Bavarian German ancestors, his father 
having emigrated from Bavaria in 1818. 
Philip Weigel, the father of our subject, 
was twenty-two j^ears of age when he 
came to this countr3\ He was born in 
Bavaria in 1826, and was then taught 
the trade of a barber. On settling in 
New Brunswick he immediately opened 
a barber shop, and continued exercising 
his trade until 1884, when through his 



diligence and economy he was enabled to 
retire from business, having amassed a 
moderate fortune. 

Mr. Weigel, Sr., is a democrat, and has 
served his city for several years as a 
member of the board of conmiissioners of 
appeals. He is an active member of the 
Lutheran church, and is a liberal con- 
tributor of his time and means to any 
projects which promise to result in ad- 
vantage to his church and fellow-men. 
He is also a member of New Brunswick 
Lodge, No. 6, L 0. 0. F. He was mar- 
ried to Anna Silzer, whom he survives. 
Their marriage was blessed with ten 
children, as follows : Philip, Jr. ; Sophia, 
married to Peter Kattersein ; Frederick, 
now practicing law in New Brunswick ; 
Jacob, barber; George,. Louis, Eliza- 
beth, deceased ; Adrian, and Wilhelmina. 

The name of Philip Weigel, Jr., is 
familiar throughout Middlesex county as 
the leading hardware merchant in New 
Brunswick and one of its most dis- 
tinguished citizens. His career has been 
one of almost phenomenal success, and 
offers an opisortunity for interesting and 
instructive study. After receiving all 
the educational advantages which the 
public schools of New Brunswick could 
give, he at the age of fourteen entered 
his father's shop and there learned the 
trade of barber. At the end of nine 
months he became emploj-ed with Buttler 
& Johnson, sash and blind manufactur- 
ers, on John street, as ofiice boy at the 
moderate salary of two dollars and fifty 
cents per week. It was not the wages 
that tempted him, but the opportunity to 
advance himself, and this he eagerly 
accepted. He remained in the employ 
of this firm for six jears, and as an evi- 
dence of his industrious habits it may be 
stated that at the close of each day's 



Biographical Sketches. 



193 



labor he returned to his father's shop to 
assist him in the evening hours. Upon 
closing his engagement at the sash and 
blind factoi-y he secured the position as 
bookkeeper with the Empire Machine 
Works, which position he retained for 
three years, resigning it only to accept a 
similar one with the firm of G. H. & F. 
R. Stout, dealers in hai-dware, at Com- 
merce, Squan and Peai'l streets. He 
performed the duties of this position 
faithfully until 1881, when through his 
diligence, frugality, and economy he was 
enabled to purchase the business of 
Staats, Clark & Son. The business had 
been established in 1786 by Abraham 
Schuyler, and its sale to Mr. Weigel was 
the first transfer of any interest in it to 
any one not related to Mr. Schuyler or 
his descendants since its establishment. 

At the time of Mr. Weigel' s purchase 
of the business he was the manager of 
Stout's hardware store, and enjoyed a 
reputation as being one of the best in 
New Brunswick and vicinity. Immedi- 
ately upon his acquirement of the busi- 
ness Mr. Weigel infused new life into it 
and was quickly compelled to enlarge 
his premises in order to accommodate his 
rapidly increasing trade. This was by 
no means confined to New Brunswick, 
or even to its immediate vicinity, but 
extended throughout Middlesex county, 
and within the radius of that district the 
name of Philip Weigel, Jr., as an honest, 
pushing, energetic, enterprising business 
man became almost a household word. 
Mr. Weigel has always been a lilseral 
contributor to the support of charitable 
institutions, and year by year, as his 
means have augmented, his donations 
have increased also, and. he enjoys the 
deserved reputation of being one of the 
most philanthropic men in the county of 



Middlesex. Whatever charitable request 
meets his judgment as being worthy of 
support it is sure to receive his liberal 
aid, given without ostentation. 

Although Mr. Weigel's hardware busi- 
ness demands close attention and requires 
most of his time he finds opportunity to 
associate himself with other business en- 
terprises, among the more prominent of 
which are the American Constructing 
and Improvement Co., organized to build 
public works in Venezuela, and of which 
he is president and treasurer ; the Rhode 
Island Perkins Horse Shoe Co., Provi- 
dence, R. L, and the Kilborne and Mid- 
dlesex Knitting Co., of this city and 
Martinsburg, Va. He is also identified 
with several brick and cariiage manu- 
facturing enterprises in the state. 

Mr. Weigel is a staunch democrat, but 
takes no active interest in politics. He 
is an active churchman, being a trustee 
of St. James Methodist Episcopal church 
and a supporter of the St. John German 
Lutheran church. He was united in mar- 
riage Nov. 3, 1879, to Alice Welch, daugh- 
ter of Richard W. Welch, Esq., of Potts- 
ville, Pa., and their union has been blessed 
with six children : Philip A., Anna, 
Fredha, Sadie, Nellie Margaret^ and Van- 
derbilt, who are all now attending school. 



JAMES S. WHITE, justice of the peace 
at Freehold, and one of the most 
influential men in local politics of that 
town, is a son of Thomas and Elizabeth 
C. Smith White, and was born March 
29, 1858, at New York city. His father 
and grandfather were both natives of 
Washington, D. C, where his father was 
interested in the patent medicine busi- 
ness, but lost most of his property during 
the civil war, subsequently removing to 
New York city and then to Freehold. 



194 



Biographical Sketches. 



Mr. White was educated in the public 
schools of Freehold, and at Freehold 
Institute. After leaving school he en- 
tered the employ of David C. Perrine, 
the well-known dry goods merchant of 
Freehold, remaining with him from April 
1, 1875, to Sept. 12, 1886. He then 
went west, and for a year was clei'k to 
the Government Indian Agent at Fort 
Peck, Poplar river, Montana. In Dec, 
1887, he returned to Freehold and en- 
tered the office of Joseph McDermott as 
a law student. In May, 1894, he was 
elected justice of the peace for a term of 
five years, which he is now serving. Mr. 
White is a democrat in politics, and is 
actively identified with all political move- 
ments in Monmouth county. He is tax 
collector of the borough of Freehold, and 
collector of the sewer and water rents. 
During 1892 he spent seven months in 
Europe with A. A. Zimmermann, the 
famous champion bicycle rider, and was 
one of his .advisers during all the import- 
ant events in which he was entered across 
the water. He is also a prominent mem- 
ber of Olive Branch Lodge, No. 16, F. 
and A. M., of Freehold. 

Of Mr. White's family there is but one 
sister living, Nellie W., widow of George 
A. Chambers, of Chicago, who is at pres- 
ent residing in the latter city. On April 
15, 1896, Mr. White was married to Miss 
Nettie B., a daughter of George Dickin- 
son, of Philadelphia. 

Mr. White is widely popular in Free- 
hold and vicinity, and possesses an open 
genial disposition which gains him many- 
friends. He is actively interested in 
all the athletic sports, is decided in his 
political opinions, and is generally re- 
garded as one of the strongest supporters 
of the Democratic party in Monmouth 
county. 



GG. HOAGLAND, M.D., an active and 
• successful phjsician for many years 
at Franklin Park, Middlesex county, New 
Jersey, now located in Keyport, Mon- 
mouth county, same state, is a son of 
John S. and Rachael Garretson Hoag- 
land, and was born Feb. 16, 1857, at 
Griggstown, in Somerset county. He 
springs from old Holland Dutch stock 
and is the descendant of one of four 
brothei's who emigrated to this country 
in the year 1638. 

The paternal grandfather, Lucas Hoag- 
land, was born at Griggstown, and after 
receiving a common-school education en- 
gaged in and remained at farming all his 
life in Hillsborough township. In poli- 
tics he was an old-line whig, subsequently 
a republican, and in religion, he was a 
member of the Reformed church. His 
marriage with Phoebe Staats, resulted in 
the birth of three sons : Christopher and 
Peter, both deceased ; and John S., father 
of subject. 

John S. Hoagland was born and reared 
at Griggstown, where he attended the 
common schools until he was old enough 
to go to work. He then farmed for 
several years with his father on the old 
homestead. In the meantime he devel- 
oped business qualifications of a superior 
order, and his services were in frequent 
demand for settling estates of farmers 
around the country who had deceased. 
He was a republican and an active and 
successful politician. He served in var- 
ious township offices; was justice of the 
peace for many j^ears, and represented 
his county, Somerset, in the assembly of 
New Jersey for three successive terms. 
In religious faith he was a member of 
the Reformed church at Griggstown, and 
was one of its founders. He deceased 
June 12, 1870. He was the father of 




y* V'r k><f ^>-««-y Agfc-«-*>g ^f 



Biographical Sketches. 



197 



three daughters and two sons: Cynthia, 
deceased ; Phoebe, deceased wife of Au- 
gustus Hoagland; John, who succeeded 
to the farm; Dr. G. G., the subject; and 
Maggie, deceased. 

Dr. G. G. Hoagland received his prim- 
ary education in the common scliools of 
Griggstown. His collegiate education 
was acquired at Voorhees Institute at 
Middlebush, New Jersey, from which j 
he was graduated in 1876. He clerked , 
for a short time in a drug store at New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, owned by Wil- 
liam Rust, meanwhile pursuing a course 
of reading in medicine. In 1881 he en- 
tered the Jefferson Medical College, at 
Philadelphia, and was graduated there- 
from in 1884. He entered upon the ac- ' 
five practice of his profession that same 
year at Franklin Park, New Jersey, and 
for ten years he enjoyed a very comforta- 
ble patronage. On Nov. 1, 1894, he re- 
moved to Keyport, and since that time 
he has devoted himself to building up a 
new practice. In this he has been emi- 
nently successful. His twenty months of 
residence here have been very prosperous 
ones, and his patronage and popularity 
are steadily growing. Dr. Hoagland is 
a republican in his political faith, but 
hitherto has taken no especial interest in 
party affairs. He is a member of Sir 
Walling Lodge, No. 109, Knights of 
Pythias, and occupies an exalted position 
in the respect and esteem of his fellow- 
knights, by reason of his eminent social 
qualities and amiable nature. 

Dr. Hoagland formed a matrimonial 
alliance, June 9, 1886, with Mary Beek- 
man, a daughter of Theodore Beekman, 
of Middlebush, New Jersey. They have 
five children: Marjorie, Kathline, Gar- 
denia, Barbara, and Frederick. 



ly /T S. KIRBY, for many years harbor- 
-'-'^« master of South Amboy, New 
Jersey, and an ex-soldier, of many vicis- 
situdes, in the northern army dui'ing the 
civil war, is a son of Patrick and Cecilia 
Kirby, and was born Dec. 25, 1845, at 
Dungarvan, County Waterford, Ireland. 
His paternal grandfather, Dennis Kirby, 
was a native of the land of the sham- 
rock, and he took to the sea at an early 
age. He rose by regular gradation until 
he became a master of vessels. He con- 
tinued in that avocation until the end of 
his life. He was a member of the Roman 
Catholic church. His wife, Margaret 
Kirby, gave him eight children, six sons 
and two daughters: Dennis, Jeremiah, 
Patrick, Thomas, John, Michael, Marga- 
ret, and Mary. She deceased in 1868, 
and he was interred by her side two 
years later. 

Patrick Kirby, father of subject, was 
also born at Dungarvan, and he inherited 
his father's predilection for maritime 
pursuits. He was in command of trans- 
Atlantic ships for several years. He re- 
sided successively at Boston, New York 
and lastly at New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, closing his career at the latter 
place. His occupation after quitting the 
sea was that of a rigger and outfitter of 
vessels. He was a democrat in politics, 
and in religion a catholic. He died in 
1869, surviving his wife four years. 
They had six children : Michael S., Den- 
nis, Patrick, Jeremiah, Margaret, and 
Mary. 

Michael S. Kii'by was brought to this 
country by his parents in 1846, when 
but an infant twelve months old. He 
received his education in the public 
schools of New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
and before he was seventeen years of age 
he volunteered his services in the Union 



198 



Biographical Sketches. 



arnij. He enlisted Sept. 5, 1861, in 
Company G, Eighty-First Pennsylvania 
Infantry, at Mauch Chunk. Colonel 
James Miller was in command of the 
regiment, and the ranking officer of Com- 
pany G was Captain Amos Stroh. ]Mr. 
Kirby remained in the infantry service 
until after the battle of Antietam, Sept. 
17, 1862, when he was transferred to Bat- 
tery C, Fourth United States Artillery, 
under the command of Lieut. Lorenzo 
Thomas. Previous to his transfer he 
was for some time stationed at Harper's 
Ferry with the Army of the Potomac. 
He was subsequently sent into the thick 
of the fraj', and was engaged in many of 
the battles in Virginia. He took part in 
the following engagements : Fair Oaks, 
Savage Station, White Oak Swamp, 
Charles City Cross Roads, Malvern Hill, 
Cold Harbor (1864), Fredericksburg, 
Chancellorsville, the Wilderness, Spott- 
sylvania, Gettysburg, Weldon Station, 
Antietam, Chantilly, South Mountain, 
Ream's Station, Manassas, Stony Creek 
Station and Mine Run. He was cap- ; 
turned June 29, 1861, by the confederate 
forces, under Gens. Lee and Hampton, 
at the battle of Ream's Station, Va , 
and Avas dispatched to Andersonville 
Jul}' 2, 1864. He joined one of the 
many conspiracies formed by the prison- 
ers to escape by digging a tunnel under 
the prison walls. His first effort was 
temporarily successful, but he found him- 
self at liberty only to be pursued, over- 
taken and recaptured. He was disci- 
plined by being compelled to serve on 
the chain-gang, with a ball and chain 
attached to his ankle. A subsequent 
attempt to escape, made by himself and 
others, through a second tunnel which 
they had constructed, was frustrated bj' 
a breach of confidence on the part of 



some of his comrades. After private 
Kiiby had been in prison eight months a 
rejjort became widely circulated about 
Andersonville that a wholesale exchange 
of prisoners had been decided upon, and 
was soon to be consummated by the re- 
spective governments of the North and 
South. The roll Avas called, and Mr. 
Kirby answered to his name in tlie fifth 
hundred of names called. For some 
reasons, however, the exchange of these 
prisoners was not effected, although they 
had been forwarded to Charleston, S. C. 
They were subsequently sent to Florence 
Prison, S. C. From this prison Mr. 
Kirbj' and a few otliers succeeded in 
finally making their escape. 

On April 8, 1865, he received an hon- 
orable discharge from the service at 
Annapolis, Md. He went to New Bruns- 
wick, N. J., and there he learned for the 
first time that his mother had deceased 
during his long absence from home. He 
drove on the tow-paths of the Schuylkill, 
the Lehigh and the Delaware and Rari- 
tan canals, and subsequently had charge 
of man \' vessels and steamboats, and has 
been connected with the transportation 
business all his life. In 1882 he was 
appointed agent for the Pennsylvania 
Railroad Co.'s steam tows at South 
Arabo\' under D. C. Chase, and now is 
superintendent of that department. He 
has charge of all the tugs, and is harbor- 
master. 

Mr. Kirby in politics is an active dem- 
ocrat, and in religion he is a Roman 
catholic. He is a memlier of St. Mary's 
chui'ch, the Catholic Benevolent Legion 
and St. Patrick's Beneficial Societ}', No. 
2, all of South Aniboy. He belongs to 
Post 21, G. A. R., whose hall is at the 
corner of Thirty-ninth and Market 
streets, West Philadelphia, as well as a 



Biographical Sketches. 



199 



member of the New Jersey Association 
Union Ex-prisoners of War. He was 
mai'ried at New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
in 1865, to Ann Martin, a daughter of 
Patrick and Mary Martin. They have 
had four children : Cecilia, Francis P., 
Michael, and Thomas. 



TAMES BEDLE WAINRIGHT, M. D., of 
^ Manasquan, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, is a son of Halsted and Elizabeth 
Wainright, of Farmingdale, New Jersey, 
where he was born Feb. 14, 1856. He 
was educated primarily in the public 
schools of Farmingdale and at the Free- 
hold Institute, New Jersey, and later he 
entered Columbia College in the city of 
New York, where he graduated in the 
class of 1877. He located at Mill town, 
in Middlesex county. New Jersey, where 
he continued the practice of his profes- 
sion from Sept., 1877, until June, 1884, 
when he removed to Manasquan. He 
has been actively engaged in the pursuit 
of his profession since, his skill being 
specially devoted to the treatment of the 
eye, ear, nose and throat, in which as a 
specialist he has attained considerable re- 
pute and an extensive practice. Dr. 
Wainright is an active member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church of Manas- 
quan, and occupies the position of a trus- 
tee therein. He is also greatly interested 
in the schools of Manasquan, and his 
influence is constantly directed towards 
the attainment of better facilities and 
greater educational advantages. He is 
also strongly devoted to several fraternal, 
charitable, and social organizations, in 
which he holds membership, and he mani- 
fests not only the desire to see improve- 
ment made, but actively strives to help 
his fellow associates to bring about such 



results. He is a member of Excelsior 
Lodge, No. 88, Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows; of Clyde Castle, No. 34, 
Knights of the Golden Eagle ; is a past 
officer of that castle, and grand high 
priest of its grand lodge ; of Defender 
Council, No. 219, Junior Order of Ameri- 
can Mechanics, and a past officer ; and of 
Manasquan Lodge, No. 60, Ancient Order 
of United Woi'kmen. He became an ac- 
tive fireman from the organization of the 
Manasquan fire department in 1888, and 
is now a member of the Exempt Fire- 
men's Association by virtue of his eight 
years of active service. He is at present 
at the head of the department, being its 
highly honored and much esteemed chief. 
Dr. Wainright was married to Miss 
Fannie A. Cordery, daughter of John T. 
Cordery, May 19, 1878, and they have 
had born to them the following children : 
Frank C, John Evans, Bessie M., and 
Mildred L. 



'T^HEODORE F. WHITE, a prominent 
-*- and successful business man of 
Red Bank, is a son of Lewis and Eliza 
(Lippincott) White, and was born near 
Red Bank, in Shrewsbury township, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, August 19, 
1843. His grandfather, Timothy White, 
was of English stock, born near Red 
Bank, and resided there his entire life, 
engaged in the arts of husbandry and 
oyster-fishing. He possessed only a com- 
mon-school education, but being an exten- 
sive general reader he acquired a good 
knowledge of modern and current events. 
He was a democrat of the JefFersonian 
type, but never was active in politics. 
He married and became the father of 
five children : Lewis, William, Timothy, 
Alice, and Elizabeth. 

Lewis White, father, was born near 



200 



Biographical Sketches. 



Red Bank, Juh- 7, 1811, and in early life 
engaged in farming in a small way, be- 
ginning upon a farm of twenty acres. 
This he cultivated a few years, carefully 
husbandino; his earniiiErs, and then beo;an 
jHirchasing small adjoining tracts, and 
continued until his farm now contains 
one hundred and fifty acres in one body. 
He is a careful and practical farmer, 
and his farm, situated in Shrewsbury 
township, is under a good state of culti- 
vation, fertile and well improved. He 
also owns other valuable lands situated 
in adjoining townships. He is not an 
active politician, but he is a staunch re- 
publican, and heartily endorses the pro- 
tective and financial principles of his 
party, believing that upon their fulfill- 
ment the prosperity of the nation de- 
pends. His marriage with Eliza Lippiu- 
cott resulted in the birth of seven children : 
Amanda, "William A., Joseph, Theodore 
F., Henry C, Winfield and Timothy, all 
of whom reside in Shrewsburj', their 
native township, except the subject. 
Theodore F. White obtained his 
cation m the common schools, 
afterwards engaged in contracting 



building. He does an extensive 



edu- 
and 
and 
bus- 
iness, having built twenty-nine houses 
in Eed Bank, besides a number in other 
places. In addition to this he is largel}- 
engaged in the real estate and insurance 
business. In 1876 he ensraged in the 
wholesale grocery business, and continued 
successfully for a period of six years. An 
active and loyal repuljlican in politics, 
Mr. White has ever kept a watchful eje 
upon the manoeuvering of his party, con- 
tributing liberally, both of his time and 
means, to its advancement and success. 
In 1885 he was elected mayor of Red 
Bank, and served one year, and during 
this time he labored earnestly to get the 



Red Bank, Long Branch, and Atlantic 
Highlands trolley line extended through 
Red Bank. In 1886 he was elected jus- 
tice of the peace, which office he has 
since filled by re-election, and during the 
same jear was elected cit}" treasurer for 
a term of one year. On December 6, 
1870, the marriage of Mr. White and 
Miss Mar}- Terhune was celebrated. Mr. 
White is not a member of any church, 
but is a regular attendant and liberal 
contributor to the Presljyterian church, 
of which Mrs. White is a zealous and 
consistent member, and takes a lively in- 
terest in all Christian and philanthropic 
work. Mr. White takes a commendable 
interest in the improvement of the city 
and its institutions, and is now serving 
as a director of the Second National Bank 
of Red Bank. 



TT7 E. MOUNT, proprietor of one of 
* ^ ' the largest wholesale and retail 
general stores in Monmouth county, at 
Englishtown, and a progressive citizen of 
that place, is a son of Joseph B. and 
Elizabeth Applegate Mount, and was 
born Jan. 24, 1863, in ^lonroe township, 
Middlesex county. His ancestry is of 
English origin. 

His father, Joseph B. Mount, was a 
farmer in Middlesex county throughout 
his life-time, and was not only thriving 
in agricultural aff"airs, but also a promi- 
nent participant in public matters in 
Monroe township. He is still living on 
the (jld homestead, but his wife, the 
mother of our subject, died in 1876. 
Their children were : John, a merchant, 
at Prospect Plains, New Jersey, at one 
time partner of our Si«I)ject; Daniel A , a 
resident of Jamesburg, Middlesex county ; 
Charles, of Brooklyn, N. Y. ; George, a 



Biographical Sketches. 



201 



farmer, at Prospect Plains, New Jersey ; 
Carrie, wife of Mr. Samuel Vaughn, of 
Tennent, New Jersey; W. E., the sub- 
ject, and Annie, who resides on the old 
homestead with her father. 

W. E. Mount, subject of this sketch, 
spent his early life on his father's farm, 
and was educated in the district schools of 
Monroe township. When sixteen years 
of age he became a clerk in the grocery 
store of his brother Daniel at Half Acre, 
New Jersey, with whom he remained for 
four years. In 1884 he established a 
general store at Prospect Plains on his 
own account in partnership with his 
brother John, as the firm of J. H. Mount 
& Bro., and conducted a successful busi- 
ness for four years. In 1888 he re- 
moved to Englishtown, purchased the 
old-established general store of P. W. 
Stevens, deceased, and has been in busi- 
ness there ever since, developing and ex- 
tending the trade and its facilities to a 
large degree. In Aug., 1893, he added 
a large annex to the store for the cloth- 
ing and gents' furnishing business. His 
wholesale business is conducted in the 
second floor of the store building and also 
in two warehouses, one in the rear of the 
store and the other on Main street, above 
the business block. He owns . and re- 
sides in a valuable residence on the site 
where one Moses Laird once resided and 
with whom General Washington break- 
fasted on the morning prior to the bat- 
tle of Monmouth in the Revolution. Mr. 
Mount is a staunch democrat in politics, 
an active party man, and has been post- 
master at Englishtown since Oct., 1893, 
when he was appointed by President 
Cleveland. He is a member and past 
chancellor of Columbia Lodge, No. 88, 
Knights of Pythias, and also a member 
of the Grand Lodge. He is interested in 



the work of the Presbyterian church at 
Englishtown, and a liberal financial sup- 
porter of the same. In 1886 he was 
married to Miss Lida Hoffman, a daugh- 
ter of James HoflFman, of Prospect Plains, 
and they have two daughters, Ethel and 
Marian. 

Mr. Mount is one of Englishtown's 
most progressive and respected citizens. 
He was one of the first agitators for the 
establishment of a local bank in 1895, 
and although the project has been de- 
ferred he is still pushing it and hopes to 
see his labors crowned with success. He 
has been prosperous in his business career, 
and has a large trade throughout all the 
surrounding country. He is shrewd and 
active in all his dealings, and is esteemed 
for his strict business integrity and honor- 
able methods. 



JW. JOHNSTON, a retired merchant 
• of Eatontown, Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, is a son of Gilbert and Amy 
(Beegle) Johnston, and was born Feb. 
24, 1840, in that town. The family tree 
originally grew and flourished in Eng- 
land, but was planted in America in pre- 
Revolutionary times. 

John Johnston, the paternal grand- 
father, was born in Monmouth county, 
and, after receiving a common-school 
education in that county, pursued the 
occupation of a tiller of the soil near 
Middletown, New Jersey, up to the date 
of his death. He was an active politician 
of the old-line whig school, but never an 
office-holder ; and in religion he was a 
member of the Dutch Reformed church. 
He married and became the father of 
seven children, all deceased : Gilbert G., 
Peter, Isaac, John, Deborah Ann, who 
married a Mr. Van Der Veer; Polly, wife 
of Joseph Morris ; and Katharine. 



202 



Biographical Sketches. 



Gilbert G. Johnston, father, was born 
at Middletown, New Jersey, where he 
acquired a common-school education. 
After leaving school he learned the trade 
of a blacksmith, which trade he carried 
on for five years in his native town, and 
subsequently followed it the remainder 
of his life at Eatontown. In j^olitics he 
was a democrat, although he never took 
any active part in the affairs of his party. 
He died in 1879, and Avas survived by his 
widow until 1892, in which year her 
death occurred. They were the parents 
of five children : John H. ; Mary L., mar- 
ried to Charles McGee, of Holmdel, this 
county; William; J. W., our subject; and 
Anna E., wife of Augustus Reese, a resi- 
dent of New York city. 

J. W. Johnston attended the public 
schools of Eatontown, and subsequently 
he was engaged for four years as a clerk 
for Messrs. White & Curtis, merchants of 
that town. He then opened a business 
of his own in the line of general mer- 
chandise, and for thirty-five years he 
carried on an extremely successful and 
lucrative trade. He is now living in re- 
tirement in a beautiful home in the town 
which witnessed his prosperous career, 1 
where he passes his time in cultivating a 
small truck garden. Mr. Johnston is an 
earnest Christian, and is in communion 
with the church of the Second Adventists 
of Eatontown. In politics, he is an active 
and enthusiastic member of the Repub- 
lican party, and, from 1881 to 1891, he 
Avas a town committeeman. He is, and ' 
has been for several years, a director in 
the Shrewsbury Mutual Life Insurance 
Co. Mr. Johnston was married Oct. 13, 
186.3, to Phoebe A. Wilcott, a daughter 
of Edmond Wilcott, of Eatontown. Their 
only daughter, Addie B., is married to 
James H. Hathaway, of Eatontown. 



"jPv MILLER BARR, M. D., a skilled 
-*-^« surgeon and physician and the 
founder of the Long Branch surgical 
sanitarium, is a son of Martin and Susan 
(Miller) Barr, and was born, Nov. 12, 
1836, in Lancaster county. Pa. The 
family is of German origin, members of 
which a few generations back had their 
abiding places in Holland. The earliest 
emigrant of the family to this country 
was Martin Barr, the great-grandfather 
of our subject, who settled at Strasburg 
in Lancaster county. On the maternal 
side our subject traces his ancestr}' to the 
Brackbills, and is a de.scendant of the 
Rev. Ulilric Brackbill, born in Lancaster 
count}'. Pa., July 4, 1703. 

Martin Barr, the paternal grandftither, 
was a native of Lancaster, Pa., where he 
was born June 11, 1756, received a com- 
mon school education and was an agri- 
culturist all his life. Politically he gave 
in his adhesion to the Democratic party, 
and in religion he was a mennonite. His 
death, June 20, 184-4, at Lancaster, was 
followed by that of his wife four years 
and four days later, in the same month 
and city. Her maiden name was Fannie 
NefF, and the issue of her marriage was 
six children: John, Benjamin, Martin, 
Elizabeth, married to Francis Kendig, of 
Lancaster county; Fannie, deceased, and 
Annie, first and second wives, respect- 
ively of Jacob NefF, a resident of Stras- 
burg, Pa. 

Martin Barr, father, was born June 11, 
1795, in Lancaster, Pa., where he at- 
tended the common schools and remained 
during his entire life engaged in the till- 
age of his lands. In political faith he 
was a democrat, and in religious creed 
was a mennonite. He was married Jan. 
13, 1819, to Susan Miller, whose death 
occurred March 8, 1838, while our sub- 



Biographical Sketches. 



205 



ject was yet an infant. To their marriage 
were born eight children : Eliza Ann, 
born Oct. 4, 1819, deceased Dec. 25, 1820; 
Fannie, born April 3, 1821 ; Hetty, born 
March 10, 182-3; John M., born April 
20, 1825; Martin W., born Oct. 31, 1827'; 
Ann C, born May 7, 1830 ; Samuel, born 
Oct. 24, 1833, and our subject, the date 
of whose birth is given in the beginning 
of this sketch. The grandfather of these 
children lived to the ripe old age of 
eighty-eight years, six months and nine 
days. The father seventy-four years, 
and died Dec. 20, 1869. 

Dr. D. Miller Barr received his primary 
education at the public school in Lancas- 
ter, and subsequently founded The Eureka 
Select School, Baltimore county, Md. 
He entered Jefferson Medical College, 
Philadelphia, in 1861, from which he was 
graduated in 1864, and then enlisted as 
a soldier in the Union army, in which he 
served as surgeon-in-charge of the Cath- 
arine street branch of the Christian street 
hospital U. S. A. In 1875 Dr. Barr en- 
tered into the regular practice of medi- 
cine at Philadelphia, where his success 
was immediate and achieving prominence 
as a physician and surgeon. In 1879 he 
was elected to the post of surgeon in the 
Home for Inebriate Women in that city. 
In 1886 he was appointed surgeon-in- 
charge of the Orphans' asylum of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. In 1885 he 
established the Hygienic Institute at Ocean 
Grove, Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
where he remained until his transfer, in 
1892, to the position of medical director 
of the Long Branch Surgical Sanitarium. 
This noted sanitarium, over whose affairs 
Dr. Barr pi-esidesandin which heexercises 
such assured skill, amounting to absolute 
genius, is supplied with Turkish and 
Russian baths, as well as other appliances 



for the use of water-treatment, massage 
and electricity as adjuncts to medicine in 
healing other diseases. Dr. Barr's sjje- 
cialty in this work is surgical treatment 
of diseases of women and nervous disor- 
ders. In politics Dr. Barr is a prohi- 
bitionist, was born a democrat and so 
voted until the onset of the rebellion ; 
thereafter voted with the republicans. 
In religious affairs he is quite an active 
member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church and is a thorough-going Christian 
worker. In fraternal society relations 
he is a member of Vaux Lodge, No. 398, 
F. and A. M., of Philadelphia, and of the 
J. B. Morris Post, No. 47, G. A. R., at 
Long Branch. He is a member in socie- 
ties auxiliary to his profession as follows :, 
Pennsylvania State Medical Society, the 
Philadelphia County Medical Society, the 
Obstetrical Society of Philadelphia, and 
the Northern Medical Society of Phila- 
delphia. Dr. Barr has been twice mar- 
ried. His first wife, Susan L. Dixon, a 
daughter of Isaac and Mary J. Dixon, 
of Reisterstown, Md., whom he married 
July 28, 1864, and who deceased August 
31, 1890, bore unto him eight children : 
Samuel D., born July 28, 1865, and mar- 
ried to Julia Hughes, April 23, 1889 ; 
John, born Dec. 28, 1866 ; Anna Eliza- 
beth, born Sept. 2, 1870 ; Ambrose, born 
Jan. 26, 1873 ; Minnie S., born Oct. 5, 
1875 ; Susan, born Oct. 26, 1880 ; Maud, 
born Oct. 20, 1882, and Lavinia, born Jan. 
13, 1886. Dr. Barr was subsequently mar- 
ried Jan. 22, 1891, to Emma Schenck, a 
daughter of Benjamin Franklin and Bar- 
bara Schenck, residing at Lancaster city. 



/CAPTAIN FOREMAN O. BAILEY, a 
^-^ prominent retired sea-captain, an 
extensive vessel owner, and a widely- 
known citizen of Manasquan, is a son of 



206 



Biographical Sketches. 



William H. and Mary Green Bailey, and 
was born Aug. 10, 184-3, at JManasquan. 
He was educated in the district .schools 
of Wall township. When twelve years 
of age he went to sea with his father, and 
worked his way up in the service so rap- 
idlj' that he was but twenty years of age 
when he commanded his first vessel. For 
thirty years he was engaged in the coast 
trade, plying between the northern ports 
and Georgia, and retired from active sea 
life in 1894. At the present time he is 
owner in four four-masted schooners and 
six three-masted schooners, of seven hun- 
dred to eighteen hundred tons burden 
each, engaged in the coal and lumber- 
carrying trade, and also in the transporta- 
tion of ice from Kennebec, Me. At pre- 
sent he resides in a handsome cottage at 
Manasquan. He is a democrat in jJoli- 
tics, but does not take any active part in 
party affairs. His religious affiliations 
are with the Manasquan Presbyterian 
church, in which he has been an elder 
for twenty years. Captain Bailey was 
one of the first stockholders and promot- 
ers of the First National Bank of Manas- 
quan, and has retained an interest in the 
bank ever since. He owns considerable 
real estate in Manasquan and vicinity, 
and is possessed of a substantial fortune. 
On Feb. 27, 1868, he was married to Miss 
Mary Hunsinger, a daughter of David 
Hunsinger, -who was for many years a 
prominent hotel-keeper at Manasquan. 
They have five children : John J., Henr^' 
L., Ornn, Mary Lavina, and Frederick F. 
Captain Bailey's name stands high in 
the annals of Manasquan as that of one 
of the men who have contributed largely 
to the advance and prosperity of the 
town. He has invariably been in the 
lead in matters of jjublic progress, and is 
distinguished for his activity and energy 



in promoting public welfare. He is a 
thorough, practical navigator, and his 
long career on the water was attended 
by unvarying success, of which his present 
afiluence is the natural outcome. He is 
a man of broad views, genei'ous hospi- 
tality and wide popularity. He is a bro- 
ther of Captain George Bailey, of Manas- 
quan, whose sketch contains an account 
of the familj^ ancestral record. 



SAMUEL R. FORMAN, one of the best 
known dealers in horses in Mon- 
mouth county, was born in Jamesburg, 
Middlesex county. May 15, 1851. He 
is a son of Samuel R. and Gertrude Ap- 
plegate Forman, and is of English ances- 
try. His father located near Jamesburg 
at the age of twenty, and during his life- 
time followed the occupation of a farmer 
and operator in real estate. He had a 
successful business career and accumu- 
lated a handsome competency. In poli- 
tics he Avas a democrat. He died in 1877, 
at the age of seventy-seven years, leaving 
a wife, three daughters and three sons, 
two of whom, Dudley and Willard, now 
reside with their mother at the homestead 
farm, near Jamesburg. 

Samuel R. Forman, fother of subject, 
came to Freehold in 1876, and opened a 
sale and exchange stal)le on South street. 
He was successful in this business from 
the very beginning, and its constant in- 
crease necessitated an enlargement of his 
premises, from time to time, until he now 
has the largest establishment for the sale 
and exchange of horses of any in the 
county of Monmouth. For some years 
he dealt in live stock of all kinds, l)ut in 
I'ecent years he has confined his attention 
to the sale and exchange of hor.ses exclu- 
sively, his stables having a capacity for 
one hundred horses. 



Biographical Sketches. 



207 



When Mr. Forman first engaged in his 
business he formed a co-partnership with 
Edgar Van de veer, which continued for 
eight years, when he purchased the inte- 
rest of his partner, and since then he has 
continued the business alone. Mr, For- 
man enjoys a high reputation as a repre- 
sentative business man. He has had a 
very successful business career, has accu- 
mulated a handsome fortune, and is now 
owner of considerable real estate. In 
politics he is a democrat, and although 
not an aspirant for office, is an active 
party man. He is actively interested in 
the Freehold fire department, and is also 
a director in the Central National Bank 
of that town. He maiTied Harriet J. 
Reid, of Newark, New Jersey, who be- 
longs to one of the oldest families of the 
state. 



rpHEODORE SICKLES, a prominent 
-*- carriage builder and well-known 
citizen of Freehold, is a son of Robert 
and Sarah Hagenman Sickles, and was 
born Feb. 8, 1816, at Vanderburg, Atlan- 
tic township, Monmouth county. His 
family was of Holland Dutch descent, 
and numbered amongst them some of the 
earliest settlers of this section of New 
Jersey. His father, Robert Sickles, was 
born and educated in Atlantic township, 
and although he learned the blacksmith's 
trade in his youth, he spent nearly all his 
life on the paternal farm at Vanderburg, 
where he died in 1881, aged sixty-four. 

Mr. Sickles was educated in the dis- 
trict schools of Atlantic township. While 
still a boy he learned carriage making 
with William Cooper, of Freehold, but 
at the outbreak of the civil war, though 
still in his teens, he enlisted as a private 
in the Twenty-ninth New Jersey infan- 
tr}', and saw nine months' service at the 



front. After being mustered out in 1863, 
he com23leted his education. In 1873 he 
established a carriage bazaar in Freehold 
in co-partnership with William H. Thomp- 
son, at No. 23 South street. He bought 
out his partner's interest in 1879, and has 
continued to conduct the business under 
his own name with great success ever 
since. He is not only a carriage builder 
and repairer, but is also agent for a num- 
ber of well-known carriages and wagons, 
and in 1895 he added a line of bicycles 
to his already complete stock. Mr. Sick- 
les is a staunch republican in politics. 
He Avas elected a member of the town 
commissioners in 1891, his term expiring 
in 1896. In 1866, he was married to 
Miss Lydia Lakerson, daughter of Sarah 
Lakerson, of Freehold, by whom he has 
had two sons : William H., and Frank. 

Mr. Sickles is well known and re- 
spected in Monmouth county, and is 
regarded as one of Freehold's most enter- 
prising business men He has done much 
to advance the interests of his town, and 
has aided very materially in elevating 
its business tone in the estimation of the 
surrounding country. His own affairs 
have prospered through his inherent 
qualities of energy, application and enter- 
prise, and he enjoys a trade extending 
throughout the county. 



/CHARLES T. CLAYTON, postmaster 
^-^ at Belmar, Monmouth county, and 
proprietor of a flourishing express busi- 
ness in that town, is a son of Job T. and 
Julia (McCabe) Clayton, and was born 
Jan. 20, 1845, at Freehold. The name 
is of English oi'igin. John Clayton, the 
subject's grandfather, was a well-known 
farmer and prosperous citizen of Freehold 
for many years. 



208 



Biographical Sketches. 



Job T. Clayton, the subject's father, 
was mail agent and stage-driver between 
Freehold and surrounding towns during 
early life, but became better known sub- 
sequently as a successful hotel-keeper. 
He was successively proprietor of the 
village inn at Englishtown, New Jersey, 
for three years, the Osborne House at 
Manasquan for three years, and the New 
Bedford Hotel, at New Bedford, for thir- 
teen years. He then retired from the 
hotel business, and purchased a farm in 
Wall township, near New Bedford, where 
he remained until his death in 1881. 
His wife was Miss Julia McCabe, daugh- 
ter of Elisha and Elizabeth McCabe, of 
Freehold, New Jerse^y, by whom he had 
six children : Charles T., the subject ; 
Hattie, wife of Henry Pickwell, of Irving- 
ton, New Jersey ; George, of Brooklyn, 
N. Y. ; Mary, wife of Charles Gaskill, of 
Philadelphia, Pa., and two deceased in 
infancy. 

Charles T. Clayton, subject of this 
sketch, was educated in the district 
schools of Freehold, and accompanied j 
his father to Englishtown, Manasquan, 
and New Bedford, New Jersey. In the 
autumn of 1862, when seventeen years 
of a2;e, he enlisted for nine months in the 
Twenty-ninth regiment. New Jersey in- 
fantry, and departed for the front, but 
was disabled at Tenall3-town, D. C, 
and obliged to return to New Bedford. 
He then became a sailor, and spent eight ! 
years in the coast trade between Maine 
and Florida. In 1870 he removed to ] 
Philadelphia, Avhere he was employed in 
a pulp works for three years, at the end 
of which time he again went to sea on a i 
ves.sel trading with Galveston, Texas. 
In 1878 he located at Belmar, and was 
for three 3ears employed by H. H. Yard t 
as a carpenter, etc. In the spring of 1881 



Mr.Claj^ton purchased the business, which 
he conducted successfully until the au- 
tumn of 189.3, when he sold it. In 1890 
he established himself in the local ex- 
press business, and now has a good traffic, 
employing four men and running three 
teams. Mr. Cla3-ton has always been a 
staunch democrat in politics. He was 
appointed postmaster at Belmar by Pre- 
sident Cleveland in 1893, his term run- 
ning until 1897. The office is a fourth- 
class one, with two employees. Mr. 
Clayton has also served as judge of elec- 
tions, and in other local offices. He re- 
sides in a handsome cottage at Twelfth 
avenue and F street, is a small real-estate 
owner, and was one of the pioneer ex- 
ploiters of Ocean Beach, at Belmar. He 
is a member and ex-trustee of the Belmar 
Presbyterian church, and of Ocean Lodge, 
No. 89, F. and A. M. He was married 
in 1876 to Miss Deborah E. Shilba, 
daughter of John Shilba, of New Bed- 
ford. Mr. Clayton is well known and 
esteemed along this part of the coast. 
He is energetic and industrious, unosten- 
tatious in his manner of life, genial in 
disposition, and staunch in his citizenship. 



WILMER E. HOSKINS, the well- 
known journalist and newspaper 
publisher of Manasquan, is the youngest 
son of William and Lucy E. Hoskins, and 
was born in Philadelphia, Aug. 3, 1856. 
He is one of the few who can to-day look 
back with pride upon the fact that his 
paternal ancestors embarked for America 
with William Penn, and took part in the 
famous compact Avith the Indians under 
the historical treaty tree in Kensington, 
now a part of Philadelphia. William 
Hoskins, the paternal great-grandfather, 
was engaged in shipping and mercantile 





CyC'^^^^i^^'*^*^ \^s> . (/\ / - ir ji -^^^^^-^-'*^^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



211 



pursuits in the colonial da3's, and two of 
his vessels fell a prey to the French 
privateers, as did many American mer- 
chant ships at that period. These losses, 
together with a large number of others, 
constitute what has long been known as 
the " French Spoliation Claims." The 
United States has since assumed the pay- 
ment for the same, but up to date Con- 
gress has never provided for a i-eimburse- 
ment of these losses. 

Graham Hoskins, the paternal grand- 
father, carried on an extensive business 
in the wholesale and retail drug line, and 
was located on Second street, in the old 
" Southwark " district, Philadelphia. He 
was intimately associated with Stephen 
Girard, both as a friend and in a business 
way. After many years of active busi- 
ness life he retired in 1856, and twenty 
years later died at the age of eighty-six. 

There was no one better known in the 
old Southwark district than William S. 
Hoskins, the father of our subject. Here 
he carried on one of the most extensive 
house and sign painting businesses at that 
time in the United States, but was com- 
pelled to relinquish his business on ac- 
count of ill health in 1864, and finally 
succumbed to the disease four years later. 
William S. Hoskins married Lucy E. 
Darrah, the latter being descended from 
Hollanders, who first settled at Paterson, 
New Jersej^ The maternal and paternal 
ancestors of our subject were communi- 
cants of the old St. Peter's Episcopal 
church, Third and Pine streets, Philadel- 
phia. 

Several j-ears of the early life of our 
subject were spent in Lower Merion, 
Montgomery county. Pa. His education 
was begun in the Fairview public school, 
and later he was graduated from the 
Merion academy. Following this he ap- 



prenticed himself to George Fitzgerald, a 
manufacturer of chemical apparatus and 
mathematical instruments and also a gold 
and silver refiner. No. 519 Cherry street, 
Philadelphia. The close of this appren- 
ticeship told heavily upon young Hos- 
kins' physical resources, and broken in 
health he turned his attention to the 
trade of his father, and engaged in the 
painting business, but Avas again obliged 
to relinquish this new occupation for tlie 
same reason as above. Then his energies 
began to seek other fields of employment, 
and he became a member of the report- 
ing staff of the West PJiiladeljphia Tele- 
phone and wrote up the political news of 
the "Twenty-fourth ward, and in connec- 
tion with this contributed regularly to 
Taggart's Sunday Times. Li 1879 he 
left Philadelphia and settled in Manas- 
quan, with which place he has been iden- 
tified ever since. For eight years he was 
assistant editor of the Manasquan Sea- 
side. Later he started the Spring Lake 
Mirror, at Spring Lake. This journal 
has since been merged into the Seaside 
Gazette. In 1889, through the tireless 
energies of this enterprising journalist, 
the Manasquan Star, a weekly journal, 
was first published June 20th, and for 
some time its power was felt in that 
vicinity on the side of the Republican 
party; but in 1891, the political convic- 
tions of the editor having changed, the 
Star became no less felt in its efforts to 
further the interests of democracy in 
that section. In 1892 he purchased the 
Coast Democrat, a sheet started in 1880 
by Rev. James W. Langhlen, and con- 
solidated the two papers under the name 
of the Coast Star Democrat. As befoi'e 
stated, our subject is a staunch democrat, 
and his paper having a circulation of a 
thousand copies weekly is the official 



212 



Biographical Sketches. 



organ of the party in the district. While 
this popuhir sheet, which is an eight- 
column-per-page paper, can easily be 
recognized as being purely partisan in 
national, state and county issues, yet it j 
always maintains an independent atti- 
tude in regard to local aflkirs. In Sept., 
1896, he started the Eagle Knight, which 
has been made the official organ of the 
Knights of the Golden Eagle for the state 
of New Jersey. 

In 1880 Wilmer E. Hoskins married 
Martha Morton, daughter of Thomas and ' 
Mary Morton. Three sons and one i 
daughter constitute the number of chil- 
dren resulting from this union : Percy, 
Trac}^ Edward S., and Gertrude S. Al- 
though reared an Episcopalian, our sub- 
ject embraced the faith and doctrines of 
the Baptist church, in which he has held 
official positions. Among other import- 
ant positions Mr. Hoskins performs the 
various functions of a police justice of his 
borough. He is a member in high stand- 
ing of the K. of F., and Junior 0. U. A. 
M., in both of which he is a charter mem- 
ber and a past officer. He is a member 
of the K. G. E., the Hook and Ladder 
Compan}", No. 1, Manasquan fire depart- 
ment, and the Borough Relief Corps. 

Wilmer E. Hoskins stands deservedly 
high in the estimation of all who know 
him, both as an enterprising journalist 
and a useful citizen, and has always been 
one of the first to endorse and push any 
movement for the good and advancement 
of his community. 



"DEV. THEODORE SHAFER, pastor of 
-*- *• the Reformed church of Millstone, 
Somerset county, and for eight j'ears an 
active Christian worker in this vicinity, 
is a son of Francis J. and Rebecca Secor 



Shafer, and was born March 16, 1855, at 
Cedar Hill, Albany county, N. Y. From 
early Ijoyhood he was of a studious dispo- 
sition, and after acquii'ing such element- 
ary education as the common .schools of 
his native county aftbrded, he began to 
prepare himself for the serious duties of 
the ministry. He entered Rutgers College 
in 1875, and was noted as one of the most 
jjersevering students of his year. During 
the term of his studies he won several 
envied prizes, and graduated in 1879 with 
honoi's. He immediately went to the 
theological seminary at New Brunswick, 
\ew Jersey, where for three years more 
he continued his studious labor, gradu- 
ating in 1882. No sooner was college 
life ended than the activities of pulpit 
work began. His first call was to New- 
ark, wliere he preached for two years in 
the Trinity Reformed church. He then 
became pastor of the Reformed church 
at Greenwich, N. Y., served for two 
years, and subsequentl}' occupied the 
pulpit of the Reformed church at Rey- 
nolds, N. Y. In 1889 he was summoned 
to take charge of the Reformed church at 
Millstone, where he has continued to 
labor in the cause of the Master ever 
since. He still maintains a pleasant 
relationship with his alma mater, and is a 
member of the Delta Upsilon fraternity 
of Rutgers College. He was happily 
married on May 14, 1884, to Mrs. Kath- 
arine B. Stout, widow of George H. Stout, 
and daughter of David P. Woodruff, a 
well-known banker of Newark, New Jer- 
se}', and their home is lighted with two 
children : Mary Sherman, and Kath- 
erine H. 

Mr. Shafer is an energetic worker, 
both in and out of the church. His per- 
suasive pulpit eloquence, his ready tact 
and sympathy in dealing with sorrow 



Biographical Sketches. 



213 



and distress, his practical charity and his 
sincere philanthropy, which depends upon 
good deeds as well as golden words, have 
made him loved, not only by his own 
congregation, but by all who come in 
contact with him. He is a man of no 
inconsiderable learning, and is an intel- 
lectual as well as a moral force in Mill- 
stone. He is also a prominent and active 
member of the Junior Order of United 
American Mechanics. 

The Shafer family comes from New 
York state, so far as the history of the 
American branch is concerned, although 
the original ancestry goes back to Ger- 
many. Francis Shafer, paternal great- 
grandfather of our subject, was born in 
Germany, about 1761, and came with his 
mother to America in 1770, and obtained 
possession of a large farm at his mother's 
death, situated in the fertile region of 
New York state known as the Schoharie 
valley, where he spent all his active life. 
He, like all the family, was a member of 
the Reformed church, and occupied the 
honored position of elder. He died ripe 
in years, having been the father of three 
children: Mary, John F., and Jacob 
Francis. 

John F. Shafer, the subject's grand- 
father, born in Schoharie county, in 1786, 
was also a successful farmer and a devout 
member of the Reformed church. He 
married, in 1804, Miss Elizabeth Losee, 
by whom he had seven children : Thomas 
L., Sarah, John J., Francis J., Mary, 
Charles, and Eli. He passed away in 
1862. 

Francis J. Shafer, father of subject, 
was born on May 5, 1817, in the town 
of Berne, Albany county, N. Y. He re- 
ceived his education in the public schools 
of Berne, and during early life was a 
farmer, like his immediate predecessors. 

12 



He left the farm, however, to go into a 
mercantile business at Cedar Hill. Sub- 
sequently, he became interested in ti-ans- 
portation on the Hudson rivei', and for a 
number of years was captain of one of 
the lai'gest barges carrying freight be- 
tween Albany, Cedar Hill and New York. 
During this period he became widely 
known, and had hundreds of friends all 
along the river. 

He was a democrat in politics, and was 
a prominent member of the Reformed 
church at Bethlehem, being an elder and 
treasurer of the church organization. 
His wife was Miss Rebecca Van Zandt 
Secor, by whom he had six sons and two 
daughters : Benjamin McElroy, Gilbert 
Vanzant, John F., Benjamin M. E., 
Theodore, our subject, Francis E. ; Hes- 
ter S., and Elizabeth. He died in 1869, 
leaving behind him a stainless record, 
and the example of an upright, God-fear- 
ing life well spent. 

Francis Shafer, great-grandfather of 
the subject, married Catharine Egrement 
of an aristocratic English family, who 
lived in the town of New Scotland. She 
never worked and always had her slaves 
to wait on her. Mary, only daughter of 
Francis and Catharine, married, on Aug. 
■SO, 1794, Col. Cornelius Secor, brother of 
the subject's grandfather on his mother's 
side. The Shafer and Secor families 
were neighbors and friends for many 
years, long before they were united by 
closer, more lasting ties. The Secors 
come in direct descent from the famous 
Huguenots of France. 



FRANK P. McDERMOTT, a prominent 
lawyer of the Freehold, Monmouth 
county, bar, and recently established in 
Jersey City, is a son of William and 



214 



Biographical Sketches. 



L}dia E. McDermott, and was born 
Oct. 23. 1854, on the historic ground of 
the battle of Monmouth. 

William jVJcDerinott, his great-grand- 
father, took part in the war of the Revo- 
lution, and settled in Monmouth count}". 
For a centur}' the name of McDermott 
has been closely identified with that of 
Monmouth. 

William McDermott, father of the sub- 
ject, is a prominent real-estate broker 
of Freehold. A sketch of his life appears 
elsewhere in this volume. 

Frank P. McDermott received his ele- 
raentar}" education in the public schools, 
and was subsequently prepared for college 
at the Freehold Institute. Finding it 
necessary to forego a college course, he 
entered the law office of Acton C. Harts- 
horne, with whom and his partner, 
Chilion Robbins, an able advocate and 
counselor, he pursued a course of legal 
studies. In Nov., 1875, shortly after 
attaining his majority, he was admitted 
to the bar. His abilities as an advocate, 
his accurate knowledge of the law, and 
his devotion to the profession, soon 
achieved for him a place among the lead- 
ing lawyers of Monmouth. The law 
and equity reports of Xew Jersey contain 
man}" cases of importance argued by him, 
not a few of them settling important 
legal principles. Although practicing at 
the Freehold bar, the sphere of his legal 
work has not been confined to his native 
count}'. Like so many of the able law- ' 
yers of Hudson count}", New Jersey, who 
hail from Monmouth, Mr. McDermott 
sought and found in Jersey City a more 
central point and a wider field for the 
practice of the law, and in the fall of 1894 
he ojiened offices in the Davidson build- 
ing in Jersey City. 

Mr. McDermott is a staunch democrat. 



and has always been greatly interested 
in things political, although he has never 
sought nor held office. In religious mat- 
ters he is a presbyterian and connected 
with the church of that denomination at 
Freehold. He is a member of Olive 
Branch Lodge, No. 16, F. and A. M. ; 
Keith Council, Royal Arcanum, and 
other societies. 

Mr. McDermott was united in mar- 
riage, March 11, 1880, with Anna Eliza- 
beth Thompson, a daughter of Dr. Joseph 
C. Thompson, who resided on the Mon- 
mouth battle ground. To this union 
have been born three sous and a daugh- 
ter : Frank P. Jr. ; William, Joseph, and 
Mary Sc udder. 



yOHX T. ROSELL, a prominent lawyer 
^ and ex-postmaster of Freehold, is a 
son of Joseph H. and Elizabeth (Rowring) 
Rosell. and was born Jan. 21, 1853, at 
Freehold. His elementary education was 
obtained in the Freehold Institute, and 
after graduating from here he adopted 
the law as his profession. He first 
studied with General Charles Haight, 
and afterwards with Robbins & Harts- 
home, at Freehold. He was admitted to 
the bar Nov. G, 1879, and has been en- 
gaged in practice ever since. With his 
public business, in addition to which he 
handles real estate and has a fire and life 
insurance agency, he has built up a wide 
clientage. He is an enthusiastic repub- 
lican, a leader in all local affairs of the 
part}', and served for several years as the 
secretary of the republican county com- 
mittee. He resigned the latter position 
April 9, 1891. when he was first ap- 
pointed postmaster of Freehold. He 
was re-appointed Jan. 6. 1892, and 
served continuously up to Feb. 15, 1896. 



Biographical Sketchrs. 



215 



Mr. Rosell is a popular and influential 
man, with a wide circle of friends, and is 
known as one of the leading men of Free- 
hold. He is a member and recorder of 
Freehold Lodge, No, 41, A. 0. U. W.; of 
Keith Council, No. 1501 of the Royal 
Arcanum, and is also a member of the 
Grand Fraternity of Philadelphia. 

Joseph H. Rosell, father of the subject, 
was born near Hightstown, New Jersey, 
and v/as a harnessmaker by trade, fol- 
lowing this occupation all his life ; first at 
Middletown and afterwards at Freehold. 
Like his son, he was an ardent republi- 
can, and was postmaster of Freehold for 
nine years, having been first appointed 
by Lincoln and re-appointed by Grant. 
He was one of the commissioners of Free- 
hold for fifteen years. He was a promi- 
nent member of St. Peter's Episcopal 
chui'ch, and a vestryman for many years. 
Many years ago he was a member of a 
home troop of cavalry and took an active 
part in the drilling and training of the 
organization. He was a member of Olive 
Branch Lodge, No. 16, F. and A. M., and 
of Lodge No. 40, 1. 0. 0. F. His wife was 
Elizabeth Bowring, who bore him eight 
children, five of whom are living. 



TTON. CHARLES BIDDLE HERBERT, 
-*— ^ state senator from Middlesex county. 
New Jersey, an able, accomplished law- 
yer of New Brunswick, is a son of Robert 
S. and Elizabeth Brown Herbert, and was 
born June 4, 1857, at Old Bridge, Mid- 
dlesex county. The family has been in- 
timately associated with Old Bridge for 
more than a century and descends in un- 
broken succession from a line of Herberts 
who flourished in England during the 
dynasty of the Stuarts, and whose ante- 
cedents at the period of the " war of the 



roses" were ardent adherents of the 
House of Lancaster. 

General Obadiah Herbert, the paternal 
grandfather, was a native of Middlesex 
county, where he was born in 1775. He 
became a successful speculator in real 
estate, in which business he was engaged 
for a lifetime, and in its prosecution he 
realized a competency and lived in easy 
circumstances. In his day and genei'a- 
tion there dwelt no man in Middlesex 
county more prominent in social, mili- 
tary, or political life than General Her- 
bert, and his reputation as an able com- 
mander and a patriotic and sagacious 
party leader was not circumscribed within 
the bounds of New Jersey. The position 
of brigadier-general of the state militia, 
to which he was appointed by Gov. Peter 
D. Vroom in 1832, afforded him a good 
field for the exercise of his marked talents 
in organization and discipline, and he de- 
veloped the military service of the state 
to a grade of excellence hitherto un- 
known. He was first appointed to the 
military service as lieutenant hy Gov. 
Jos. Bloomfield Oct. 22, 1806 ; commis- 
sioned as major, Feb. 3, 1812 ; as col- 
onel, by Gov. Isaac H. Williamson, Feb. 

'< 7, 1817, and remained in the service until 

I his death. He was a member of the old- 
line whig party in New Jersey, and his 
political acumen contributed in no small 
manner to its growth and success. Al- 

i though a tireless worker for his party, a 
liberal contributor, an invaluable and an 
ever-willing counselor in its affairs, he 

; invariable declined to undertake the cares 
and responsibilities of public office. He 
was married in 1830 to Catharine Stout, 
by whom he had five children : Robert 
Stevens, Celeste, Matilda, John Biddle 
and Obadiah. General Herbert died in 
1856 in the eighty-first year of his age, 



21G 



Biographical Sketches. 



Olid his widow is still living at the age of 
iiiiietj'-jseveii years. 

Robert S. Herbert, father, was born 
June 4, 1831, at Old Bridge. After the 
completion of his education, which was 
acquired at Old Bridge and New Bruns- 
wick, he entered business life as a trader 
and merchant in Old Bridge. He was a 
man of quiet and unassuming manners, 
who won and retained a wide friendship 
among the people of Middlesex county. 
In politics he was a republican, and was 
closely identified with the interests of 
that party from its formation down to the 
time of his death, which occurred in 1870. 
He was married in 1855 to Elizabeth i 
Brown, and to their union were born five 
children: Charles Biddle, Robert Stevens, 
Francis Henry, Sarah C, and John Bur- \ 
lew. 

Charles Biddle Herbert, the subject, 
received his early education in a select 
school at Old Bridge. He subsequently 
attended the Peddie Institute at Hights- 
town, New Jersey, and there acquired 
that intellectual force and vigor which 
have carried him, while yet a young man, 
to prominence. After leaving college, at 
the age of eighteen years, he remained at 
his home, which at that time was what 
it since continues to be, New Brunswick, 
where for three years he applied himself 
by close study to a preparation for his 
future career. In June, 1878, he com- | 
inenced reading law with Prof George 
W. Atherton, who held the chair of con- ' 
stitutional law and political economy at 
Rutgers College, and was admitted to the 
bar in 1882, at the June term of the su- 
preme court, after I'eceiving compliment- 
ary mention upon the thoroughness of his 
legal knowledge. Immediately after his 
admission as a lawyer Senator Herbert 
associated himself in practice with his 



former instructor, Professor Atherton, at 
New Brunswick, remaining wntli that 
distinguished jurist two ^ears. 

Senator Herbert became prominent in 
republican politics in early manhood. 
Ilis first public position was that of alder- 
man of the fourth ward of New Bruns- 
wick, to which he was elected in 1880. 
He served four terms in the common 
council and was president of the board in 
1882 and 1883. In 1882 he received the 
appointment of deputy- surrogate, and his 
efficiency in that position is attested by 
the records of the office which he occu- 
pied ten years. At this same period he 
was also made secretary of the Middlesex 
county republican executive committee, 
to whose work he contributed valuable 
service. In the fall of 1887 he was nom- 
inated for the assembly in the old third 
district, and his unopposed election to a 
seat in that branch of the legislature re- 
sulted by a total of 2,052 votes, the dem- 
ocrats having refrained from making a 
nomination that year. The succeeding 
year Senator Herbert defeated his oppo- 
nent, John H. Elliott, by a plurality of 
four hundred votes, despite the vigorous 
efforts put forth by the liquor element to 
compass his defeat. From 1888 to 1894 
he practiced law in New Brunswick with 
great success, retaining meanwhile an 
active interest in politics. In 1894 Sen- 
ator Herbert gained a signal political 
triumph in his election over James H. 
VanCleef, then mayor of New Brunswick, 
to the state senate from Middlesex count}', 
by a plurality of twelve hundred and fort}'- 
one votes. At no time during the pre- 
vious fourteen years had a republican 
senator been elected in that county, and 
Mr. Herbert was the first republican 
elected to any count}' office in ten years. 
His term will expire January 1, 1898. 





^ 



Q. 



Biographical Sketches. 



219 



Senator Herbert is an able lawyer, a 
fluent, ready speaker and a forceful de- 
bater. His course while in the assembly 
won the approbation of his constituents, 
and in the senate he is gaining fresh lau- 
rels. In the lower house he served upon 
several important committees : Municipal 
corporations, revision of laws, and station- 
ery, and he is a member of the following 
committees of the senate: Revision of 
laws, railroads and canals, and joint com- 
mittee on state prison. He has made the 
science of political economy and its ap- 
plication to present conditions, an espe- 
cial study, and he is a fearless champion 
of rejaublican principles, of a broader, 
more liberal character than prevailed for 
many years subsequent to the civil war. 



JOHN HENRY DENISE, ex-president 
^ of Monmouth county board of agri- 
culture and fair association, is also one of 
the most scientific and successful farmers 
in the state. He is a son of John S. and 
Catherine Thompson Denise, and was 
born December 18, 183-3, near Freehold, 
in Freehold township, on the old home- 
stead farm. He received his education 
in the public schools of his native town- 
ship and Freehold Institute, a popular 
place of learning at that time. Upon 
leaving school he remained with his 
father on the farm until after marriage, 
when his father removed to Freehold, 
leaving him in charge of the farm. Am- 
bitious to increase his facilities for farm- 
ing, he purchased Job Emmous' farm, 
one of the handsomest farms in the state, 
and he now owns 180 acres of land of 
unsurpassed fertility and productiveness. 
He has taken a special pride in this, a 
garden spot of the state, and has spared no 
expense in making it signally attractive 



from an testhetic standpoint. His Imild- 
ings and improvements are of the most 
modern design and atyle of architecture, 
fitted up with all the latest conveniences 
and appurtenances so necessary for carry- 
ing out Mr. Denise's advanced ideas of 
progressive and intelligent farming. 

Mr. Denise has been a life-long student 
of the numerous branches of aoriculture 
and the strictly scientific principles of 
chemistry as applied to plant life and 
vegetable growth. In recognition of his 
extensive knowledge of the subject he 
has been called upon to perform a great 
deal of work for the experimental station 
of agriculture at New Brunswick ; also 
for the county board of agriculture, which 
is auxiliary to the state board. He has 
confined his experimental work largely 
toward the improvement of grass, fruit 
and potato-growing, with reference to in- 
creasing the product in quantity, and 
improving it in quality, at the least cost 
to the producer, and the improvement of 
fruit by the proper application of plant 
foods. His numerous articles to various 
agricultural journals have attracted wide 
attention, and called forth vigorous com- 
ment throughout the country. Mr. Denise 
has devoted his life most assiduously to 
farming, with the view of promoting 
more intelligent and scientific methods, 
and such as shall give the greatest 
profit and prosperity to the future of 
agriculture and the farmer. Truly pro- 
gressive, he would keep abreast with the 
wonderful advancement of the age, and 
knows no grander or purer vocation than 
the pursuit of farming. He served as 
president of the Monmouth county Ijoard 
of agriculture, and for a number of years 
was vice-president of the Monmouth 
County Fair Association. 

In 1893 Mr. Denise removed from the 



220 



Biographical Sketches. 



fiirm to Freehold, where he has since 
been interested in preparing, from long 
experience, balanced plant-food rations, 
and placing the same upon the market for 
agricultural purposes, but he still retains 
an interest in the conduct of the farm 
Avhich he owns. While thus active in 
the interests of agriculture, he has been 
prominently identified with various other 
business enterprises. He is president of 
the Freehold and Howell Turnpike Co.; 
a director in the Freehold and Coltsneck 
Turnpike Co.; and a director in Maple- 
wood Cemetery Co. He is a director in 
the Patrons' Mutual Fire Insurance Co., 
and master of Patrons of Husbandly, at 
Freehold, for twenty years, in which he 
has been specially active and useful. In 
political faith and suffrage he adheres to 
the principles of the Republican party 
and protection to the fanner and Ameri- 
can industries, the consumers of the 
farmer's product. He is a member of 
the township committee and the election 
board, and at one time Avas a member of 
the Freehold school board. Mr. Denise 
has been a zealous member of the Free- 
hold Baptist church for forty years, in 
which he has been conspicuously active 
and useful, having served as deacon and 
treasurer for twenty-five years ; and as 
president of the board of deacons. He has 
also been specially active as a member 
of the building committee for the erection 
of their handsome new church, dedicated 
in 1890, and rendered valuable and ma- 
terial service, making the very liberal 
contrilnition of $1000 to the subscrij^tion 
list, and subsequently advanced $400 
more. He was active on the committee 
in soliciting personallj^, and collected the 
greater portion of the entire amount of 
$22,000 rai.sed for this purpose. He was 
the prime mover in the initiative step to- 



ward building the church, and remained 
very closely identified with the prosecu- 
tion of the undertaking to a final conclu- 
sion, and deserves special praise and 
credit for his noble efforts in that behalf 
Mr. Denise has served in all the official 
stations of the church, and for several 
years was superintendent of the Sunday 
school. He has always been active and 
useful in church and Sunday-school work, 
and a liberal supporter of every w^orthy 
Christian, charitable, or philanthropic un- 
dertaking brought forward by either. 
His church affiliations afford him a chief 
pleasui'e and are among his leading en- 
joyments. 

On January 26, 1859, Mr. Denise mar- 
ried his estimable wife, Jane C, a daugh- 
ter of ex-sheriff Horatio Ely, whose sketch 
appears elsewhere in this volume. Their 
union has been blessed with five children : 
one daughter, Lillian, the only surviving 
child, is the wife of Clifford C. Snyder, of 
the firm of C. H. Snyder & Son, extensive 
flour and lumber merchants at Millhurst, 
this county. They reside with the sub- 
ject at Freehold. 



TTTILLIAM W. THOMPSON, a retired 
' '^ farmer and real-estate operator, 
residing at Freehold, New Jersey, is a 
native of Freehold township, and is a 
son of William I. and Margaret Thomp- 
son, and was born March 6, 1816. He 
comes from English ancestry, his pater- 
nal great-grandfather, Joseph Thompson, 
having come from England, and settled 
near Bergen's Mills, in Freehold town- 
ship, ]\Ionmouth county. New Jersey. 
He was a large owner of land, and car- 
ried on farming on an extensive scale. 
His grandfather, also named Joseph, was 
born on his father's farm, Dec. 11, 1743, 



Biographical Sketches. 



221 



and followed farming all his life. His 
children were : Thomas, Peter, John, El- 
lis, William I., Lewis, Cornelius, Charles, 
and Joseph. 

William I. Thompson, father of the 
subject of this sketch, was born March 
19, 1779, at Bergen's Mills. He received 
his early education in the district schools 
and by private tuition at home. He 
then became a farmer and a large land- 
owner, and achieved a prominent posi- 
tion as a successful agriculturist. He 
was an active christian of the Presbyte- 
rian faith, and an elder in its church. 
To his marriage were born five sons and 
two daughters : Katie, married to John 
S. Denise, now a fai'mer; Joseph C, a 
physician, and located at Toms River; 
Cornelia, married to David Buck Denise, 
deceased ; Sidney, deceased in 1895; one 
boy who died in infancy, and William W. 

William W. Thompson received his 
education in the district schools of Free- 
hold township, supplemented by a course 
of study at the Tennent school, near the 
old Tennent church, under Professor Cox. 
At the age of seventeen he graduated 
from that school, and remained with his 
father on the farm until he engaged in 
farming on his own account on the old 
parsonage farm, which constitutes a part 
of the Monmouth battlefield. Subse- 
quently he purchased the old Conover 
farm from Sheriff Conover, and cultivated 
it till 1866. Since then he has resided 
in Freehold, where he owns considerable 
real estate. In Dec, 1886, he sold the 
Conover farm, and has engaged in no 
active business since. 

Mr. Thompson has been an active and 
zealous member of the Dutch Reformed 
church since 1850, a deacon for two 
years, and now holds the office of elder. 
He has served as a town committee mem- 



ber of Freehold township over twenty 
years, and was chairman of that commit- 
tee. He takes no interest in politics, but 
is an ardent agriculturist, and was one 
of the original members of the Monmoutli 
County Agricultural Society, and for fif- 
teen years one of its directors. He has 
been closely identified with the Smith- 
ville turnpike company for thirty- three 
years, and has always been one of its 
directors ; was at one time its superin- 
tendent, and is now its president. 

Mr. Thoinpson married, Nov. 21, 1873, 
Jane Conover, who is a descendant of the 
early settlers of this section. They re- 
side in the beautiful mansion on East 
Main street, Freehold, which was erected 
by ex-Governor Bedle. To their mar- 
riage have been born two daughters : 
Sarah Roy, deceased, and Jennie, who is 
married to Oscar Robinson, a prominent 
business man of Freehold. 



TT7 INFIELD S. ANNESS, a prominent 
' ' feed and flour merchant of Wood- 
bridge, New Jersey, is a son of Chai'les 
and Adeline G. (Stagg) Anness, and was 
born in Stamford, Conn., Nov. 25, 1861. 
He is of English ancestry, his paternal 
great-grandfather, Samuel Anness, having 
been a decorator to his Majesty George 
the Fourth, and a lineal descendant of the 
celebrated Lord Lovell. His paternal 
grandfather, Samuel Anness, emigrated 
from England to the United States inl813, 
and first settled in Philadelphia. After- 
ward he traveled extensively through 
the southern states following his profes- 
sion, that of an engraver on steel and 
copper, dying at the early age of forty, 
at Philadelphia. To his marriage were 
born six children : Samuel, Frederick, 
William, Charles, Adelaide, and John. 



222 



Biographical Sketches. 



Charles Anness, father of the subject, 
was prohibited by circumstances from 
obtaining any education other than what 
he could obtain by desultory studies in 
winter evenings, for at the early age of 
seven he was compelled to earn his own 
living, and entered the employ of a pot- 
tery establishment at Jersey City. Here he 
succeeded in learning the trade of a potter, 
and by perseverance and energy was en- 
abled, in 1846, to establish himself in 
the fire-brick business in Stamford, Conn., 
on his own account. After seventeen 
years' residence in that city he removed 
to Boston, Mass., and there established a 
fire-brick manufactory. Later he built 
and owned the plant now owned and oc- 
cupied by the Staten Island Terra Cotta 
and Lumber Co., at Spa Spring. Resid- 
ing at Woodbridge, New Jersey, he was 
largely instrumental in the building of 
the Methodist Episcopal church there, of 
which he is a member. He was origi- 
nally a member of the old-line whig 
jDarty, but has been a staunch republican 
for many years. He is also a member of 
the masonic order. To his marriage 
were born nine children, as follows : 
Charles W., late of Aiken, South Caro- 
lina, and engaged in the business of man- 
ufacturing fire-bricks, now deceased ; 
Samuel L, deceased in 1884 ; Sarah Ade- 
line, married to J. Ross Valentine, and 
deceased in 1881 ; Dudley S., a graduate 
of Princeton College, and now residing in 
Brooklyn ; Isabella C, married to Dr. A. 
M. Haight, and residing at White Plains, 
N. Y. ; Frederick F., engaged in the 
drug business in New York city, and re- 
siding in Woodbridge, New Jersey ; Win- 
field S. ; Emily S., married to George H. 
Bancroft, who is connected with Fred- 
erick F. Anness in the drug busines, and 
residing in New York city ; and John E., 



who resides in Aiken, South Carolina, 
and engaged in business with his father. 
Winfield S. Anness first attended the 
common-schools of Perth Amboy. He 
then became a student in the High school 
of Woodbridge, from which he graduated 
in 1876. For two years thereafter he 
was in the employ of Burket & Pattison, 
in the grocery, dry-goods, boot and shoe 
business at Woodbridge. Relinquishing 
business for a time he pursued a course of 
study at the Bryant & Stratton Business 
College, at Newark, New Jei'sey, under 
Prof Coleman, and then engaged in the 
hardware and house- furnishing business 
at Jersey Citj^, under the firm name of his 
father. In August, 1885, this establish- 
ment was burned. In Oct., 1891, Mr. 
Anness leased the projDerty in Wood- 
bridge where he is now located, and en- 
tered into the wholesale and retail flour 
and feed business, with a limited capital, 
but by the exercise of energy and shrewd- 
ness he has been enabled to gradually in- 
crease his trade until at the present time 
he carries one of the largest stocks in that 
section. Mr. Anness is a republican and 
takes an active interest in politics. In 
1894 he was nominated for town com- 
mitteeman, but was defeated by a 
small majority. In March, 1895, he was 
again nominated for the same office 
against C. B. Smith, and was elected, 
although the township is strongly demo- 
cratic. Subsequently he was elected 
treasurer of the committee. He is an 
attendant of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, a director of the Woodbridge 
Athletic club, and a member of the Royal 
Arcanum. Mr. Anness has been twice 
married. His first marriage on Oct. 2, 
1884, was with Mary M. Valentine, 
daughter of Benjamin Valentine, Esq., of 
Woodbridge, and to their union was born 



Biographical Sketches. 



223 



one son, Harold Winfield. Mrs. Anness 
died Sept. 18, 1885. His second mar- 
riage, with Mary M. Martin, daughter 
of Moses Martin, of Staj)leton, Staten 
Island, formerly of Perth Amboy, New 
Jersey, occurred Jan. 14, 1891. Their 
marriage has been blessed with one 
daughter, Alvira W., born Oct. 13, 1895. 



ABEAM A. CORTELYOU, a prosper- 
ous coal, lumber, grain, and feed 
merchant, of Neshanic, New Jersey, and 
one of the best-known and influential 
citizens of that town, is a son of Abram 
and Martha (Stryker) Cortelyou, and 
was born Oct. 7, 1847, at Ten Mile Run, 
New Jersey. Both his parents died 
when he was but five years old, and he 
was thrown upon his own resoui'ces. He 
was educated at Cross Roads, at what is 
now known as the Hillsboro school, and 
subsequently at Eastman's Business Col- 
lege, Poughkeepsie, New York. He then 
engaged at farming in Hillsborough town- 
ship, near Frankfort, New Jersey, and 
was a successful tiller of the soil for five 
years. In 1875 he removed to Neshanic 
and laid the foundation of his present 
business. 

Mr. Cortelyou is an extensive dealer 
in lumber, grain, coal, lime, and feed, and 
also does a large business as a baler of 
hay and straw, his patronage extending 
to points throughout the county and for 
many miles around. He also owns and 
operates a large and fertile farm near 
Frankfort, which is stocked with one of 
the finest herds of Holstein Friesian cat- 
tle in this country. Mr. Cortelyou is a 
faithful member of the Reformed church 
of Neshanic, and has occupied the jDosi- 
tion of deacon and elder. In politics he 
is a republican, and although he has 



never occupied' public office his influence 
in local affairs is always considerable. 
He is a member of Neshanic Lodge, No. 
145, Knights of Pythias. On Nov. 3, 
1869, he was married to Miss Kate M. 
Staats, daughter of John R. Staats, a 
well-known farmer near Millstone, and 
they have four daughters : Bertha M., 
Lillian, Mary B., and Augusta S., the 
eldest of whom was married June 17, 
1896, to J. Bradford Opie, of Neshanic. 

Mr. Cortelyou is widely known as the 
most prominent citizen of Neshanic. He 
is loved and respected, and exercises an 
extensive influence over the hearts and 
minds of his fellow-citizens. He is ener- 
getic in his business, active and devoted 
in the work of his church, progressive in 
his ideas on the local affairs of Neshanic, 
and is justly proud of his self-acquired 
success in life. Owing to his early age 
when his parents died Mr. Cortelyou has 
retained but little knowledge of his 
ancestral record. 



TT'TAUD C. PERRINE, who is a promi- 
"^ ' nent retired general merchant of 
South Amboy, New Jersey, where he 
conducted a general store for over thirty 
years, has also been identified with many 
other lines of life, having at various 
times been a carpenter, a farmer, a clay 
miner and a brick manufacturer. He is 
a son of Peter E. and Lydia Ward Per- 
rine, and was born Nov. 14, 1824, near 
Hightstown, Mercer county. New Jersey. 
The name is of French origin. The sub- 
ject's paternal grandfather, Elijah Per- 
rine, was born and educated at Cranbury, 
Middlesex county, and was a prosperous 
carpenter throughout his life. He was 
an active whig in politics, and a rigid 
adherent of the Presbvterian church. 



224 



Biographical Sketches. 



His children were : Peter E., Henry, ! 
William, John, Nancy, wife of Aaron 
Tyndale, of Middlesex county ; Helen, 
wife of William Rue, of Middlesex 
county ; Marguerite, wife of Cornelius 
Suydam, of Middlesex county ; and Sallie, 
wife of Garret D. Snedeker, of Middle- 
sex county. He died early in 1800. 
The subject's grandmother died in 1853. 

Peter E. Perrine, the subject's father, 
was also born and educated at Cranbury, 
and was a carpenter and a successful con- 
tractor and builder, in addition to which 
he operated a fine farm near Hightstown. 
By his first wife, Anna Rue, daughter of 
John Rue, of Middlesex county, he had 
one son — Alfred; and by his second wife, 
Lydia Ward, daughter of On. Ward, of , 
Hightstown, the issue were : Ward C, j 
and Mary Elizabeth, wife of Abijah C. ! 
Mount, of Hunterdon county (deceased). 
Mr. Perrine, Sr., died in 1829 ; the sub- 
ject's mother died in 1849. 

Ward C. Peri'ine, subject of this sketch, 
received a common-school education at 
Hightstown. He then learned the car- 
penter trade at Philadelphia, and worked 
at that calling at Philadelphia and New 
York city for over five years. In 1847 
he engaged in a general mercantile busi- 
ness at Hightstown, and subsequently 
operated a grocery store at South Brook- 
lyn, N. y., for several years. In July, 
1852, he located at South Amboy, and 
established a grocery and general store, 
which he continued to operate success- 
fully for over thirty years, during which 
time he built up one of the most exten- 
sive trades in this vicinity. He became 
engaged in mining clay at South Amboy 
in 1871, and conducted a profitable 
traffic for fifteen years. During this time 
he also owned and operated a thriving 
farm and peach orchards at South Amboy 



and Sayresville. For some years Mr. 
Perrine was also a successful brick manu- 
facturer at Sayresville. All these various 
interests prospered under his manage- 
ment, and when he retired from active 
business in 1890 he had amassed a con- 
sideral:)le fortune. He now resides in a 
handsome house at No. 118 Broadway, 
South Amboy, and is the owner of a 
large amount of real estate in and around 
South Amboy. He is a democrat in 
politics, and was actively identified with 
public affairs in his younger daj^s, having 
been a member of the borough council of 
South Amboy for six years, and a mem- 
ber of the board of chosen freeholders 
for twelve years, serving three different 
terms. He was on the bridge committee 
of the latter board when the county 
bought the Albany street bridge at New 
Brunswick, and also was a member of 
the jail committee. 

Mr. Perrine possesses shrewd business 
tact and a high degree of energy and 
enterprise, which qualities induced suc- 
cess in the multiplicity of interests with 
which he was connected during his active 
career. He is one of South Amboy's 
best known and most respected citizens. 



XOHN HOPPING VAN MATER, M. D., 
^ a popular physician and surgeon at 
Atlantic Highlands, Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, is a son of Garrett and Har- 
riet Hopping Van Mater, and was born 
May 27, 1858. The Old World abiding 
place of the Van Mater family was Hol- 
land, from which country the original 
emigrants of that name came to America 
about the year 1760, and settled in New 
Jersey- and Long Island. There were 
three brothers of the Van Mater Aimily 
who came from Holland ; two settled in 
New Jersey, and one on Long Island. 



Biographical Sketches. 



225 



Garrett Van Mater, father, resided for 
a great rnan}^ years in Hoboken, where 
he became a leading citizen and an active 
politician. He was a democrat until the 
year 1865, when he changed his political 
views, and became a rejDublican He was 
a member of the board of aldermen of 
Hoboken, and at one time was a candi- 
date for the mayoralty of that city, but 
withdrew before election. In 186.3 he 
retired to a farm at Chapel Hill, Mon- 
mouth county, where he resided until his 
death, which occurred in 1879. He was 
a member of the masonic fraternity at 
Hoboken. Mr. Van Mater was married 
about 1851, to Harriet Hopping, a daugh- 
ter of Captain John HopjDing, of Middle- 
town township, Monmouth county. They 
had two children : Dr. John Hopping 
and Mary, wife of Dr. Wm. F. Patterson. 

Dr. J. H. Van Mater passed the first 
five years of his life in Hoboken, and 
then, with his father, removed to Chapel 
Hill, where he attended the district 
schools, and acquired his rudimentarj' 
education. After a course of instruction 
at the Freehold Institute, he entered the 
University of Pennsylvania in Philadel- 
phia, from which he was graduated with 
the medical class of 1880. He studied 
with Drs. James H. Patterson and Ed- 
ward A. Taylor, of Middletown. He 
subsequently took a post-graduate course 
in medicine, after which he located as a 
general practitioner at Hoboken, where 
he remained one year. In 1882 he re- 
moved to Atlantic Highlands as the 
pioneer physician of that town, and he 
soon acquired and maintained a reputa- 
tion as an able phy.rician and skillful 
surgeon. Dr. Van Mater is a republican 
in politics, and is one of the ex-commis- 
sioners of Atlantic Highlands. He is ex- 
president and ex-treasurer of the town- 



ship committee, and president of the 
board of health, and was one of the pro- 
motei's of the exceedingly efiicient water 
and sewage systems of that town. He 
is a member of the Monmouth County 
Medical Society. The doctor is an en- 
rolled memberof Monmouth troop. Second 
troop of New Jersey, and he holds the 
position of assistant surgeon, with the 
rank of second lieutenant, in the New 
Jersey National Guard. He has always 
been deeply interested in educational 
matters, and in everything tending to 
the speedy development of his town. 
He is an active member of the Casino 
company, an institution devoted to all 
manner of legitimate amusements, and he 
is also a member of sundry other organi- 
zations: Free and Accepted Masons at 
Red Bank; Mystic Brotherhood Lodge, 
No. 21, Knights of Pythias, of which he 
is a past chancellor; and the Pavonia 
Yacht Club, of which he is an ex-fleet 
surgeon. 

Dr. Van Mater was twice married. 
His first wife, Martha T. Field, a daugh- 
ter of the late Thomas Field, of Middle- 
town, whom he married Jan. 19, 1881, 
deceased in 1884, after bearing him two 
children : Belle and Harry. He was 
subsequently, in 1896, married to Annie 
Delaney, a daughter of Mrs. B. Delaney, 
of New York city. 

The doctor is chief of the fire departs 
ment of his town, and is deeply inter- 
ested in obtaining a high order of efiiciency 
in that organization. Aside from his pro- 
fession, in which he has been very suc- 
cessful, he has made considerable money 
in real-estate speculations in and about 
Atlantic Highlands. Political positions 
have been offered him by township and 
county, but he has retired from political 
life to his practice solely. 



226 



Biographical Sketches. 



WILLIAM E. WARN, a popular and 
successful pharmacist of Keyport, ' 
Monuiouth county, New Jersey, and the 
present treasurer of the board of com- 
missioners of that town, is a son of 
Nicholas E. and Lydia E. (Lambertson) 
Warn, and was born Feb. 5, 1853, at 
South Amboy, New Jersey. The Warn 
family is of German extraction, and was I 
founded in this country at an early date, 
probably in pre-Revolutionary times. 

James M. Warn, the paternal grand- 
father of the subject, was born in New 
York state, received a common school 
education, and subsequently became a 
farmer near South Amboy. He after- 
wards removed to Jacksonville, New 
Jersey, where he also cultivated the soil 
and for a time conducted the Jackson 
hotel. He was a democrat and became | 
an active party worker. For this he was \ 
rewarded by being twice elected collector 
of Amboy township, which has since 
been subdivided into a number of town- 
ships. He left the following five chil- 
dren : James M., Nicholas E., Mrs. 
Margaret Langstaff, Mrs. Sarah Scher- 
merhorn, and Mrs. Mary Tice, late of 
Jamesville, Wis., deceased. 

Nicholas E. Warn, father of the sub- 
ject, was born April 19, 1825, on a farm 
near South Amboy. He also received a 
common-school education and afterwards 
learned the trade of a mason, which vo- 
cation he pursued successfully until 1878, 
when he retired and went to live with 
his son, William E. Warn, of Keyport. 
Politically he was a democrat, and fra- 
ternally a member of the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows of South Amboy. 
He died June 6, 1893, and is survived 
by his widow, who resides with the sul>- 
ject at Keyport. They had two children, 
a son and a daughter, William E. and 



Margaret, the consort of Elgin E. Kline, 
of Keyport. 

William E. Warn acquired a good ele- 
mentary education in the scliools of Key- 
port, and subsequently learned the drug 
business under the tutelage of Dr. W. 
Hodgson, of Keyport. He then passed a 
highly creditable examination before the 
New Jersey state board of pharmacy, and 
on June 12, 1872, opened a drug store in 
Keyport on his own account. He has 
been in the drug business ever since, and 
connnands a large and profitable trade. 
Mr. Warn has been a director in the 
People's National Bank of Keyport ever 
since its organization, in 1889. He is a 
democrat in politics, has been a member 
of the board of commissioners of Keypoi't 
for the past five years, and is the present 
treasurer of that body. He is connected 
with all the orders representing the dif- 
ferent branches of Odd Fellowship in 
Keyport. He is a member of Freling- 
huysen Council, No. 68, Jr. 0. U. A. M. ; 
Council No. 1456 Royal Arcanum, and, 
apropos of his business, is a member of 
the American and the New Jersey Phar- 
maceutical Associations. Mr. Warn was 
married Jan. 18, 1888, to Mary Crocher- 
son, a daughter of John C. Crocherson, of 
Keyport. He cherishes the warmest feel- 
ings of regard for the people of Keyport, 
his foster home, and he is much gratified 
with the reception they gave him at first, 
and with the generous support they have 
accorded him ever since As a business 
man Mr. Warn is wide-awake and pro- 
gressive, and keeps himself abreast of 
the wonderful advancement of his pro- 
fession. Careful, painstakings and con- 
scientious in all his business relations, 
affable and congenial socially, and fiiith- 
ful to all the demands of good citizenship, 
he is widel}' known and justly popular. 




Tr^^^Ty^i^^r--^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



229 



GEORGE H. DEINZER, the leading 
butcher of New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, was born in said city Sept. 30, 
1868. His father was John G. Deinzer, 
and his mother Elizabeth B. Heller, both 
being of German descent. Mr. Deinzer, 
Sr., settled near Hazleton, Pa., forty 
years ago, and engaged in the lumber 
business, coming to New Brunswick, how- 
ever, in 1866 to enter the butchering 
business as an employee of his brother, 
George Deinzer. For twenty years he 
remained with this brother in the store 
on Neilson street; but in 1886 he estab- 
lished a similar business on Dennis street, 
of which he was the sole proprietor, and 
in which he enjoyed a most successful 
career up to the time of his decease, 
which occurred in Feb., 1893. In poli- 
tics he was a democrat, although he took 
no active participation in political affairs. 
He enjoyed in an eminent degree the 
confidence of his fellow-citizens, being an 
active worker in the St. John's Roman 
Catholic church, and chairman of its 
board of trustees. He was also a mem- 
ber of the Catholic Union of St. John's 
parish. Two children survive him : 
Susan, now Mrs. Martin Alberts, and 
George H., whose maternal ancestors 
were among the very earliest settlers of 
Bucks county, in the state of Pennsyl- 
vania. 

George H. Deinzer was educated at the 
German parochial school. New Bruns- 
wick, and at the age of seventeen was 
apprenticed to learn the butchering busi- 
ness with his father, and in 1886 such 
was his industry and aptitude for busi- 
ness ajffairs that he soon became the 
manager of the concern, and finally, in 
1892, succeeded to the entire business of 
his father. He carries on an extensive 
butchering business, having a slaughter 



house on Mile Run brook, and handles 
western beef in large quantities as well 
as produce. His business requires three 
delivery wagons and the services of a 
corps of eight employees. He is regarded 
as one of the leading business men of the 
city, is a member of the Democratic 
party, and although not a politician, is 
an active worker for his party. His . 
social activities and prominence can be 
understood when it is known that he is 
one of the charter members and treasurer 
of Elks Lodge, No. 324, of New Bruns- 
wick ; a member of the Catholic club, of 
the Aurora Singing society, and of the 
Washington Social club, of which he has 
been treasurer for four years. 

Mr. Deinzer is a lover of horse flesh 
and owns a fine team of trotting horses, 
of which he is justly proud. 



TTTILLIAM M. VAN NUIS, a promi- 
' * nent wholesale dealer and impor- 
ter of wines and liquors, in New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, and the descendant of 
an ancient and well-known family of 
East Jersey, is a son of Lyle and Sarah 
Mundy Van Nuis, and was born April 
20, 1854, in New Brunswick. His earl- 
iest education was obtained in the local 
public schools, after which he attended 
boarding school for a short time and took 
a course in a business college at Newark. 
His first business position was in the 
Ninth National Bank, of New York city, 
where he remained for three years. In 
1875 he went into the Produce Bank, in 
the same city, became receiving teller for 
four years and paying teller for about 
four years. He removed to New Bruns- 
wick, in 1884, with his father-in-law, 
George E. Strong, and took charge of the 
tatter's wine and liquor business. The 
following year he bought out the entire 



230 



BioGRAPHiCAi. Sketches. 



business, although it continued under the 
firm name of Strong & Van Nuis until 
July, 1891, when Mr. Strong's name was 
dropped. Mr. Van Nuis is a well-known 
and popular man. In political matters 
he is a democrat. He is connected with 
the various building and loan associations, 
and has aided materiall}^ in developing 
those useful organizations. He is a mem- 
ber of the Order of Elks, and of the 
Raritan Boat Club. He was married on 
June 14, 1882, to Miss Emma A. Strong, 
daughter of George E. Strong, and they 
have three children : William M., Jr., 
Irene Elizabeth, and Leon Lyle. 

The family is of German origin. John 
Van Nuis, the paternal gx-andfather of ', 
subject, was a carriage-builder by trade, 
a prominent republican of his day, and a 
member of the First Reformed church. 
His children were: Lyle, James, Robert, 
John, and Catherine, wife of John Van 
Cleef. Lyle Van Nuis, subject's father, 
was a native of New Brunswick. He 
received a common-school education, and 
then learned his father's trade — carriage 
building. This he followed all his life 
with the exception of a number of years 
when he was engaged in the manufacture 
of oil-cloths and car-linings. He was a 
democrat and leading politician, and was 
elected by his party as mayor of New 
Brunswick, serving three terms. He 
was vice-president and one of the origi- 
nators of the New Brunswick Savings 
Bank, and one of the officers of the New 
Brunswick Mutual Fire Insurance Co. 
He attended the Second Reformed church. 
His wife was Miss Sarah B. Mundy, who 
bore him six children: John R., Row- 
land M., George M., William M., Henry 
R., and Jennie M. Mr. Van Nuis, Sr., 
died on April 14, 1883; his wife still sur- 
vives him. 



TOHN MANEY, a leading fisherman 
^ and a representative citizen of North 
Long Branch, New Jersej^, is a son of 
Jerry Maney, and was born June 15, 
1838, at Cross Head, county Cork, in the 
south of Ireland. He has little, if any, 
knowledge of his ancestors, as he left his 
home at the age of ten years and six 
months, with no education woi'th men- 
tioning, and became a sailor boy, remain- 
ing before the mast for many years. 

He engaged upon an English vessel 
sailing to the Mediterranean and Black 
Seas, detailed to secure transports for 
service in the pending war with Russia, 
and he remained in those and other east- 
ern waters until 1851, when he came to 
Gloucester, Mass. Later, he shipped at 
Boston on a merchantman, and during 
six years covered at intervals Bombay, 
India, on the Arabian Sea; Madras, in 
the same country, on the Bay of Ben- 
gal, and various other seaports of both 
continents. After six years thus spent, 
young Maney shipped on a barque sailing 
between Boston and Duke's Island, state 
of Maine, engaged in transporting from 
the latter place the stone used in the 
erection of the present U. S. Treasury 
Building at Washington city. When the 
civil war broke out^ he enlisted in the 
United States navy and served two years 
and four months. He was detailed to 
Captain Dupont's gun-boat, of Admiral 
Dupont's flagship Wabash, and was en- 
gaged in action off Port Royal and at 
other places. His boat, when not engaged 
in battle, was actively engaged in patrol- 
ling the coast from Cape Hatteras, North 
Carolina, to St. Mar3''s River, Florida. 
He was honorably dischai'ged from the 
service, and during all the years that 
have uitervened he has never applied for 
a pension, holding it a sacred duty, by 



Biographical Sketches. 



231 



virtue of free citizenship of a free country, 
to pi'otect that country without reward. 
Mr. Maney settled at Galilee in 1864, 
where, during the subsequent fourteen 
years, he made his living as a fisherman. 
In 1878 he entered into business for him- 
self as a retail dealer in fish, conducting 
since that time a highly profitable trade 
and accumulating considerable real estate. 
He is engaged in no other enterprises 
than the business named, but i'fe interested 
as a shareholder in some of the banks 
and building associations of Long Branch. 
In politics Mr. Maney, as he himself ex- 
presses it, is nailed to no political party, 
but yields his vote to the candidate im- 
bued with the spirit of public enterprise 
and progress, and possessed of the virtues 
of honesty and capability, while the prin- 
cipal articles of his political creed are 
good roads and good schools. In religion 
he is a Roman Catholic, and as liberal in 
christian sentiment, and as much op- 
posed to dogmatism in that as he is in 
party affiliation. He is of such stuff" as 
constitute the bone and sinew of a thriv- 
ing town, and is held in high repute as 
an excellent citizen. Mr. Maney was 
married Nov. 30, 1863, to Aima O'JSfeill, 
and they are the parents of three chil- 
dren : John A., born May 19, 1865 ; 
Mary, born May 24, 1868 ; and Robert, 
born June 25, 1870. 



T^R. H. B. VAN DORN, a successful 
-^-^ dentist at Long Branch, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, with residence and 
also an office at Red Bank, in the same 
county, is a son of Garrett and Elizabeth 
Van Dorn, and was born in April, 1853, 
in the latter town. The family is of 
Holland Dutch origin, and the first one 
of the name to settle in this countrv was 



Cornelius Van Dorn (or Van Doom), in 
1642. He was followed by Christian 
and Abraham Van Dorn, brothers, who 
came about 1650, and located in Middle- 
sex county. Afterwards, in 1698, Jacob 
Van Dorn settled in New Jersey, near 
the Brick church, Marlborough, and, like 
his predecessors, engaged in farming. It 
is from Jacob the subject traces his de- 
scent. 

Albert Van Dorn, the paternal grand- 
parent, was born near Freehold, Mon- 
mouth county, where, after obtaining a 
common-school education, he engaged in 
the occupation of a farmer, which he con- 
tinued throughout his life. In religion 
he was a member of the Dutch Reformed 
church, at Marlborough. He was mar- 
ried ty Sarah Conover, or Kowenhover, 
and at his death left five children, all 
sons : Jacob, William, Peter, David, and 
Garrett. 

Garrett Van Dorn, father, was also a 
native of Monmouth county, near Free- 
hold, where he was born in 1809. He 
received a common-school education, 
learned the trade of wheelwiight and fol- 
lowed that vocation for several years, 
after which he acquired a knowledge of 
carpentering, and as a carpenter and 
builder at Red Bank he lived out his 
days, a successful and highly respected 
man. In political faith he was a demo- 
crat, and in his earlier days was an Odd 
Fellow, in affiliation with the lodge of 
that order at Red Bank. He was mar- 
ried to Elizabeth White, and his death 
occurred in Jan., 1881. His widow and 
one child. Dr. H. B., the subject of this 
sketch, are yet surviving. A daughter, 
who married Alvin M. Cady, died in 
1869. Another child, Albert, died in in- 
fancy. 

Dr. H. B. Van Dorn attended the pub- 



232 



Biographical Sketches. 



lie schools at Eed Bank until lie was fif- 
teen years of age, and subsequently j 
entered the store of Thomas Morford & 
Co., at Red Bank, for a short time as 
clerk. Having chosen dentistry as his 
profession in life he devoted the necessary 
time to acquiring a knowledge of the 
dental art, and eventually established a 
practice in his native town. He after- 
ward opened a dental office in Long 
Branch, in connection with his home of- 
fice, and has remained since that time in 
the successful practice of dentistry, suc- 
cessful from both a professional and a 
financial standpoint. Politically Dr. 
Van Dorn is a democrat, and he is identi- 
fied in I'eligious matters with the Protest- 
ant Episcopal church. He is a member 
of the New Jersey State Dental Society, 
the Central Dental Association, and of 
other organizations connected with the 
profession, and also of Shrewsbury Lodge, i 
No. 40, A. 0. U. W., at Red Bank. ! 

Dr. Van Dorn was married to Harriett 
R. Goff", a daughter of Walter S. Goff", 
who resided at Red Bank, on Oct. 18, 
1882, and to their union have been born 
four children, three of whom survive, viz.: 
Horace Bishop, Walter Melvida and 
Elizabeth Bateman. 



TDROF. RICHARD CASE, the efficient 
-»- principal of the High school and 
superintendent of the public schools at 
Red Bank, was born May 31, 1854, at 
Canton, Conn., and is the son of John 
and Tirzah (Horsford) Case. He is a 
lineal descendant ot John Case, who emi- 
grated from England about the year 
1630, and settled in the town of Wind- 
sor, Conn. A grandson of John Case, 
surnamed Richard, was born in Windsor, 
but subsequently went to Canton, Conn., 



where many of his direct descendants 
have since lived. The paternal great 
grandfather of Professor Case, surnamed 
Uriah, was a farmer and a man of prop- 
erty and influence in his community. 
Dui'ing the war of the Revolution he 
fought on the side of the colonies, and at 
its close held the rank of captain. He 
was the father of thirteen children. 
Holcan Case, the paternal grandfather 
of the subject, received his education in 
the public schools of Canton, and then 
embraced the avocation of a farmer, 
which he successfully followed during 
his life. He was a man of fine charac- 
ter, an active christian, and a member of 
the Baptist church. He was married to 
Jane Case, and their children were : 
John ; Lorinda, married to Henry Bar- 
ber; Zilpha, married to Nelson Barber; 
Silvia, married to Irving Case ; Jane, 
married to Cyrus Harvey ; Uriah, and 
Susannah. 

John Case, father, after graduating 
from the public schools of Canton, se- 
lected fanning as his occupation, and fol- 
lowed it successfully during his life. He 
was a member of the democratic party, a 
justice of the peace for a number of years 
and a township commissioner of Canton 
township. He was an active christian 
and a life-long member of the Baptist 
church. He married Tirzah Horsford, 
and to their union were born eleven 
children : Richard, James, Uriah, Lo- 
rinda, Samuel, deceased ; Oliver, Jane, 
Lewis, Willis, Olaf, and John. The 
father and mother of the subject are 
still living. 

Prof. Richard Case received all the 
educational advantages which the public 
schools of his native town could give 
him, and then entered a preparatory 
school at Suffield, Conn., where he re- 



Biographical Sketches. 



235 



mained three years. He then became a 
student at Brown University, and gradu- 
ated therefrom in June, 1878. He chose 
the profession of teaching as his life's 
calling, and iirst settled at Suffield, 
Conn., where he remained for one year 
teaching school. In 1879 he removed to 
Red Bank, New Jersey, and was elected 
superintendent of the public schools, 
which have under his efficient and ener- 
getic administration been much improved 
in their general discipline and the char- 
acter of work done. 

The number of schools have increased 
from seven to sixteen, more efficient 
teachers have been employed, the course 
extended, and a higher standard of 
scholarship established, until now the 
citizens of Red Bank justly pride them- 
selves in possessing one of the best pub- 
lic-school systems in the state, the credit 
for which must be largely given to the 
personal effijrts of Professor Case. He is 
industrious, energetic, and progressive, 
keeping fully abreast with the educa- 
tional advancement of the times and 
diligently studies the wants and im- 
provement of the schools over which he 
presides. Politically Professor Case is 
an independent, and is not allied to any 
party, and thus, not being bound by any 
part}- trammels, he reserves the right of a 
liberal suffrage, voting for men and prin- 
ciples rather than the party man. He is 
a zealous member of the Baptist church 
at Red Bank and assistant superintend- 
ent of its Sunday school. He is a mem- 
ber of the Masonic Order, Lodge No. 21, 
of Red Bank, of the Royal Arcanum, No. 
984, and of the Royal Society of Good 
Fellows, of Providence, Rhode Island. 
He was united in marriage to Mary 
M. Wood, daughter of John Wood, Esq., 
of Providence, R. I., Dec. 27, 1880, and 

13 



their union has been blessed with two 
sons, John and Richard. 



TTALSTED H. WAINRIGHT, a promi- 
-*— *- nent member of the Monmouth 
county bar, and a well-known citizen of 
Manasquan, is a son of Halsted and Eliza- 
beth Bedle Wainright, and was born at 
Farmingdale, Howell township. The 
name is of English origin, and the Wain- 
right family settled at Shrewsbury, in 
East Jersey, as early as 1668. In the 
revolutionary war, members of this family 
were active in the j)atriot cause. Hal- 
sted Wainright, great grandfather of the 
subject was one of the earliest settlers in 
the vicinity of Farmingdale, and was a 
prosperous farmer there. His children 
were, John Wesley, a mechanic at Squan- 
kum ; Ephraim B., proprietor of a hotel 
and store at Freehold, and at one time jus- 
tice of the peace there ; Josiah, of Manas- 
quan ; Halsted H., grandfather of the 
subject ; Catherine, wife of Dr. Patterson, 
of Middletown, and Rebecca, wife of 
Benjamin Lafetra, of Lower Squankum. 
Halsted H. Wainright, the subject's 
grandfather, spent his boyhood on the 
paternal farm near Farmingdale, and 
afterwards became an influential mer- 
chant at that town, owning the " Wain- 
right Store " on Main street, now the 
property of the subject's father. He was 
an active democrat in politics, was col- 
lector for Howell township, and justice 
of the peace at Farmingdale for a num- 
ber of years. He was also school trustee 
for several terms, and was postmaster at 
Farmingdale from August 26, 1826, un- 
til 1850. He was also one of the vice- 
presidents of " The Monmouth Associa- 
tion " of 1846, of which Thomas G. 
Haight was president, and Hon. A. C. 



236 



Biographical Sketches. 



McLean, secretary. In addition to his 
.store he owned a fine sixty-acre farm in 
Howell township, and was noted as a 
successful agriculturist. He was married 
to Catherine Little, daughter of John 
and Mercy Little, of Shrewsbury, by 
whom he had two surviving children, 
Halsted, the subject's father, and Benja- 
min F., a M'ell-known coal and lime dealer 
at Farraingdale. He died Jan. 2, 1849, 
aged fifty-one years. 

Halsted Wainright, third, the subject's 
father, who is at present the leading un- 
dertaker in Farmingdale, and a promi- 
nent citizen of that town, was born Jan. 
7, 1831, at Farmingdale, where he re- 
ceived a district-school education. Dur- 
ing his earlj^ life he helped his father on 
the farm and in the store, and for three 
years after his father's death was a clerk 
in a store. He then built his present 
place and conducted a general mercantile 
business for six or seven years. In 1858 
he founded his present undertaking busi- 
ness, and has remained the leading under- 
taker in that part of the county. He is 
a staunch republican in politics and has 
been twice postmaster of Farmingdale ; 
under President Pierce in 1856-57, and 
under President Harrison 1889-92. He 
was school trustee for a number of years, 
and township collector in 1857. He has 
been a devout member of the Methodist I 
Episcopal church of Farmingdale since 

1852, having served as trustee and stew- 
ard, and was superintendent of the Sun- 
day-school for many years. He is a 
member and past officer of Castle, No. 57, 
K. G. E., and is local consul of the League 
of American Wheelmen. On Oct. 20, 

1853, he was married to Miss Elizabeth 
Bedle, daughter of James and Margaret 
Bedle, of Middletown, and a cousin of 
the late ex-Gov. Joseph D. Bedle. She 



died in Dec, 1895, having born him three 
children: Halsted H., the subject; Dr. 
James B., of Manasquan, and Benjamin 
F., deceased in infancy. Mr. Wainright, 
Sr., is one of the most popular and re- 
spected citizens of Farmingdale, and his 
success in both business and politics has 
made him well-known everywhere in the 
county. 

Halsted H. Wainright, subject of this 
sketch, was educated in the district schools 
of Howell township and subsequently at 
Freehold Institute. He read law in the 
office of W. H. Vreden burgh, at Free- 
hold, was admitted to the bar in Nov.. 
1878, and immediately located at Man- 
asquan in practice. In 1861 he was 
admitted as counsellor. He has a steady, 
growing and lucrative practice, and pays 
special attention to chancery suits and 
supreme court cases. Mr. Wainright is 
a conscientious counsellor, careful in the 
preparation of his cases and an eloquent 
and convincing pleader before a jury 
and I'arely fails to get its decisions. Mr. 
Wainright is a director of the Central 
National Bank of Freehold, and of the 
Manasquan Building and Loan Associa- 
tion. He has been maj-or of the borough, 
school trustee, and is solicitor for the 
boroughs of Manasquan and Belmar. 
He is a staunch republican in politics ; 
is a strong supporter of the Methodist 
Episcopal church of Manasquan ; is a 
member of the board of trustees, and was 
at one time superintendent of the Sun- 
day-school. He is a member and past 
officer of Excelsior Lodge, I. 0. 0. F. ; 
a member and national representative of 
the Jr. 0. U. A. M. ; also of the K. G. E. 

Mr. Wainwright married Miss Isabella 
Nesbit, daughter of William H. Nesbit, 
a well-known miller of New Market, 
Middlesex county, by whom he has had 



Biographical Sketches. 



237 



seven children : Arthur, Clara, Walter, 
Frances, Lucmda, and Halsted, the latter 
deceased when six years of age. 



CHARLES A. BENNETT, ex-judge of 
the common pleas court of Mon- 
mouth county, a senior member of the 
bar and a leading citizen of Freehold, is 
a son of William H. and Jane Leffertson 
Bennett, and was born June 4, 1820, in 
Freehold, Monmouth county, New Jer- 
sey. Judge Bennett is of a mixed ex- 
traction — English and Dutch. Sir John 
Bennett, an English knight and a resident 
of London, who emigrated to this country 
and settled at Middletown, New Jersey, 
about 1714, was probably the paternal 
ancestor on this side of the Atlantic. 
The common maternal ancestor of the 
Leffertson family of Kings county, N. Y., 
and Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
from which descends the mother of the 
subject, was Leffert Pieterse Van Hough- 
wort, or Hauwert. He emigrated to 
America in 1660, settled at Flatbush, 
Long Island, and married Abigail, daugh- 
ter of Auke Janse Van Nuys. He died 
Dec. 8, 1704, and was the father of thir- 
teen children. His second son, Auke 
Leffertson, born April 4, 1678, settled in 
Monmouth county, and was married to 
Maria Ten Eyck. One of their sons, 
Leffertson Leffert, born in 1711, married 
Jeanette, daughter of Art. Williamson, 
who bore him five children. The young- 
est son, Oakey Leffertson, born Nov. 8, 
1747, was married Aug. 21, 1774, to 
Sarah Schanck, a daughter of Garret and 
Nelly Voorhees Schanck, by whom he 
had nine children. One of these chil- 
dren, Jane Leffertson, born April 16, 
1782, married William H. Bennett, the 
subject's father, Dec. 29, 1800, and with 
him settled at Freehold, New Jersey. 



The paternal grandfather, Hendrick 
B. Bennett, was born Oct. 15, 1752, and 
lived at a place known at that time as 
Sandy New, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, now Leedsville. He subsequently 
removed to Freehold, where he died 
July 2 8, 1 8 3 3 . His wife, Elizabeth Now- 
lan, whom he married Oct. 16, 1774, bore 
him four children : William H., born 
Aug. 1, 1775, died April 20, 1848 ; John, 
born March 27, 1778, died Nov. 30, 1812; 
Elizabeth, born March 11, 1780, died 
Aug. 10, 1849; and Nancy, born March 
24, 1783, died Jan., 1784. 

William H. Bennett, father of Chas. 
A. Bennett, was born Aug. 1, 1775, at 
Sandy New, Monmouth county. He was 
a farmer by occupation, and was the 
owner of all that portion of the present 
town of Freehold, reaching from the 
court-house on East Main street to Mur- 
phy's tan-yard, a tract equal to one-quar- 
ter of the dimensions of the town. He 
also owned land to the extent of one 
hundred and fifty acres, on the south 
side of Main street, extending for a half 
mile from the "Monmouth House" in 
the direction of Colt's Neck. He sold a 
large number of building lots from these 
holdings during his lifetime, from which, 
and other real estate speculations, he 
amassed considerable wealth. After his 
death his heirs marketed many of these 
town lots, but there is a goodly number 
yet remaining in the family. In religious 
matters Mr. Bennett was a presbyterian, 
and a member of that church in Free- 
hold until his death, which occurred 
April 20, 1848, in his seventy-third year. 
Politically he was a democrat, and at 
one time was appointed deputy sheriff to 
fill a vacancy caused by the death of the 
sheriff. At the outbreak of the war 
with Great Britain in 1812, he was 



238 



Biographical Sketches. 



drafted for service in the American army, 
but upon furnishing a substitute lie was 
exempted. His wife, Jane Leftertson 
Bennett, deceased May 28, 1866. Tliej' 
were the parents of eleven children : 
Sarah, born Oct. 11, 1801, married Wal- 
ter W. Hart, died Oct. 24, 1881 ; John, 
born Oct. 15, 1803, a farmer, died March l 
24, 1864; Elizabeth Ann, born Jan. 22, '• 
1806, died Aug. 10, 1813; William, born 
Aug. 13, 1808, died Aug. 1, 1832 ; Henry, 
born March 17, 1811, died Aug. 26,1 
1892 ; Garret S., horn May 1.3, 1818, ■ 
died Sept. 27, 1860 ; Gilbert, born June ; 
18, 1815, died Oct. 28, 1843 ; Eliza Ann, 
born April 17, 1818, married John L. 
Doty, of New York city, and died Nov. 13, 
1886 ; Judge Charles A., the subject, , 
born June 4, 18iO; David V., born 
April 22, 1822, died Sept. 1, 1842; and 
Hudson, born May 1, 1825, now living 
at Freehold. 

Judge Charles A. Bennett, sixth son 
of William H., received his elementary 
education in the Freehold public schools. 
He entered Princeton College in 1841 
and was graduated with the degree of 
A. B. in 1844. He subsequently also 
received from that college the degree of 
A. M. He studied law with Judge Ben- 
nington F. Randolph at Freehold, from 
whose office he was admitted to the bar 
as an attorney in July, 1847, and was a - 
counselor in Jul}', 1851. Opening an 
office in the town of his birth, he settled 
down to an active practice of the law, in 
which he won distinction, besides holding 
many important public positions. In 
1850, he removed from his own law office 
to that of the surrogate, where, for a 
period of eighteen years, he was the act- 
ing surrogate of Monmouth county. ! 

In April, 1882, Mr. Bennett was ap- ■ 
pointed judge of the court of common 



pleas of Monmouth county by Governor 
Ludlow, and he occupied the bench for 
ten years. At the expiration of his term 
he resumed and still continues his prac- 
tice as a lawyer. From March, 1848, to 
March, 1874, Judge Bennett held the 
office of clerk of Freehold township, and 
he was the secretary of the Freehold 
Mutual Loan Association from 1853 to 
1869. In 1859 he was elected secretary 
of the Monmouth County Mutual Fire 
Insurance Co., which position he still 
holds. He was treasurer of the Mon- 
mouth County Agricultural Association 
from 1866 to 18S3, and he has been sec- 
retary and treasurer of the Freehold 
Gaslight Co. ever since its organization in 
1860. He is also secretary and treasurer 
of the Freehold Electric Light Co., and 
an incorporator and a director of the 
First National Bank of Freehold. 

Judge Bennett is a staunch and true 
democrat, and has always evinced an 
active interest in the policy of his party. 
He is a member of Olive Branch Lodge, 
No. 16, F. and A. M., in which he has 
occupied a number of official stations. 
He was married, Sept. 28, 1854. to Elea- 
nor B. Clayton, a daughter of Elias C. 
and Louisa ]M. Clayton, the former a 
merchant for many j'ears, and a farmer 
of Millstone, New Jersey. They had 
three children : Charles A., Jr., an attor- 
nej^-at-law, general manager of the gas 
and electric light companies, and assistant 
seci'etary of the Monmouth County Mu- 
tual Fire Insurance Co., married to Clara 
Bell James, and deceased July 24, 1895; 
Marj' Louisa, born Jan. 4, 1858, died 
Nov. 17, 1883 ; and Frederick D., a prom- 
inent merchant in Freehold, an active 
and zealous member of Olive Branch 
Lodge, No. 16, F. and A. M., and a 
thirtv-second degree Mason. 



Biographical Sketches. 



239 



/CHARLES A. BENNETT, JR., deceased, 
^ was a son of Judge Charles A. and 
Eleanor B. Clayton Bennett, and was 
• born May 8, 1856, at Freehold, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey. He obtained 
his earlier education at the Freehold In- 
stitute, and finished his course there in 
1873. In the same year he entered 
Pi'inceton College. After leaving Prince- 
ton he took a complete course at the 
Eastman Business College at Poughkeep- 
sie, N. Y. He then returned to Free- 
hold, where he was engaged in assisting 
his father in the management of the 
Freehold Gaslight Co., and at the same 
time reading law in his father's office. In 
1878 he was admitted to the bar as an 
attorney, and to practice as a counselor 
in 1881. He continued in the service of 
the gas company of which he ultimately 
became the general manager. He subse- 
quently was elected general manager of 
the Freehold Electric Light Co. These 
two corporations engrossed his time and 
received his care and attention up to the 
time of his death. He was a thorough 
and competent business man, as well as a 
lawyer, and the affairs of these companies 
prospered under his able direction. He 
was also for several years prior to his 
death the assistant secretary of the Mon- 
mouth County Mutual Fire Insurance 
Co. of New Jersey. 

Mr. Bennett was a member of Olive 
Branch Lodge, No. 16, Free and Accepted 
Masons, and a member of the Good Will 
Hook and Ladder Co., of the Freehold 
fire department. He was also a mem- 
ber of the American Gaslight Association 
and of the Lotos Club, located on Fifth 
avenue, New York city. In the masonic 
work and ritual he was a proficient, was 
greatly interested and passed through 
several chairs in his lodge at Freehold. 



Mr. Bennett was married September 26, 
1877, to Clara Bell James, of New York, 
] by whom he was sui'vived. He deceased 
July 24, 1895, at the age of thirty-nine 
years, and thus removed in the prime of 
I his manhood and when his life was at its 
I brightest and best, it is not only the mem- 
bership of his family that suffer a sense 
of irreparable loss, but the citizens of 
Freehold feel they have lost a man who 
bade fair to become prominent in her 
history. 

/CHARLES R. SNYDER, a member of 
^^ the bar of Monmouth county, was 
born March 19, 1869, at New Monmouth, 
I New Jersey. His parents were Eutsen 
S. Snyder and Elizabeth Roberts. His 
paternal ancestors were of German de- 
scent, and his maternal ancestors, Welsh. 
His maternal great-grandfather. Rev. 
Thomas Roberts, was a noted baptist 
divine (locally known as Father Roberts), 
and a missionary to the Cherokee nation, 
who also served as pastor in Monmouth 
county, and was chaplain in the Con- 
tinental army. George Snyder, the pa- 
ternal grandfather, lived at Rhinebeck, 
N. Y., where he was an extensive farmer 
and large land-owner. He, too, was a 
baptist and a whig. Rutsen S. Snyder 
(father), passed the earlier years of his 
life at Rhinebeck, his place of birth. 
He obtained his education fii"st at the 
Rhinebeck Academy, and later graduated 
from Brown Academy. He removed, in 
1858, to Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
where he spent four years at teaching. 
He married Elizabeth Roberts, daughter 
of Deacon Thomas Roberts, and settled 
down as a farmer at New Monmouth. 
He was successful in his new pursuit, 
but soon added other brandies, for which 
his early study and profession had quali- 



240 



Biographical Sketches. 



fied him. These were land-surveying, j 
and the real-estate and insurance busi- 
ness. These interests, added to an ap- 
pointment as commissioner of deeds, soon 
so engaged his time that he was com- 
pelled to relinquish his farming pursuits, 
although not parting with the farm itself 
until 1895. He led an active, ener- 
getic life, and soon amassed considerable 
wealth. He was one of the pioneers of 
Atlantic Highlands, and the original sur- 
veyor. He was clerk of the New Mon- 
mouth Baptist church, and for over 
twenty years a trustee and district clerk 
of the Chanceville district. Mr. Snyder . 
removed with his famil}^ to Atlantic | 
Highlands in Jan., 1892. He was one 
of the organizers of the Port Monmouth 
Steamboat Co., in which he is still a di- 
rector. He made the preliminary sur- 
vey of the Freehold and Atlantic High- 
lands railroad, the Atlantic Highlands 
branch, from Keyport to the Highlands, 
for Supt. Justus E. Ralph. He also 
assisted in the organization of the new 
Central Baptist church at Atlantic High- 
lands, of which he is a deacon, and is 
especially active in church, Sundaj^ school 
and educational work. He has been 
trustee of the public schools at Atlantic 
Highlands, an incorporator and director 
of the National bank there, and was for 
nine years assessor of Middletown town- 
ship, being the first republican elected to 
that office there. He is president of the 
E. B. Cutten Electrical and Manufac- 
turing Co., makers of telephones and 
electrical devices, and a director in the 
Atlantic Highlands Saving Fund and 
Building and Loan Association. Mr. 
Snyder was married Jan. 15, 1862, to 
Elizabeth Roberts, of New INIonmouth. 
Their children, three in number, are all 
living. They are : Miss Evelyn R., 



Charles R., the subject of this skotch, and 
Mary Louise. 

Charles Roberts Snyder was reared on 
his father's farm at New Monmouth, 
attended the district school, and gradua- 
ted from the Keyport graded school, after 
which he registered with Marcus B. Tay- 
lor, at Keyport, as a law student, with 
whom he remained two years, and then 
entered the office of ex-Senator John S. 
Applegate, of Applegate & Hope, at Red 
Bank. He was admitted as an attorney 
in June, 1892, and appointed a master 
in chancery and notar}- public. In June, 
1896, he was admitted as a counsellor. 
Immediately after his admission as an 
attorney, he opened an office at Atlantic 
Highlands, where he has carried on quite 
an extensive and constantly growing 
practice. From 1890 to 1892 Mr. Sny- 
der was receiver for the Monmouth Press 
newspaper and publishing plant, and, 
during the two years he was in charge, 
brought the business back to a profitaljle 
footing, and nearly doubled the circula- 
tion of the paper. This assisted in giving 
him an immediate footing in his profes- 
sion when he began the practice of law. 
He is solicitor for several building and 
loan associations, and secretary of The 
Atlantic Highlands Saving Fund and 
Building and Loan Association, one of 
the most profitable associations in the 
state, and secretary and solicitor of the 
E. B. Cutten Electrical and Manufactur- 
ing Co. Mr. Sn^'der is a baptist, and 
clerk of the Central Baptist church of 
Atlantic Highlands. In politics, he is a 
firm believer in the principles of the Re- 
publican party, and has served as a dele- 
gate to several county and congres.sional 
conventions. In the 1896 presidential 
campaign he was president of the Repub- 
lican Club of Atlantic Highlands, Nave- 




(Jy « SC> . ^CZL^C^^-iJe^ 



BioGRAPHicAr, Sketches. 



243 



sink and Leonardville. He is a member 
and past regent of Monmouth Council, 
No. 1378, Royal Arcanum, and past coun- 
cillor of Portland Council, No. 105, Jr. 
0. U. A. M., both of which councils he 
helped to organize. Mr. Snyder was 
married June 6, 1894, to Earline D. Spa- 
der, a daughter of the late Capt. J. V. 
Spader, of company I, Twenty-ninth regi- 
ment. New Jersey volunteers, and grand- 
daughter of ex-Judge William Spader, of 
Matawan. Two children have blessed 
their marriage, a son, Earle Spader Sny- 
der, born June 11, 1895, aud a daughter, 
Elizabeth Roberts, born August 26, 1896. 



OE. DAVIS, the leading contractor 
• and builder of Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, who by straightforward and 
correct business methods has thoroughly 
established himself in the confidence of 
the people of his county, is a man of un- 
questioned force of mind and probity of 
character. He was born at Navesink, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey, Nov. 26, 
1850. His ancestors were of English 
origin, and John Davis, his paternal 
grandfather, was an extensive land-owner 
and leading citizen of Monmouth county, 
this state. He married and reared a 
large family, one of whom, 0. S. Davis, 
was the father of the subject of this 
sketch. He was born at Navesink in 
1811, and after obtaining a fair common- 
school education engaged in contracting 
and building, which he followed for many 
years, up to the time he retired from all 
active business pursuits. He also was 
engaged in manufacturing sash, doors, 
blinds, etc., at Red Bank. He died at 
Navesink in 1880, having been an active 
and successful business man, and a useful 
and respected citizen. He was a Jack- 



sonian democrat until the breaking out 
of the civil war in 1861, when he be- 
came a republican and a loyal and earnest 
supporter of the Union. He was identi- 
fied with the Baptist church, in which 
organization he was an earnest worker, a 
devout and zealous christian. He mar- 
ried Mary, a daughter of Robert and 
Charlotta Morris, on May 16, 1833, and 
they were the pai'ents of eight children, 
two boys and six girls. 0. E., the next 
to the 3^oungest, is the subject of this 
biography. 

0. E. Davis and Lizzie Baker, a daugh- 
ter of Rev. J. J. Baker, were united in 
marriage March 19, 1879, and to their 
union have been born six children : Percj', 
Grace, Herbert, Ethel, Eddie, and Lizzie. 
Mr. Davis learned the planing-mill busi- 
ness with Davis & Cooper, the firm of 
which his father was a member, and 
after thoroughly learning the business, 
he was made foreman of the concern, 
continuing in that position until 1876. 
Soon afterwards he engaged in the pla- 
ning-mill business on his own account at 
Red Bank. He continued until 1886, 
doing an extensive business, but owing 
to declining health he was forced to re- 
linquish that business and seek another 
less confining avocation. This he found 
in contracting and building, which his 
previous business experience enabled 
him to readily comprehend. He makes 
his headquarters at Red Bank, and does 
an extensive business there, and in New 
York and Connecticut. He is regarded 
as a safe and conservative business man, 
and is now serving as a director of the 
Navesink Bank of Red Bank. He is a 
republican, and takes an intelligent in- 
terest in local, state, and national poli- 
tics. He was elected mayor of Red Bank 
in 1895, and has served a number of 



24-t 



Biographical .Sketches. 



years on the board of education of that 
city. He is a warm friend of education, 
is puljlic-spirited, and talces a connnend- 
able interest iu everything which tends to 
the improvement of his city and count}'. 



GEORGE GUNDRUM, a successful 
dealer in meats and produce, and 
a prominent secret-society man at South 
Amboy, Middlesex county, New Jersey, 
is a son of George and Bernedine Brum- 
mer Gundrum, and was born Nov. 8. 
1859, in New York city. He is of Ger- 
man parentage, his father having come to 
this country at the age of four years. 

Mr. Gundrum attended the public 
schools in New York city until he 
reached the age of thirteen years. He 
s^^ent the succeeding year at the Glen- 
wood Institute, Matawan, New Jersey, 
and then engaged himself with John 
Gundrum, his uncle, in New York, to 
learn the business of the abattoir. After 
acquiring a thorough knowledge of the 
slaughter and dressing of cattle he came 
to South Ainboy, and became an assist- 
ant to Christ. Straub, a well-known 
butcher, with* whom he remained six 
years. At the end of this engagement, 
which proved satisfactory alike to em- 
ployer and employee, Mr. Gundrum 
opened a meat and provision business of 
his own, at No. 148 Broadway, in South 
Amboy, where he still remains. He com- 
mands a large trade with the best people 
of the town, and is enjoying a high de- 
gree of prosperity. He, with character- 
istic enterprise, runs three delivery 
wagons, from which he sujiplies his pa- 
trons with high-grade meats, prepared by 
his own hand, and also with fresh fruits 
and vegetables iu their season. Mr. 
Gundrum is as active in politics as he is 



in business, and he has devoted a great 
deal of his time to hard and effective 
work for the Democratic party. He is a 
member of Christ Episcopal church of 
South Amboy, and in its welfare takes a 
deep interest. He holds membership in 
a number of secret societies : General 
Morgan Lodge, No. 96, I. 0. 0. F., of 
which he is past district deputy grand 
master ; Monmouth Encampment. No. 
51, of Keyport, New Jersey ; Canton At- 
lantic, No. 7, Asbury Park, New Jersey; 
Seneca Tribe, No. 2-3, 1. 0. R. M., South 
Amboy, New Jersey; Sterling Castle, 
No. 59, K. of G. E., South Amboy, New 
Jersej^ and Lady Grace Lodge, No. 27, 
Rebecca Degree, South Amboy, New 
Jersey. Socially he is a member of the 
Crescent Club, of South Amboy, and in 
municipal affairs he occupied the post of 
first foreman of Independent Engine and 
Hose Company, No. 1, of South Amboy, 
and is a life member of the New Jersey 
State Firemen's Association. He w^as 
married Nov. 15, 1887, to Julia Mc- 
Adams, a daughter of JohnKildnn, of 
Trenton, New Jersey. They have two 
children : Etta and George, both attend- 
ing school at South Amboy. 

George Gundrum, Sr., was educated in 
the public schools of New York city. 
After learning the trade of a butcher he 
engaged in the meat business on his own 
account on Broome street, in the latter 
city, and for twenty-four years, in fact 
until his death, he enjoyed a large and 
constantly increasing trade. He was a 
good business man and a very successful 
one. He furnished einploj'inent to thir- 
teen men, with whom he always main- 
tained the kindliest relations. He was 
an active democrat and a devoted 
Lutheran. He was a life-long mason 
and an odd fellow, and deeply interested 



Biographical Sketches. 



245 



in and a practical observer of their re- 
spective rituals. He took pleasure in 
military matters, and at one time was en- 
rolled among the Sixty-ninth New York 
Hussars. He died March 28, 1866, and 
is survived by his widow, who is residing 
with their son, George, at South Amboy. 



HHYLEE CONOVER MORFORD, pro- 
-*- prietor of one of the finest general 
stores in the state of New Jersey, and a 
director of the Long Branch Banking Co. 
for the past twenty years, is one of the 
most successful and substantial business 
men of Long Branch, New Jersey. He 
is the son of John A. and Sarah Ann 
Morford, and was born at Long Branch 
Feb. 16, 1840. The Morford family trace 
their ancestry back to a reputable English 
line, and were originally of the quaker 
persuasion. 

The paternal grandfather, George Mor- 
ford, was born in Shrewsbury, New Jer- 
sey, and by the time he had reached 
young manhood had prepared himself 
for the profession of teaching, which en- 
gaged his attention for some time. Later 
he learned the carpenter trade, and made 
that the occupation of his life. His ideas 
upon political questions and government 
led him to cast his vote for the support 
of the Democratic party, while in reli- 
gious matters he practiced the creed of 
the quakers. He married Maria Wardell, 
and to them were born eight children : 
Thomas, Joseph W., Jarrett, John A., 
Julia, wife of Corlies Parker ; Jane, mar- 
ried to Robert W. Parker; Caroline (Mrs. 
John Githens), and Charlotte (Mrs. 
George Klots). Of the above children 
all are dead, except Julia. Grandfather 
and grandmother Morford both died and 
are buried at Shrewsbury, New Jersey. 



John A. Morfoi'd, the father, was born 
at Red Bank, New Jersey, Nov. 5, 1810. 
After leaving the public schools of his 
town he went to New York city, where 
he clerked one year in the store of Mc- 
Coon & Sherman, grocers. In 1835 he 
came to Long Branch and formed a part- 
nership with his cousin, Mr. Harry War- 
dell, for the purpose of doing a general 
store business. This firm traded under 
the style of Wardell & Morford, and their 
custom soon became large and the enter- 
prise very successful. Mr. Morford was 
an aggressive democrat and a leader in 
his party. His hard work and personal 
merits brought him to the front, and his 
fellow-citizens honored him with a seat 
in the state senate of New Jersey, from 
1848 to 1851. He also held many local 
ofl&ces, and was postmaster at Long 
Branch from 1853 to 1862. Active in 
business affairs, energetic and aggressive 
in politics, Mr. Morford, Sr., carried the 
same live spirit into his share of the 
work of the Reformed church, to which 
he belonged, and in which he held many 
offices. Fraternally he was a member oi 
the Order of Masonry, Washington Lodge 
No. 9, of Long Branch. On Jan. 6, 1836, 
he married Sarah Ann Conover, daughter 
of Tylee and Maria Conover, of Middle- 
town, New Jersey, and this union resulted 
in the birth of four children : Maria 
(Mrs. Abraham T. Vandeveer); Tylee 
C. ; Elizabeth (Mrs. Jos. E. Hance) ; and 
Georgian a, deceased. John A. Morford 
died at Long Branch, May 4, 1882, but 
his wife still resides there. 

Tylee Conover Morford attended the 
public schools of Long Branch until he 
became thirteen years of age, when he 
entered his father's store, and applied 
himself closely to a study of the business. 
Here he laid the foundation of and ac- 



246 



Biographical Sketches. 



quired that training and practical knowl- . 
edge that have made him so eminently 
successful in his long business career. 
Under the present management the Ijusi- 
ness started and developed by the old j 
firm of Wiirdell & Morford has grown, 
and it is with pleasure that one views 
to-day, in this enterprise, one of the most \ 
complete and superior establishments of 
the kind in the state. In connection i 
with his mercantile interests he is a | 
potent factor in other Long Branch en- 
terprises. He was cashier of the Long 
Branch Banking Co. for nine years, and 
has been a director of the same for the 
past twenty years. In politics Mr. Mor- 
ford fights in the ranks of the Democratic 
party, and is an active member of the 
Reformed church, having filled the ofiices 
of deacon, etc. In his fraternal relations 
he was secretary of Washington Lodge, ' 
No. 9, F. and A. M., for ten years, and ; 
belongs to the Crescent Lodge, No. 2764, j 
Knights of Honor, of Long Branch. Feb. i 
20, 1867, he married Annie E. Harring- 
ton, daughter of John and Lucy Har- | 
rington, of Cumberland, R. I. This mar- 
riage has been blessed by the birth of 
three children : Lucy, wife of Charles 
Blakeley, cashier of the American Bank 
of Beatrice, Neb.; Sarah, and Harold. 



TOHN J. lANSON, a well-known loco- 
^ motive engineer in the employ of 
the Central Railroad company of New 
Jersey, was born Nov. 6, 1852, at Plain- 
field, New Jersey, and is a son of Charles 
and Emiline lanson. His paternal grand- 
fatlier, Miles lanson, was a respected and 
successful dealer in live-stock during his 
life, a democrat, and possessed of con- 
siderable influence in his section. He 
was born at Dover, New Jersey. He left 
one son, Charles. 



Charles lanson, the father of subject, 
was born at Dover, New Jersej', and re- 
ceived a common-school education, after 
which he learned the trade of a carpen- 
ter. He steadily followed this occupa- 
tion until the 3^ear 1885, when he retired 
from active life. He and his wife now 
live in the comfort of a well-earned rest 
at Plainfield, New Jersey. He belongs 
to the Democratic party, and is an ac- 
tive member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. To his married life were born 
seven children : Robert, deceased ; George 
W., John J., Edwena, Charles, deceased ; 
Clinton, and Frank. 

John J. lanson, subject, was educated 
at the public schools of Plainfield, New 
Jerse}^, and at the age of sixteen obtained 
a position of brakeman on the Central 
railroad. This occupation he followed 
for some months, when he entered a 
machine shop to learn the trade of a 
machinist. He relinquished this occu- 
pation after a brief experience, however, 
and in 1873 obtained a position as loco- 
motive engineer in the emploj' of the 
Central railroad of New Jerse}-. Three 
years later he changed to the employ of 
the Manhattan Elevated Railroad Co., 
of New York, and remained with that 
company until 1879, when he re-entered 
the service of the Central railroad of 
New Jersey, and removed to Somerville. 
With this company he has since re- 
mained, doing his duty carefully and 
conscientiously and gaining the reputa- 
tion of being one of the airiest and safest 
engineers in its emplo_y. Mr. lanson is 
a democrat, and as far as his duties will 
permit takes an active pai't in politics, 
especially in respect to local issues. He 
is a member of the Brotherhood of Loco- 
motive Engineers, and an attendant of 
the First Reformed church at Somerville. 



Biographical Sketches. 



247 



He married Sarah Kelley, daughter of | 
Richard Kelley, Esq., and their mari-iage | 
has been blessed with three children 
Mayse, deceased ; Harry, and Ruth. 



T^ANIEL HENRY HILLS, a successful 
-*-^ pharmacist and druggist at Spring 
Lake, Monmouth county, New Jersey, is 
a son of George E. and Mercy M. (Fox) 
Hills, and was born Feb. 23, 1865, at 
Foxburg, Forest county. Pa. 

The paternal grandfather, Daniel Hills, 
was a native of Massachusetts, emigrated 
to western New York and settled at Pape 
Hollow, where he became the owner and 
operator of stone quarries. This busi- 
ness was carried on extensively and very 
projStably by him until his death. The 
maternal grandfather was Charles J. Fox, 
founder of the town of Foxburg, Pa. He 
owned large tracts of timber and coal 
lands, also oil territory, and was a pioneer 
business man in that section of the coun- 
try. His possessions as they developed, 
and his business as it grew, made him 
ultimately one of the wealthiest and most 
prominent citizens of his town and county. 
He was largely interested also in western 
mining operations. His death occurred 
in 1871, and his remains are resting in 
the cemetery at Jamestown, N. Y. 

George E. Hills, the father, was born 
in Massachusetts, where he received his 
education in the public schools. He re- 
moved to western New York, in his 
early manhood, where he engaged in 
stone quarrying with his father and 
Daniel M., his brother. He remained at 
this business for many years, and, at a 
late period in life, became a farmer near 
Jamestown, N. Y., and a dealer in, and 
shipper of, western-bred horses to eastern 
markets. He has now retired from active 



life, and is living in very comfortable 
circumstances at Jamestown, N. Y. His 
marriage to Mercy M. Fox resulted in 
the birth of two children : Daniel H., 
subject, and Jeanette. 

Daniel H. Hills obtained his prelimin- 
ary education in the public schools at 
Jamestown, N. Y. From 1882 to 1887 
he was employed in a drug store, in the 
same town, and later he went to Omaha, 
Neb., remaining about a year. In the 
autumn of 1889 he entered the College 
of Pharmacy, Philadelphia, from which 
he was graduated with the degree of Ph. 
G., in the class of 1890. He located in 
that year at Spring Lake, New Jersey, 
where he became prescription clerk at C. 
A. Bye's drug store, and also at Lake- 
wood, Ocean county. New Jersey. In 
1895 Mr. Hills purchased the pharmacy 
of Chas. A. Bye at Spring Lake, estab- 
lished in 1891, which he is now conduct- 
ing most successfully. He established 
an innovation on one of the customs of 
his predecessors in the drug business at 
Spring Lake by keeping his store open 
during all the year, and is the only one 
in the borough doing so. He also man- 
ages the financial affairs of the borough 
by serving as its collector and treasurer, 
a position to which he was elected in 
March, 1895. He is a member of the 
fire department of Spring Lake, and is 
connected with the Methodist Episcopal 
church of the same town. Mr. Hills was 
married Sept. 13, 1894, to Alma Kusche, 
a daughter of William and Harriet 
Kusche, of New York city. Mr. Kusche 
was one of the " Argonauts of '49," at- 
tracted to California, in that year, by the 
gold fever, then epidemic in this country. 
Later he became a contractor and builder, 
but now lives retired in New York 
city. 



248 



Biographical Sketches. 



AT. APPLEGATE, M. D., the present 
• efficient collector of Monmouth 
county and a prominent and success- 
ful ph\'sician of Englishtown, in said 
count}^, is a son of James and Dena Dej 
xlpplegate, and was born Sept. 17, 1846, 
in Middlesex county, near the Monmouth 
count}' line. He was educated under a 
private tutor at home, and also in the 
common schools of New Brunswick. He 
entered Princeton College in the class of 
1868, but left in his sophomore year. He 
then began the stud}' of medicine in the 
office of Dr. T. J. Thomison, at Penns- 
ville, Monmouth countj", and subse- 
quently took a three years' course in the 
medical department of the University of 
Pennsylvania, from which he graduated 
in 1869. He located in practice for a 
year at Hamilton Square, and removed 
to Englishtown in the spi'ing of 1871, 
where he has followed his profession suc- 
cessfully ever since. He has a large and 
lucrative practice not only in English- 
town, but throughout the surrounding 
country. He is a member of the Mon- 
mouth county and the State Medical so- 
cieties. He is a staunch democrat in 
politics, but is not an office-seeker, al- 
though he is at present collector of Mon- 
mouth county, to which position he was 
appointed by the board of freeholders in 
the spring of 1894. He is usuallj' elected 
a delegate from his county to state and 
congressional conventions, and is at pre- 
sent mayor of Englishtown. 

Dr. Applegate is a trustee of the Eng- 
lishtown Presbyterian church, and one of 
its staunchest supporters. He is a mem- 
ber of Tennent Lodge, Jr. 0. U. A. M. ; 
a past chancellor and charter member of 
Columbia Lodge, Knights of Pythias, of 
Englishtown, and of Olive Branch Lodge, 
F. and A. M., of Freehold. On Oct. 22, 



1873, he Avas married to Miss Jennie C. 
Wilson, daughter of Robert K. Wilson, a 
prosperous fai'iner and land-ow^ner of 
Monmouth count}^, by whom he had two 
children : James Thompson, a student at 
Pennington Seminary, and Kenneth 
Pomeroy. Dr. Applegate is a skillful 
practitioner and is wideh' known and re- 
spected. He is popular in public life, 
and as a private citizen he commands 
the confidence and respect of the com- 
munity at large. 

Stephen Applegate, the paternal grand- 
father, was a prominent merchant and 
highly successful business man in New 
Brunswick, where he died in 1861. His 
children were : John, James, Maria, Eliz- 
abeth, and Catherine. 

James Ajjplegate, the father, was 
born and educated at New Brunswick, 
and in his early life was an extensive 
merchant at New York cit}^, where his 
store and stock were entirely destroyed 
in the great fire of 1836. He then 
moved to his father-in-law's farm, known 
as the " Dey Homestead," on the line be- 
tween Monmouth and Middlesex coun- 
ties, Avhere he became well-known and 
prosperous, not onlj^ as a farmer but also 
as a conveyancer, trustee of estates, etc. 
He was a democrat in politics, and was so 
popular personal^ that he was elected 
sheriff of Monmouth county, serving 
from 1859 to 1862, inclusive. He was 
also a member of the state assembly and 
held various township offices during his 
life-time. His wife was Miss Dena Dey, 
daughter of John Dey, a wealthy farmer 
of Monmouth county, b}' whom he had 
three children : A. T., the subject ; Ame- 
lia, wife of J. E. Van Doren, of New 
York, and Hannah, wife of John J. Ely, 
of Freehold, New Jersey. The father 
died in 1874, and the mother in 1893. 




6i y af./m^^^^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



251 



JAMES STEEN, Esq., of Eatontown, 
New Jersey, is a man whose aggres- 
sive public spirit, energy, and business 
ability have placed him second to none 
of his fellow-citizens. He is the son of 
John and Kose A. MacCrosson Steen, and 
was born at Trenton, New Jersej^, March 
27, 1852. His paternal ancestors are of 
that sturdy Scotch race, whose intelli- 
gence and strict adherence to principle, 
integrity, and perseverence have gained 
for them place, honor, and competence 
both at home and in the land of their 
adoption. David Steen, the paternal 
great-grandfather, was born in Scotland, 
as was also James Steen, the grandfather, 
who was a man of liberal education. He 
followed school-teaching as a profession 
all his life. To him and his wife were 
born twelve children, one of whom was 
John, the father of the subject of this 
sketch. 

John Steen (father) was born at Cole- 
raine, Ireland, in 1828, and received a 
common-school education. He came to 
America in 1849, and located at Trenton, 
New Jersey, where he engaged in farm- 
ing with the Rev. Eli Cooley for a period 
of four years. Leaving his family at 
Trenton, he went to Springfield, Illinois, 
where he again engaged in farming. One 
year later, in 1854, he returned to Tren- 
ton, and, in 1855, became associated with 
the Belvidere and Delaware railroad, 
with which he remained until his death, 
due to a fatal disaster on the said road. 
Mr. Steen' s father was a democrat in 
politics, took an active part in the public 
affairs of his town, and served as a mem- 
ber of the town council for three years, 
having been elected from the seventh 
ward. In 1850 Mr. Steen was united in 
marriage to Miss R. A. MacCrosson, 
daughter of James MacCrosson, and be- 



came the father of six children, three of 
whom died in inftmcy: James, the sub- 
ject; William, also deceased; and John. 
Mother Steen is still living at Trenton, 
New Jersey, while the father of the sul> 
ject passed away Dec. 13, 1894, at the 
age of sixty-six. 

James Steen received his early educa- 
tion at the academy at Trenton, and 
graduated from Princeton University 
with the class of 1871. He then taught 
school, and in connection with the same, 
read law with Charles E. Green, Esq., 
of Trenton ; was admitted to the bar at 
the November term, 1874, and began the 
practice of his profession at Eatontown, 
New Jersey, where he has since con- 
tinued, and with much success. From 
the first Mr. Steen has made a study of 
the future welfare of Eatontown, and 
how to further its progress and material 
development. In 1877 he started the 
Eatontown Advertiser, a paper used as an 
instrument for the advancement of the 
town. In 1881 he organized the Eaton- 
town fire department, and served as chief 
of the same for seven years. When the 
town was incorporated as a borough in 
Oct., 1883, he was honored by an election 
to the first mayorship. In 1881, through 
his influence and energy, a hat factory 
was established in the town, giving addi- 
tional business enterprise and opening 
opportunities for capital and employ- 
ment. In 1883 the Eatontown Building 
and Improvement Co. was organized, in 
which project he has been a leading spirit, 
and is still president of that corporation. 
For two years Mr. Steen was also register 
of the board of proprietors of East Jer- 
sey, with ofiices at Perth Amboy, a cor- 
poration which furnishes the records of 
all land titles in Eastern New Jersey. 

Another important enterprise to be 



252 



Biographical Sketches. 



credited to his public services was the or- 
ganization of the Eatontown Law and 
Order Society in 1885, which in the first 
year of its existence brought to justice 
fort\-seven gamblers, all of Avhom were 
convicted ; among them tlie notorious 
Peter Delacy, the pool-room keeper of 
New York city. And likewise in 1889, 
the race-track magnates, of Elizabeth 
and Monmouth Park, were arrested and 
brought to justice, both in Union and 
Monmouth counties, and although others 
have assumed the credit, the fact is that 
all the arrests were made under the di- 
rection of Mr. Steen; and the evidence 
secured by him which resulted in the 
final overthrow of race-track gambling 
in New Jersey. 

In 1886 he was also associated in the 
prosecution of the Mingo Jack lynchers. 
To Mr. Steen belongs also the credit for 
securing the right of way for the con- 
struction of the Long Branch, Red Bank, 
and Asbury Park Electric Eailroad, a 
line opening up much territorj- to the 
facilities of cheaper and more convenient 
means of rapid tran.sit. He is an ener- 
getic and substantial member of the 
Presbyterian church of Monmouth, and 
has been a trustee for seven jears. He 
is a member of the historical committee 
of the synod of Ncav Jersey, and has 
twice been a member of the general as- 
semby of that church. Notwithstanding 
the innumerable calls and duties conse- 
quent on a busy life, Mr. Steen has found 
time to indulge his taste along a literary 
line. He is a devoted student of history, 
and ranks as an authorit\' on the history 
of his own state. On June 6, 1895, he 
delivered an able address before the Boyd 
Tennent Pi-esbj'terian pilgrimage, at Ten- 
nent, N. J., upon the Scotch, Irish, and 
Huguenot settlers of Monmouth county. 



New Jelse3^ In his political aftiiiations 
he is a democrat; has always been an 
active and influential member of his 
party, and for a time served as attoniey 
for the district of Eatontown township. 
Dec. 1, 1875, he married Merriam Sesv 
Ijrooke Holmes, daughter of Abraham 
and Grace Holmes, of Shrewsbury, New 
Jersey. Mr. Steen possesses, in an emi- 
nent degree, a combination of mental 
qualities that assure success in any line 
of business in which he may embark. 
He has achieved an enviable success, not 
only as a professional and business man, 
but what is more, a warm place in the 
hearts of his fellow-citizens for whose in- 
terests, as well as his own, he has devoted 
the best years and efforts of his life. 



THE MISSES AXABLE, well known in 
the educational circles of Philadel- 
phia in connection with Miss Anable's 
school in that city, are now proprietresses 
of the well-known and pt)pular school at 
New Brunswick, which bears their name. 
These highlj- cultured and estimable 
ladies trace their lineage to blue puritan 
blood and the pilgrim fathers. Their 
American antecedents have figured prom- 
inently in New England liistor\- for al- 
most three centuries. The original pro- 
genitor, Anthony Anable, who was born 
in the county of Kent, England, about 
1622, came to this country with his wife 
Ann, and Jane, a daughter born in Eng- 
land, in the old ship "Ann," in 162-3, and 
landed at Plymouth only three years after 
the founding of the colony. During his 
fifty-one years' residence in the colony he 
became conspicuously identified with the 
public and religious life of the colony, 
during its struggle for exisistence. For 
thirteen jears successively he represented 



Biographical Sketches. 



253 



his native township, Barnstable, in the 
general coui't. In 1634 he removed from 
Plymouth to the town of Scituate, where 
he became a pioneer settler and was 
prominent in effecting an organization of 
the colony under a system of government. 
He filled numerous important public 
trusts, being a member of the general 
court for two years, and in 1636 was ap- 
pointed with Cudworth to assist in revis- 
ing the laws of the colony. On January 
8, 1635, he helped to organize the first 
church of the colony. In 1639, in com- 
pany with his minister, Rev. John Loth- 
rop, he removed to Barnstable, Mass., 
where he resided to the end of his life. 
While residing there he was a member of 
the general court for twelve years, from 
1646 to 1658. In 1648, while a member of 
the court, he was appointed a member of 
a committee to provide plans for defence 
against the encroachments of the Indians, 
and in 1655 was appointed to propose 
laws for securing redress for present 
wrongs and secure immunity from future 
attacks. In 1656 he represented his 
township on a committee, consisting of 
one member from each township in the 
colony, who were appointed to devise 
means for defraying the expenses of the 
colony. His farm was situated in Barn- 
stable, and remained in the family until 
1861, when it was sold. He married for 
his second wife Ann Clark, March 3, 1645. 
Samuel Anable, a son of Anthony 
Anable, was born at Barnstable, Mass., 
January 22, 1646, where he resided up 
to his death in 1678. In 1676-77 he 
served as a member of the general court 
of the colony. On June 1, 1667, he mar- 
ried Mehitable Allyne, a daughter of 
Thomas and Winifred Allyne, of the same 
place. One of his sons was John Anable, 
who was born at that place July 19, 1673, 



married June 16, 1692, Experience Merks 
Taylor, daughter of Edward and Mary 
Merks Taylor. One of his sons was Cor- 
nelius Anable, who was born at Barn- 
stable, November, 1704, and married in 
1728. John Anable, who was a son of 
Cornelius Anable, was born at East Had- 
dam, Conn., April 18, 1744, married Han- 
nah Stuart, a daughter of John and 
Elizabeth Stuart, of MilHngton, Conn., 
and until his death lived at Millington. 

Joseph Anable, a son of John Anable 
and grandfather of the Misses Anable, 
was born at East Haddam, Conn., July 
18, 1773. About this time the family 
began to spell their name "Anable." He 
married for his second wife Alma Shel- 
don, a daughter of Asa and Isabella Low 
Sheldon, who was a grand-daughter of 
Capt. Samuel Low, of Revolutionary fame, 
and a lineal descendant of Roger Wil- 
liams, John Green and Thomas Stafford, 
well-known characters of early New Eng- 
land history, and members of the Rhode 
Island colony. 

Maj. Samuel Low Anable, a veteran 
of the late great American conflict, and 
at present a real-estate dealer of Chicago, 
is a son of Joseph Anable, and was born 
at Bethlehem, Albany county, N. Y., 
Nov. 28, 1821. He was senior major of 
the Seventh regiment, New York heavy 
artillery in the civil war, and served from 
1861 until the surrender at Appomottox 
in 1865. He rendered valiant service in 
the campaigns of the Army of the Poto- 
mac, and took part in all the battles of 
the memorable campaign of 1864, having 
participated in the battles of the Wil- 
derness, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, at 
which latter engagement he was severely 
wounded, and during convalescence was 
appointed by Secretary Edwin M. Stan- 
ton as " Inspector of Artillery," in the 



254 



Biographical Sketches. 



defences of Washington, D. C. He was 
mustered out of service in command of 
his regiment, at Albanj-, N. Y., in July, 
1865. He is now engaged in the real- 
estate business at Chicago. He married 
Sarah Roxcina Babcock, a daughter of 
Joseph Hubbell and Lorinda (Chapin) 
Babcock. 

The well-known and popular Misses 
Anable's school, founded and so abl}' con- 
ducted by the estimable ladies whose 
name it bears, is the result and outgrowth 
of Miss Anable's school so well-known in 
Philadelphia. Little need be said of the 
position it occupies as a leading educa- 
tional institution, as its popularity is 
well known. The high standard of work 
maintained, the extensive curriculum of- 
fered, and the efficiency of its faculty 
entitle it to a foi*emost rank among the 
leading schools of the country. The fact 
that their graduates are admitted without 
examination to the leading colleges fully 
attest the high grade of thorough work 
they accomplish. They also provide ad- 
vanced literary and scientific courses, ar- 
ranged especially for the benefit of those 
not desiring to enter college, in which 
departments diplomas are issued upon 
completing the course and a sufficient de- 
gree of proficiency shown. The social 
and moral influences of the school are the 
best, and lend a special feature of attract- 
iveness. 



"OICHARD R. HAGERMAN, street com- 
-*-*' missioner of New Brunswick, and 
team-toAving agent in that cit}' for the 
Delaware and Raritan Canal Co., is a son 
of Richard and Maria (Heaviland) Hager- 
man, and was born Oct. 5, 1837, at Green 
Grove, Monmouth county, New Jersey, 
where he received a common-school edu- 
cation, worked on his father's farm until 



Nov., 1862, when he went to Brookhn, 
N. Y., and worked upon the street cars. 
In 1863 he became overseer of David 
Sanderson's farm in Hunterdon count}-, 
N. Y., and subsequently worked in a 
bullet factory in New York city, making 
bullets for the Union armies during the 
civil war. He returned to New Bruns- 
wick in 1864, and was made agent of the 
Canal Team Towing Co., a corporation 
controlling the motive power of the Del- 
aware and Raritan Canal Co. This posi- 
tion he has retained ever since. At one 
time he had about seven hundred mules 
under his care, laut now has only about 
one hundred. 

Mr." Hagerman has always been a 
staunch democrat in politics. In 1884 
he was elected a member of the board 
of street and sewer commissioners, and 
served for four years, when the board 
was abolished. In 1888 he was appointed 
to his present position of street commis- 
sioner. He is a member of the First 
Baptist church of New Brunswack. On 
Jan. 5, 1860, he was married to Miss 
Henrietta, daughter of John C. and Lu- 
cetta Strickland Claj-ton, of Monmouth 
county. Mr. Hagerman is one of the 
most energetic and influential men in 
public life in New Brunswick. His official 
position entails supervision over all the 
highways of the city, and he has given 
his fellow-citizens a vigorous, discrimina- 
ting administration. He is a recognized 
leader in political affairs, and an earnest 
advocate of clean, straightforward poli- 
tics under all circumstances. His busi- 
ness career has been an honorable and 
successful one, and he is recognized as an 
important factor in the operation of the 
Delaware and Raritan Canal Co., which 
has contributed so much to the prosperity 
of New Brunswick. 



Biographical Sketches. 



255 



Mr. Hagermau's ancestry is of Dutch 
origin, and the family is an old and dis- 
tinguished one in the annals of the Neth- 
erlands, their coat of arms having been 
discovered and officiallj^ verified. The 
first American members of the family 
came over about 1650, and settled at 
Flatbush, King's county, N. Y., in 1658. 
Richard Hagerman, the father, was a 
native of Monmouth county, born in 
1799, and there educated. He taught 
school for about twenty years at Green 
Grove, Monmouth county, and at one 
time owned a tract of four hundred acres 
of land in that county, which he farmed 
successfully up to his death in April, 
1868. He was married to Miss Maria 
Heaviland, daughter of Mindred Heavi- 
land, of Monmouth county, by whom he 
had nine children : Barnes R., who mar- 
ried Elinor Patterson, of Freehold ; Eliza- 
beth, wife of J. B. Harvey, of New York 
state ; Mary H., wife of Thomas C. Van- 
arsdale, of Monmouth county ; Alfred H., 
who married Annie Walcott, of Mon- 
mouth county ; Lena, wife of J. E. Lewis, 
of Monmouth county ; Joseph H., who 
married Carrie Hall, of Glen Cove, L. I. ; 
Richard R., subject ; John H., who served 
in the civil Avar, in the Twenty-eighth 
New Jersey regiment; and Charles W. 
Mrs. Hagerman, the mother, died in 
1881, at the age of eighty years. 



"TOHJSr E. ELMENDORF, a prominent 
^ lawyer of New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, is a son of John C. and Maria 
Louisa (Frelinghuysen) Elrnendorf, and 
was born in the city of New Brunswick, 
Aug. 3, 1858. 

His paternal grandfather, William C. 
Elrnendorf, was born at Millstone, Som- 
erset county, New Jersey. In politics 

14 



he was a republican. He was a member 
of the Dutch Reformed church, and an 
active worker in all things which tended 
to advance its interests. To his married 
life were born five children : John C, 
Elizabeth D., wedded to Edward Loomis; 
Anna V., Peter D., and Blindina, now 
widow of La Rue Vredenburg, of Somer- 
ville. New Jersey. John C. Elmendorf, 
father, entered Princeton College, after 
having completed his education at the 
Somerville Academy, and subsequently, 
in consequence of movements of his 
father's family, entered Rutgers College, 
and graduated therefrom in 1834. He 
then read law, and after his admission to 
practice, in 1837, opened an ofiice in New 
Brunswick, and practiced law in that 
city to the time of his death. For three 
terms of five years each he was prose- 
cutor of the pleas of Middlesex county, 
and throughout his life enjoyed a large 
practice. For ten years prior to the 
repeal of the act he was a register in 
bankruptcy. Politically he was an ar- 
dent republican and active in his party. 
He was a member of the Reformed 
church, taking an active interest in 
church work, and served many years 
as deacon and elder. He was treasurer 
of Rutgers College for thirty-three years. 
His death occurred July 18, 1889. His 
wife was a member of one of the most 
distinguished families in the state of 
New Jersey, and to their union was 
born one son, the subject of this sketch. 
Mrs. Elmendorf died Feb. 6, 1890. 

John E. Elmendorf received his pre- 
liminary education at private schools 
and the Rutgers College Preparatory 
school at New Brunswick, after which 
he entered Rutgers College, graduating 
in 1878, in which after graduation he 
studied specially three years, obtaining 



256 



Biographical Sketches. 



the degree of bachelor of philosophy. 
He was admitted to the bar Feb. 1, 1882. 
After his admission to practice in New 
Jersey he read law in Xew York citj^ 
with George C. Frelinghuyseu, and was 
admitted to the New York bar in 188G. 
B}- his legal abilitj^ and energy he has 
built up a large practice in New Bruns- 
wick, where he has his office, and enjoys 
a high reputation as a lawyer. He is 
as.sistant treasurer of Rutgers College, is 
an active Christian, a member of the 
Presb^"terian church, and devotes much 
time to the advancement of its interests. 
He was united in marriage in August, 
1887, to Helen A. Decker, a daughter of 
Lionial D. and Mary E. Decker, and to 
them have been born three children : 
Louise F., Dumont, and John E., Jr. 



TTTILLIAM R. MAPS.— Ancient tra- 
' ' ditions tell us that the star under 
which an individual happens to be born, 
rules his or her future destiny. But we, 
of the present day, more accurately as- 
sert that each inherits mental and moral 
characteristics, which, within certain 
bounds, give the kejaiote of his or her 
futui'e, with possibl}' more certainty than 
the deci'ees of f\ite. Strong characters 
cannot be repressed, and it is mental force 
and will power that give us the clue to 
the success of the gentleman whose name 
appears above. 

William R. Maps, president of the 
Long Branch Banking Co., and one of 
the oldest and most successful business 
men of Long Branch, New Jersey-, is a 
fine type of a self-made American. He 
is a son of Michael and Hannah Throck- 
morton Maps, and was born at Long 
Branch, Sept. 14, 1809. The family 
originall\- came from Germany, where 



the name was Mapes, but in this country 
was changed to Maps. Michael Mapes, 
the paternal great-grandfather, was a 
native of Germany, where he received a 
common-school education ; subsequently 
came to America and settled at Long 
Branch, New Jersey, where two sons, 
Frederick and John, were born. 

Frederick Maps (paternal grandfather), 
was educated in the common schools of 
Long Branch, and learned the trade of 
chair-making, which he followed for sev- 
eral years, then enlisted in the Conti- 
nental ami}' for seven 3'ears, and partici- 
pated in the memoralile battle of Mon- 
mouth, near his home. He was a brave 
soldier and served continuously during 
the struggle for independence. After 
the close of the Revolution, he resumed 
chair manufacturing, and engaged in 
farming. He married Sibyl Rex, and 
the}^ had born to them seven sous and 
one daughter : Michael, William, Zenas, 
John, Asahel, Reuben, Solomon, and 
Sarah. 

Michael !Maps (father) was born near 
Long Branch, New Jersey", March 31, 
1784, and was instructed in the common 
schools. He learned the carpenter trade, 
but soon started in the general store 
business at Long Branch, which he sliortly 
relinquished to engage in the hsli trade 

j with New Brunswick, Bound Bi'ook, 
Somerville, Schooley's Mountain, New 
Jersey, Easton, Pa., and other points, 
and continued it thii-ty years, when he 

! purchased a large farm situated near the 
sea, at Long Branch. Here he resided 
many years; afterward moved to the 
city, where he remained up to the time 
of his death, which occurred Nov. 14, 
1860. He was a whig and an active 
christian gentleman, and procured the 
grounds for and materially assisted in the 



Biographical Sketches. 



259 



erection of the first Methodist Episcopal 
church at Long Branch, in 1809. On 
Feb. 11, 1806, he married Hannah 
Throckmorton, daughter of Job and Mary 
Thi'ockmorton, of the township of Slirews- 
bury, New Jersey, and their family of 
children is as follows : Mary (Mrs. John 
Woolley), born Nov. 27, 1806, deceased; 
Sibyl, deceased Sept. 2, 1809 ; William 
R., born Sept. 14, 1809; Charles, 1st., 
died young ; Elizabeth (Mrs. James Slo- 
cum), born Aug. 12, 1813 ; Charles, 2d, 
born Nov. 20, 1815; Cornelia, born Aug. 
10, 1817, married M. W. Woolley; 
Lewis T., born May 3, 1820, became a ' 
Methodist minister, and died while sta- 
tioned at Paterson, New Jersey, July 11, 
1846 ; Hannah, born April 6, 1823, mar- 
ried Samuel W. Wardell. Michael Maps 
died Nov. 14, 1860, and the mother 
passed away March 30, 1864, aged sev- 
enty-six years. 

William R. Maps (subject) received a 
common-school training, but early in life 
acquired a strong taste for study, and the 
studious habits thus formed led him to 
continue his education after leaving 
school. He soon became interested in 
surveying, and by his own efforts fitted 
himself for that work, which he followed 
at Long Branch for many years. At the 
age of fifteen years he entered a store as 
clerk, and in 1829 began the business of 
a general store on his own account, and 
continued the same successfully many 
years. He also dealt in lumber 'and coal 
in connection with his other business. 

The history of Mr. Maps' life is the his- 
tory of Long Branch enterprise and 
development. He was instrumental in 
organizing the first banking-house twenty- 
five years ago under the name of the 
Long Branch Banking Co., of which he 
was the first and only president to this 



day. Until a short time ago, Mr. Maps 
was president of the Long Branch Build- 
ing and Loan Association, and for many 
years has been master in chancery and 
notary public. He is a republican in his 
party afiiliations, and was a freeholder of 
Monmouth county for seven years. A 
long record of sixty-three years of ser- 
vice as a member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church at Long Branch stands to 
his credit, and during this active term of 
work in various branches of religious 
duties, he filled the oflice of correspond- 
ing and recording secretary of the church 
for forty years. He has always been very 
activel}' interested in the educational 
affairs of his town and county, having 
contributed more to the early develop- 
ment and building up of the public-school 
system at Long Branch and Shrewsbury 
township, than any other one man, hav- 
ing served as superintendent at one time. 

Mr. Maps was married three times. 
His first wife was Mary Ann Tucker, 
whom he married Nov. 15, 1832. To 
this union were born three children : 
Hannah M. (Mrs. Dr. Hanlon) ; Mary 
Ann (Mrs. A. S. Lokerson) ; and Samuel 
T., deceased in infancy. Mrs. Maps died 
Sept. 17, 1838, aged thirty years. His 
second wife was Miss Susan Hampton, 
of New Y ork city, and this marriage was 
blessed by the birth of three children : 
S. Augusta, Charles and Lewis T., both 
sons deceased. Mr. Maps had the mis- 
fortune to lose his second wife also, and 
some years later mariied Mrs. Ann 
Davis, of the city of London, England, 
who died Sept. 19, 1893. 

Mr. Maps, in spite of his busy life, has 
found time to gratify the desire of a stu- 
dious nature. He is a great lover of 
poetry, and has himself written some 
very creditable and appropriate verses. 



260 



Biographical Sketches. 



Mr. Maps, though at the advanced age of 
eighty-seven years, is still in full S3'm2)a- 
thy with the interests and affairs of his 
town, has recently been instrumental 
in starting a shirt factory, and has the 
satisfaction of looking back over a long, 
prosperous and useful christian life, and 
holds that universal respect and esteem 
from a large circle of acquaintances of 
all classes, that is due to a sincere and 
noble character. His latest poem, writ^ 
ten Sept. 14, 1896, being his eighty- 
seventh anniversar}' birthday, was on the 
prediction and fulfillment of Christ's 
advent. 



DR. WILLIAM BEVIN, a homoeopathic 
physician of Monmouth county, 
and a practitioner of Freehold, is a son of 
Frederick and Almira (Robinson) Bevin, 
and -was born Aug. 15, 1832, at Berlin, 
Hartford county. Conn. His early educa- 
tion was received in the public schools of 
his native town and at the Berlin Acad- 
em3^ When a boy he was delicate in 
health, and after leaving school he worked 
in shops and did other manual labor with 
a view to strengthening himself physi- 
cally. Finally he was recommended to 
study medicine, and he accordingly 
entered the New' York Homoeopathic 
College, graduating in March, 1868. He 
always had a good general practice, and 
his experience has ranged over a number 
of localities, he having spent three years 
in NcAV York city, twelve j^ears in Key- 
port, New Jersey, three years in Tren- 
ton, and seven years in We.st Chester 
county, N. Y. He removed to Freehold 
in 1891, and has remained there ever 
since. He is well-known and jDopular 
throughout Monmouth county, is a man 
of tact and ready sympathy, and success- 
ful in his practice. He is a member of 



the New Jer-sey Homoeopathic Medical 
Society, and of Mercer Lodge, No. 50, F. 
and A. M. His political affinities are 
with the Republican party, and is a 
member and steward of the Freehold 
Methodist Episcopal church. Dr. Bevin 
was married Feb. 3, 1859, to Miss Lizzie 
G., daughter of Darius Sanford, a leading 
farmer of Hampden, Conn. 

England is the birthplace of the Bevin 
family, the original ancestor in this coun- 
try having been one of three brothers — 
William, Frederick and Ezra — who came 
over early in the history of the colonies. 
Frederick, of whom the subject is a direct 
descendant, settled in Connecticut, and 
many of his descendants still linger there. 
Dr. Bevin being of the fifth generation 
from him. 

Ezra Bevin, the paternal grandfather, 
was a native of Litchfield county. Conn., 
and resided there many years. He sub- 
sequently removed to western New York, 
but resided at East Hampton, Conn., at 
the time of his death. He was a carpen- 
ter by trade, and was the father of an ex- 
tensive family. Two of his sons served 
gallantly in the war of 1812, were taken 
prisoners at Giljraltar, and died while on 
their way home. 

Frederick Bevin, the father of Dr. 
Bevin, was also a native of Connecticut, 
and was a cotton manufacturer for many 
years. Later in life, however, he entered 
the employ of Charles Goodyear, the well- 
known rubber manufacturer, and stood 
high in his confidence, traveling through 
Europe in his interests and conducting 
man}' experiments for him. He was a 
man of very great mechanical genius, and 
invented a flax cutter, Avhich received 
first prize at the Crystal Palace Exposi- 
tion in New York. He w<as a member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church, and 



Biographical Sketches. 



261 



successively filled all the offices in the 
congregation. He was a whig in politics 
and was a member of the Masonic order 
and the Sons of Temperance. He died 
in Cambridge, Mass., in his fifty -fifth 
year. His wife was a Miss Almira Robin- 
son, and bore him six children : Francis 
McGonagle, Sarah M., Joseph L., Wil- 
liam, and two who died in infancy. 



SAMUEL LUCKEY, a retired manu- 
facturer of Dunellen, New Jersey, 
is of Scotch descent, and was born in 
New York city, April 20, 1824. He is 
a son of Theophilus and Jane (Rutlege) 
Luckey. His paternal grandfather, Rob- 
ert Luckey, emigated to Ireland from 
Scotland, and for many years kept a 
hotel in that country. He was a mem- 
ber of the Scotch Presbyterian church, 
and died at the age of sixty-two. He 
was the father of the following children : 
Hugh, John, and Theophilus. Theophi- 
lus Luckey, father, was born Dec. 9, 1777, 
at Balobay, Ireland, and emigrated from 
there to Canada in 1810. Although 
he had received but a common-school 
education in his early life, he was enabled 
through private study to remedy its de- 
ficiencies and become a school teacher. 
This profession he followed for many 
years in Canada. He died Nov. 20, 
1853, at the age of seventy-six years. 
His wife's death occurred June 10, 1834, 
at the age of forty-two. Mr. Luckey 
was a member of the Scotch Presby- 
terian church. To his marriage were 
born nine children, namely ; Robert B., 
born July 25, 1811, and died in infancy; 
Hugh, born July 25, 1813, died in New 
Orleans, in 1852; John, born Sept. 
4, 1815, died Dec. 10, 1847; Margaret, 
born Feb. 12, 1818, and died Oct. 18, 



1893; Robert, born July 24, 1820, died 
in California about 1851 ; James B., born 
March 18, 1822, died Feb. 25, 1874; 
Samuel, born April 20, 1824 ; William, 
born Dec. 17, 1825, died Sept. 16, 1864, 
and Mary Jane, born Aug. 26, 1827, 
died at the early age of three. 

Mr. Luckey received early training in 
the public schools of New York city; but 
the death of his mother, which occurred 
when he was eleven years of age, com- 
pelled him to abandon his studies, where- 
upon he entered upon farm work at 
Hackensack, New Jersey. Remaining 
at this occupation a few years, he re- 
turned to New York and learned the 
trade of cigar making. Having mastered 
this trade he engaged in the business of 
manufacturing and speculating in leaf 
tobacco on his own account, and con- 
tinued therein until he had arrived at 
the age of forty-four years, when he was 
in so satisfactory a financial condition 
as to permit him to retire from active 
business. In addition to his manufac- 
tory, which was situated on Bleeker 
street, New York city, he had a ware- 
house on the corner of Washington and 
Barclay streets. Mr. Luckey has always 
been a member of the Democratic party, 
and for three times was elected justice of 
the peace at Dunellen, to which town he 
removed in 1877. He is a member of 
the Universalist church; In 1847 Mr. 
Luckey was married to his first wife, 
Caroline Matilda Newcomb. She died 
Nov. 15, 1890. To their marriage were 
born eight children, as follows : Edna 
Jane, born Dec. 2, 1847, died March 4, 
1889 ; Eliza M., born Jan. 10, 1850, died 
Feb. 15, 1853 ; George W., born Oct. 26, 
1851; Benjamin F., born Aug. 10, 1853; 
Lucia S., born Aug. 20, 1856, died Aug. 
24, 1857; Carolina A., born Oct. 26, 



262 



Biographical Sketches. 



1859, died July 2, 1860; Samuel H., 
born Oct. 26, 1859, died August 1, 1860, 
and Charles M., born May 2, 1867, and 
now I'esiding in Wisconsin. Mr. Luckey 
was married a second time, on June 21, 
1892, his wife being Matilda Winter, 
daughter of Isaac Winter, Esq. As a 
business man Mr. Luckey is enterprising 
and sagacious, and as a citizen public- 
spirited and wide-awake, and is invari- 
ably found in support of every worthy 
improvement which has for its purpose 
the welfare of his community. 



T GUIS D. WALKER, a thrifty and 
-^-^ prosperous former of South Plain- 
field, Piscataway township, Middlesex 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Eunyon 
and Lavenia (Stelle) Walker, and was 
born in the old homestead, on Api'il 7, 
1839. The Walker family traces its de- 
scent from an English source, the emi- 
grant ancestor coming to America at an 
early period and locating in the colony 
of Pennsylvania, on the banks of the 
Delaware. From this ancestor the family 
dispersed and located in many sections of 
Penns^^lvania and New Jersey. Robert 
Walker, the paternal grandfather, had 
learned the trade of a shoemaker, and 
after following this pui'suit for a number 
of years, turned his- attention to farming. 
He located upon a farm in Piscataway 
township, Middlesex county, New Jersey, 
now known as the old homestead of the 
family, where he resided for the rest of 
his life. He was in his time an active 
democrat in politics, and a consistent 
member of the Stelton Baptist church, at 
Stelton. He married Jane Runj^on, of 
Piscatawa}-, and his immediate descend- 
ants were the following ten children: 
Firman, Simeon, Emeline, Runyon, Jep- 



tha, Ruth, Sarah, Ann Runyon, Louis, 
and Ephraim. The last six named were 
children of Jane and Lewis Run^^on, she 
Ijeing a widow when Roljert married her. 
The paternal grandfather died in 1855, 
in the eighty-fourth year of his age. 

Runyon Walker, the father, was born 
on the old homestead, Oct. 25, 1807, and 
received his education in the common 
schools of Piscataway township until he 
attained the age of fourteen. He was 
apprenticed to the carpentering trade 
and served three years. He then actively 
engaged in the iDursuit of a carpenter and 
builder, and continued therein for a period 
of over sixty years, when he retired. He 
was a strong Jackson democrat, and 
always took a prominent part in the 
poUtics of the day. He has been a mem- 
ber of the town committee for about six 
years, and a trustee of the school for 
twenty-four years. He has been a life- 
long christian, holding membership in 
the Stelton Baptist church for the past 
fifty-five 3'ears, and of which he has been 
a trustee also for the past twenty j-ears. 
He was married April 3, 1836, to Lavenia 
Stelle, daughter of Drake and Elsie Stelle, 
of Piscataway, and succeeding to the old 
homestead, he took up his residence there. 
From that time for\vard he resided on the 
farm continuously up to 1877, when he 
was succeeded bj'his sou Louis D.,the sub- 
ject. Their children are: Jane Maria, 
married to John Ross, of Plainfield, New 
Jersey; Louis D., married to Mercie Run- 
yon; Emeline, married to Calvin Drake; 
Elsie, married to Simeon R. Dajton; 
Firman, married to Mercie Drake; Sarah, 
married to Isaac Gile.s, and Julia A., 
married to Dr. William Nelson, of New 
Market, New Jersey. The mother died 
on March 16, 1886, in her sixty-eighth 
year. 



Biographical Sketches. 



263 



Mr. Walker attended the common- 
school and the high school of Piscataway 
township nntil he Avas sixteen years of 
age, after which he engaged in the usual 
labor incident to a farm, on the old home- 
stead. He manifested a deep interest in 
agricultural affairs and developed rapidly 
into a thoroughly practical farmer. In 
1867 he married, and bought a farm in 
Piscataway township, and ten years later, 
in 1877, he also bought the old homestead 
farm. He has one hundred and twelve 
acres all told, of excellent land, well cul- 
tivated and devoted to general farming 
purposes. He is a prominent democrat in 
politics, was elected and faithfully served 
as a freeholder for one year in 1886, and 
has also served as a road overseer of the 
township. He is a communicant of the 
New Market Baptist church, and a re- 
spected trustee and deacon of the church. 
He and his wife reside upon the old 
homestead in the enjoyment of that ease 
and comfort so welcome to declining 
years. 



T GUIS BREIGS, one of the leading 
-*-^ merchant tailors of the state of 
New Jersey, and a prominent and influ- 
ential citizen of high standing at Perth 
Amboy, is a son of Carl Frederick and 
Theresa Ingber Breigs, and was born Nov. 
29, 1849, at Eostenberg, Saxe-Weimar, 
Germany. 

Mr. Breigs comes from that sturdy race 
proverbial for its industry and thrift — 
the race that has contributed more to 
the industrial development and material 
wealth of our own great country than the 
sons of her mother country. 

Carl Frederick Breigs, father of Louis 
Breigs, is a successful merchant tailor 
and quiet but prosperous citizen and still 
a resident of our subject's natal town, 



the place of his birth, Rostenberg, Saxe- 
Weimar. Here he has pursued assidu- 
ously his chosen vocation all his life. Mr. 
Breigs was twice married; by his first 
wife, mother of subject, there were born 
three children : Barnhardt, Louis, sub- 
ject, and Ida Sutor. His first wife died, 
1863, at the age of fifty-six years. 

Mr. Breigs has won a success in life 
well worthy the emulation of his children. 
He received his educational nurturing in 
the common schools of Germany. At the 
age of sixteen years, ambitious to increase 
his opportunities, he courageouslj^ re- 
solved to try the fortunes of America, and 
setting sail, landed at Brooklyn, N. Y., in 
1866. Having already acquired some 
knoivledge of the tailor trade Avith his 
father, he succeeded in securing employ- 
ment at Brooklyn, where he remained 
four years. Subsequently, he followed 
the cutting trade two jea,YS in Ncav York, 
and afterAvards went to Keyport, Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, where he be- 
came associated with E. H. Conover, 
trading under the caption of Breigs & 
Conover. This relation continued from 
1874 up to 1880, when Mr. Breigs sold 
his interest to his partner and went to 
Perth Amboy and established himself in 
the merchant tailoring business on Smith 
street. There he continued up to 1888, 
when he purchased the site and built the 
large place he occupies at present, at the 
corner of Smith and King streets. This 
structure is 25 feet front and 130 feet 
deep, constructed of brick, and consti- 
tutes one of the most attractive business 
places in Perth Amboy. Mr. Breigs em- 
ploys in the various dejjartinents of his 
business twenty skilled tailors and cut- 
ters. He probably does the largest mer- 
chant tailoring business in the state of 
New Jersey, not including Jersey City. 



264 



Biographical Sketches. 



Being a practical cutter and fitter him- 
self, lie gives that department of the 
business much of his personal attention. 
Mr. Breigs has established the custom- 
made clothing business, and has intro- 
duced gents' furnishing in connection 
with the tailoring business. He is a 
liberal republican in political fixith, not 
being bound by party trammels, but in 
his suffrage supports men and principles 
rather than party or party-men. Mr. 
Breigs is a member of Raritan Lodge, 
No. 61, F. and A. M. ; Independent Order 
of Odd Fellows, and the Knights of 
P3'thias. He is also a member of the 
Exempt Firemen's Association, of Perth 
Aniboy. He was hapj)ily married in Au- 
gust, 1882, to Miss Rosa Hauser, of a 
well-known Jersey City family, and they 
have one child, Frederick. His wife's 
father, Frederick Hauser, is one of the 
most influential men in Jersey City poli- 
tics, besides being a very successful and 
shrewd business man. He is an exten- 
sive hardware, tinware, and plumljing 
merchant at that place. A staunch re- 
pulilican in politics, he has twice been 
elected alderman from his ward, repre- 
senting the interests of his constituents 
in the municipal legislative body with in- 
tegrity and honor, and was at one time 
honored with the nomination for mayor 
of Jerse}^ City. He has a family of five 
children, of whom Mrs. Breigs is the 
eldest. 



"P A. SHANNON, M. D., city physician 
-*- • of New Brunswick, is perhaps the 
most prominent and successful member 
of the medical profession in New Bruns- 
wick, and enjoys the most extensive jii'ac- 
tice of any in that city. He is a son of 
Pierce A. and Jane Morrogh Shannon, 
and was born at Limerick, Ireland, March 



3, 1852. His paternal grandfather, Pierce 
Shannon, was an extensive iron mer- 
chant in Dublin, and accumulated a hand- 
some fortune m that business, leaving it 
at his death to his son, father of the sub- 
ject of this sketch, which enabled him to 
live the life of a country gentleman. Of 
a character beyond reproach, liberal, hos- 
pitable, with a stable full of horses and 
kennels full of hounds, and fond of hunt- 
ing, he was the friend of all who knew 
him, and his house was open to all who 
came to partake of its hospitality. He 
died in 1860, to the sincere regret of all 
who had knowledge of him. His wife 
was a member of a distinguished family, 
the Morroghs, and since his decease has 
resided in London. To them were born 
the subject of this sketch, Edward C, 
James, who is also a physician, Martha 
and Mary, who reside in London with 
their mother. 

Dr. P. A. Shannon received his pre- 
paratory education at Clongowes, county 
Kildare, Ireland, graduating afterward at 
St. John's College, Liverpool. He then 
studied medicine for several years, and 
finally graduated from the Royal College 
of Surgeons, Kings and Queens College of 
Phj^sicians, Rotundo L3'ing-In Hospital, 
at Dublin, with distinguished honors. 

After a short term of practice in Dub- 
lin he came to the United States as fur- 
nishing a broader field for his talents, and 
settled in New Brunswick, where he went 
into partnership with Dr. N. Morrogh, 
which partnershii) continued for six 
years, when he began practicing indi- 
vidually. Since then, although his prac- 
tice is a general one, he has paid special 
attention to diseases of women and chil- 
dren, and such is the confidence which 
his special knowledge in this field has 
inspired that his patients are not alone 



Biographical Ske;tches. 



265 



numbered among the inhabitants of New 
Brunswick, but extend into the country 
for many miles around. 

Dr. Shannon is a democrat, a member 
of the Catholic church, and of the Brother- 
hood of Elks. His wife was Caroline E. 
Carroll, daughter of William Carroll, the 
mayor of Rochester, and to them have 
been born one child, Mignon Morrogh 
Shannon. Dr. Shannon has been deco- 
rated with the order of chevalier by the 
Italian government. 



TTTILLIAM A. DUNLOP, for many 
' ' years identified with the stone 
and earthen-ware industry of Matawan, 
New Jersey, is the son of Joseph W. and 
Margaret Combs Dunlop, and was born 
at Matawan, New Jersey, Sept. 10, 1833. 

Joseph W. Dunlop, father, was born in 
Bucks county, Pennsylvania, in 1796, 
and after being given a common-school 
education fitted himself for the profession 
of teaching, to which he devoted his en- 
tire life. In political opinion Mr. Dunlop 
was a follower of Jeiferson and Jackson, 
and his interest in public questions and 
concerns led him to take a very active 
and prominent part in the political events 
of his district. In church doctrines he 
was a presbyterian, and among other 
things formed a local military company 
at Middletown Point, now Matawan. 
Joseph W. Dunlop was wedded to Marga- 
ret, daughter of James Combs, and widow 
of Robert Little. As a result of this 
union are the following five children : 
Hermione (wife of Mr. Ezra A. Dunn) ; 
William, Alfred, and John W. (now de- 
ceased). 

William A. Dunlop, subject, attended 
the public schools of Matawan until he 
reached the age of sixteen years. Upon 



leaving school he secured a position as 
clerk with Messrs. Reid & Craig, dealers 
in dry doods and groceries, and with 
whom he remained in constant service 
for twenty-one years. Leaving the em- 
ploy of the above-named firm Mr. Dunlop 
began business in the Washington market, 
where he continued for the three ensuing 
years. Seeing a favorable opportunity 
of making a safe and profitable business 
venture, Mr. Dunlop bought a one-third 
interest of Van Schaich & Dunn in the 
stone and earthenware business, the firm 
afterwards being known as Dunn, Dunlop 
& Co. Politically Mr. Dunlop is a demo- 
crat, always alert and ready to subsei've 
the course and welfare of his party. He 
has been a freeholder for twelve years, 
and has been elected to various local 
offices in Matawan. He is an attendant 
of the Presbyterian church, and a mem- 
ber of Knickerbocker Lodge, No. 52, 1. 0. 
0. F., of Matawan. On Dec. 4, 1858, 
Mr. Dunlop was united in marriage with 
Eliza, daughter of Benjamin and Mary 
Cook. 



~T) D. CHANDLER, a prominent archi- 
-'-^* tect of Red Bank, is of English 
descent, one of his paternal ancestors, a 
presbyterian pi-eacher, in company with 
two brothers, having emigrated from 
England and settled in Elizabeth, New 
Jersey, in the year 1600. He is a son of 
John H. and Margaret (Doughty) Chan- 
dler, and was born March 29, 1846, at 
Fairhaven, Monmouth county, New Jer- 
sey. His paternal grandfather, Jeremiah 
Chandler, was a highly prosperous ship- 
ping merchant and ship-owner, as well 
as the possessor of two extensive farms 
at Fairhaven, New Jersey. He was a 
democrat in politics, but not an office- 
holder nor office-seeker. He was an 



266 



Biographical Sketches. 



active member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church. He died Aug. 22, 1857, aged 
sixty-eight years, and his wife died about 
sixteen jears later. Their children were : 
John H., Lauretta, married to John W. 
Murphy; Jeremiah, deceased ; Elizabeth, 
and Charles. 

John H. Chandler, father, after finish- 
ing his education at the public schools, 
entered his fathei-'s employ as a sailor on 
one of his vessels, and in due course of 
time rose to the position of captain. He 
followed this profession for many years, 
retiring in 1865 with a competence, and 
made Fairhaven, New Jersey, his perma- 
nent home thereafter. He took but little 
interest in jiolitics, but always voted with 
the Democratic part}'. He was a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
He died Aug. 22, 1889, aged seventy- 
seven years. His wife survives him. Their 
married life was blessed with seven chil- 
dren : William, Benjamin, Lewis, R. D.; 
Louisa, deceased ; Charles, and Christo- 
pher. 

The subject of this sketch, R. D. 
Chandler, received a common-school edu- 
cation at Fairhaven, and at the age of 
twenty-one moved to Brooklyn, New 
York, where he learned the trade of a 
carpenter and took drawing lessons in 
the Washington Institute. This occupa- 
tion he followed for ten years, when he 
removed to Red Bank, New Jersey, and 
entered into the building business on his 
own account. To this he shortly after- 
wards added the profession of architect, 
finally relinquishing entirely the build- 
ing portion of his business, since which 
time he has devoted himself solely to the 
architectural, in which he has been most 
successful. As specimens of his most no- 
table work may be mentioned the public- 
school building at Oceanic, New Jersey, 



and the township hall at Red Bank, the 
plans of both buildings having been 
drawn by him. Mr. Chandler's first po- 
litical faith was that of a democrat ; but 
upon the second nomination of General 
Grant for the presidential office he voted 
the republican ticket, and has since con- 
tinued with that party. He is a member 
of the Junior Order 0. U. A. M., No. 141, 
having been through all its chairs ; of 
the Royal Arcanum ; of the Shrewsbury 
Ice Yacht club ; of the Red Bank Wheel- 
men, and the Red Bank board of trade. 
He married Mar}' G., daughter of Thomas 
and Sarah Smith, of Inwood, L. I., March 
9, 1872, and to their union have been 
born four children : Anna, Marion, Wil- 
liam, and Benjamin, deceased. 



JAMES WALL SCHUREMAN CAMP- 
^ BELL, cashier of the First National 
Bank of Freehold, New Jersey, was born 
in Freehold township, Monmouth county, 
April 2.3, 1854, and is the eldest child of 
Peter Bo^^^le Campbell, a well-known 
fiirmer, now living at Shrewsburj', New 
Jersey. 

The American progenitor of the name, 
John Campbell, came from Scotland, and 
settled at Freehold. He was one of the 
twelve loving subjects to whom the 
charter of St. Peter's Episcopal church 
of Freehold was granted, in 1736, by 
King George III., and was appointed by 
said charter a member of the first vestry. 
Four of his sons served at the same time 
in the Continental army, during the 
struggle for independence. 

The subject of this sketch traces, on 
both the paternal and maternal sides, 
descent by direct line from the same re- 
mote ancestoi", James Bowne, of the cele- 
brated Monmouth Patent, and has in his 



Biographical Sketches. 



267 



possession a Bible published in London 
in 1661, once the property of Margaret 
Newbold, wife of James Bowne, 2d. His 
mother, Mary E. Schureman, is a niece 
of Garret D. Wall, a United States sena- 
tor, and a lawyer eminent in his day, and 
her grandfather, James Schureman, a 
merchant of New Brunswick, New Jer- 
sey, was a soldier, patriot and statesman 
of the revolutionary period. Mr. Camp- 
bell also owns the silver tankard handed 
down in the Schureman family, bearing 
date Sept. 19, 1559. 

Mr. Campbell received his education 
in the private school at Shrewsbury, and 
worked hard on his father's farm during 
vacations, and until he was eighteen 
years of age. In 1872 he entered the 
employ of the Long Branch Banking Co. 
as general utility boy. In June, 1875, 
he was invited to a position as clerk in 
the First National Bank of Freehold; was 
appointed assistant cashier in 1881; cash- 
ier in 1884, and a director in 1894. Re- 
ceiving his education and training in this 
profession under such careful bankers as 
Henry W. Johnson, Jacob B. Rue and 
Joseph T. Laird, it is but natural that he 
should emulate their example. To his 
untiring industry, conservative manage- 
ment, and liberal policy this bank owes 
somewhat of its present high standing in 
the financial world, and its popularity 
with, and the confidence of, its many 
patrons. 

While he has devoted his time and 
energies to his banking business almost 
exclusively, he has been identified with 
some of the prosperous enterprises of the 
town, and has served his community in 
a representative capacity in various ways. 
He was an active fireman for seven years ; 
vice-president 1878-1879, and president 
1880, of the fire department; he has 



been a vestryman, and secretary of the 
vestry, since 1881, of St. Peter's church, 
of which his great-great-grandfather was 
a vestryman one hundred and fifty years 
before ; was a member and the treasurer 
of the board of trade, 1892 ; member of 
the board of education, 1894, and has 
been president of that board since 1895, 
and it is largely due to his persistent ef- 
forts that Freehold has to-day one of the 
handsomest and most commodious school 
buildings in the state ; he is a past mas- 
ter of Freehold Lodge, No. 41, of the 
Ancient Order of United Workmen, a 
beneficial order that numbers over 360,000 
members, and representative to its Grand 
Lodge of New Jersey, 1893, 1894, 1895 
and 1896. He is an hereditary member 
of the old and honorable military order, 
the Society of the Cincinnati, and was 
assistant treasurer of the New Jersey 
State Society, 1891, 1892, and has been 
treasurer since 1893. He seems to have 
been destined to be the custodian of other 
people's money ; in boyhood it was the 
ball clubs, debating clubs, and the differ- 
ent young people's societies ; in maturer 
years, larger interests. In appearance 
he is tall, slender and erect, of light com- 
plexion, has dark grey eyes, brown hair 
and mustache, long face, high forehead, 
and is neat and particular in his dress. 

His dominant charactei'istic is indefati- 
gable perseverance. He is slow to as- 
sume new responsibilities ; but once en- 
listed, anything to which he lends his 
name is sure to receive his attention. 
Possessing the confidence of the people, 
his advice is constantly sought, and is 
cheerfully but carefully given. He wastes 
neither words nor time in business talks, 
and acts direct and to the point ; quick 
to detect the schemes and falsehoods of 
the designing, he is ever alert in the in- 



268 



Biographical Sketches. 



terest of his Ijank ; reserved in manner 
with strangers, he is frank and gracious 
witli his friends ; always mindful of the 
rights and feelings of others, he is strong 
in his likes and dislikes, and knows what 
he wants. Devoted to his famih-, do- 
mestic in his tastes, he finds his greatest \ 
pleasure in his home life. 

On Nov. 27, 1878, Mr. Campbell was 
happily married to Mar\^, only child of 
Dennis Valentine, a prosperous farmer, 
residing near Tintou Falls, New Jersey. 
Their children are : Harry Valentine, 
Edmund Schureman, Marion and Ellen. 

Of Mr. Campbell's Ijrothers only one is 
living, Harr}', teller of the First National ' 
Bank of Red Bank, New Jersey. Another 
brother, William Denise, was a member 
of the New Jersey legislature two terms, 
and a young lawyei', rising rapidly in his 
profession at the time of his death ; a sis- 
ter and a brother died in childhood. 



T^AVID AUGUSTUS VANDERVEER, i 
-^-^ a prominent retired farmer and 
horticulturist of Monmouth count}', one 
of the founders of the Grange in that 
count}-, and an influential citizen of Free- 
hold,'is a son of Thomas M. and Margaret ' 
D. B. Smock Vanderveer, and was born 
Dec. 14, 1833, at Moorestown, Burlington 
county. New Jersey. He was educated in 
the district schools of Monmouth county, 
having left Moorestown at the earlj' age of 
five years. During early boyhood he 
worked on his father's farm, and when sev- 
enteen years old went to Freehold, where 
he was clerk in a store for three years. He 
then removed to New York city, where for 
six years he occupied a position with Wil- 
son G. Hunt & Co. When twenty-five 
years old, Mr. Vanderveer established a 
mercantile business on his own account 



at Freehold, in a partnership relation, 
and conducted it for five years, after 
which he spent a year with the well- 
known dry-goods firm of Lord & Taylor, 
New York city. In 1868, he abandoned 
business life, and devoted him.self assidu- 
ously to agriculture and horticulture. He 
operated his uncle's farm, known as the 
Schank fiirm, on the site of the battle of 
Monmouth, near Freehold, for six years, 
and then operated a part of his Avife's 
familv homestead, known as the Hunt 
farm, near Manalapan, for twenty years. 
Mr. Vanderveer had a reputation as a 
fruit grower, and possessed large orch- 
ards; and was an extensive breeder of 
Jersey cattle and fancy poultry. In the 
spring of 1894 he retired from active 
life, and has since resided at Freehold, 
where he still retains the most active 
interest in everj'thing relating to the 
progress and improvement of agriculture. 
The Hunt homestead still remains in the 
famil}', a part of the same being at pres- 
ent operated by Mr. Vanderveer. Mr. 
Vanderveer was the first charter member 
of the Monmouth Grange, No. 92, at 
Freehold, and was its secretary for seve- 
ral years, at different times, and is at 
present. He was also one of the original 
members, and has been secretai'y of the 
Monmouth county board of agriculture 
for several years; is a member of the 
state board of agriculture, and the New 
Jerse}' Horticultural Society. In politi- 
cal affiliations he is a republican, an 
active party man, and a staunch protec- 
tionist. He was appointed postmaster at 
Manalapan b}' President Garfield, in 
1881, and served until 1884. He was 
district clerk and school trustee at Mana- 
lapan for a number of years. In 1861, 
he enlisted in the Freehold rifle corps. 
New Jersey militia, in which he served 




^^^C^i^ ^y'l-i.^L^^i^ ^^^:::i--i>r aC^^-t^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



271 



seven years. In early manhood he was 
an adherent of the Dutch Reformed 
church at Freehold, of which he was 
deacon and clerk of the consistory, but 
he is now a member of the Freehold 
Presbyterian church. 

Mr. Vanderveer comes of the sturdy 
Dutch lineage, and he is one of the most 
active members of the Holland Societj^ 
of New York city, being its first vice 
president for Monmouth county, from 
1888 to 1893. 

On Nov. 13, 1862, he was married to 
Miss Georgianna Hunt, daughter of 
George Hunt, a well-known citizen of 
Monmouth county, by whom he has had 
three daughters : Louise, Marianna, and 
Ella. Mr. Vanderveer is one of the 
leading authorities on agricultural and 
horticultural matters in New Jersey. He 
is well-known and respected throughout 
the state. 

The original American progenitor of 
the family was Cornelius Janse Vander- 
veer, who came from Alkmaar, in north- 
ern Holland, in 1659, and settled in 
Flatbush, Long Island. In direct line, 
followed Dominicus Vanderveer, born 
1679; Tunis Vanderveer, born 1704; 
and David Vanderveer, born 1748, all of 
whom were prosperous farmers and land- 
owners of Long Island. 

David Vanderveer, the paternal grand- 
father, was a native of Haddonfield, 
New Jersey, born in the year 1777, 
and was a citizen of Philadelphia during 
most of his life, where he was a lumber 
merchant. He was very successful in 
business, and retired wealthy. He was 
a prominent member of the Baptist 
church at Broad and Brown streets, 
Philadelphia. He died Jan. 19, 1859. 
Thomas Morris Vanderveer, the subject's 
father, was born at Philadelphia, and was 



educated in the public schools of that 
city. At an early age he learned the 
tanning business, and subsequently estab- 
lished himself independently in that 
trade at Moorestown, New Jersey. He 
sold out there in 1838, when the subject 
was five years old, and moved to Mon- 
mouth county, where he purchased the 
Otterson farm, now called the Vander- 
veer farm, near Freehold. He also sold 
this, and then engaged in the mercan- 
tile business at Freehold for three years, 
when he retired. He was one of the 
organizers and chief promoters, and for 
some years a member and manager of 
the Freehold Cemetery Co. He died in 
March, 1880, having been the father of 
nine children. 



H. 



BREWSTEE WILLIS, residing at 
New Brunswick, Middlesex Co., 
New Jersey, is a son of Rev. Ralph and 
Lucretia A. Willis, and was born in 
Albany. N. Y. His family is of English 
lineage, his great-grandfather, Edwin 
Willis, having been a professional man of 
prominence in London. His grandfather, 
Edwin Willis, received a liberal educa^ 
tion in the schools of London, and accu- 
mulated a considerable fortune as a grain 
merchant on the corn exchange in Lon- 
don. He was a member of the established 
church, active in all church work and 
especially interested in floriculture, being 
one of the largest tulip growers in Lon- 
don, frequently paying as high as one 
thousand dollars for a single tulip plant of 
great beauty and rareness. His father, 
Rev. Ralph Willis, when a boy, attended 
a school in Yorkshire. The school was 
situated in a small village called Bowes, 
about two hundred miles from London, 
reached by a wearisome and expensive 



272 



Biographical Sketches. 



stage journey. This was the identical 
school so caricatured, scathed, and im- 
mortalized by Charles Dickens in his 
" Nicholas Nickleby." 

In an autobiography left by Ralph 
Willis to his family, in- speaking of this 
school, he gives quite an extended and 
minute account of this immortalized in- 
stitution, and concludes that Dickens' 
account of the cruelties practiced were 
not over-drawn, for when he left the 
school he was suffering from a lacerated 
scalp, the result of the master's cruelty. 
At nineteen }"ears of age he left London 
and completed his education in Philadel- 
phia, Rutgers College, and the theologi- 
cal seminary at New Brunswick. He was 
a useful pastor, occupj'ing prominent 
positions in the states of New York and 
New Jersey. 

In 1867, Gov. Joel Parker, of New Jer- 
sey, appointed Ralph Willis, county super- 
intendent of public instruction for Middle- 
sex county, in Avhich position he was a 
leader in education and a friend to the 
teachers for nineteen consecutive years. 
Later he became rector of the theological 
seminary at New Brunswick. He was a 
gentleman of superior scholarship, simple 
in his tastes, just in his views, helpful to 
the unfortunate, and of sterling princi- 
ples. He died in New Brunswick, March 
13, 1895, leaving surviving him five chil- 
dren : J. V. N. Willis, H. Brewster Willis, 
subject ; William S. Willis, Mrs. Leonard 
Appleby, and Jennie V. Willis. 

H. Brewster Willis, after receiving 
public-school advantages, studied under 
private tutors, graduated from the New 
Jersey state normal school, availed him- 
self of special courses in several other 
institutions, and taught in the public 
schools of Middlesex and Monmouth 
counties for a number of years with 



great success. He read law with Wood- 
bury D. Holt, of Trenton, and ex-Senator 
A. V. Schenck, of New Brunswick, was 
admitted to the bar as attorney in 1880, 
and as counsellor in 1883. When his 
father, Rev. Ralph Willis, resigned the 
superintendency of public instruction in 
1886, he was appointed by the Governor 
to fill the vacancy, and was re-appointed 
in 1887, 1890, 1893 and 1896, which 
highly honoralile and useful position he 
continues to hold. Although he has en- 
joj'ed a law practice, consisting princi- 
pally of office work and the settlement 
of estates, paying special attention to 
laws affecting schools and boroughs, his 
chief interest has been in educational 
work. He very successfull}^ advocated 
and operated departmental work in the 
Teachers' Institute. He has also held 
the position of National Educational As- 
sociation managership for the state of 
New Jersey, and the presidency of the 
New Jersey State Teachers' Association. 

He was the first in the state, and as 
far as correspondence Avith the educa- 
tional departments of the states and ter- 
ritories reveal, the first in the United 
States, to advocate placing the American 
flag over every public school-house in the 
land, a measure now almost universally 
adopted. A year or more prior to a reso- 
lution passed, at a meeting of the state 
superintendents of the United States, in 
New York, recommending for the first 
time the raising of flags over public 
schools, Mr. Willis had caused to be 
placed a flag over every school building 
in Middlesex county under his super- 
vision and had drawn a bill, which the 
legislature of New Jersey subsequently 
passed, authorizing the placing of flags 
over school-houses. 

It is claimed that Middlesex county 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



273 



was the first territory in the United 
States, at the suggestion of Mr. Willis, 
to systematically place flags on every 
school building throughout the entire 
county, and that the legislature of New 
Jersey was the first to pass an enactment 
authorizing flags to be purchased out of 
public school money. 

Flag-raisings became occasions of great 
importance, and Mr. Willis, as a speaker 
on these occasions, was greatly in demand. 
He was generally spoken of as the " Pub- 
lic School Flag Eaiser." 

Mr. Willis was also the first superin- 
tendent in the state to establish district 
clerks' associations, county councils of 
education, teachers' township professional 
circles, and public-school day, for the 
improvement of public schools of Middle- 
sex county. For a number of years he 
was the county solicitor and legal adviser 
for the board of chosen freeholders, also 
legal adviser for the board of health of 
the city of New Brunswick. 

On June 12, 1889, he was married to 
Rosa Linda Evans, daughter of John 
Evans, superintendent of the Meyer Rub- 
ber Co., Milltown, Middlesex county. 
New Jersej^ 

JOHN WILSON, justice of the peace, 
^ and during many years a painter con- 
tractor at Oceanic, Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, where he resides, is a son of 
John and Euphemia Wilson, and was 
born in Glasgow, Scotland, May 24, 1820. 
He was educated in private schools at 
Glasgow, and, at the age of ten years, 
went to work with his father, whose voca- 
tion was that of a weaver. At sixteen 
he was entej-ed as an apprentice to a 
painter, serving seven years, and became 
thoroughly proficient in that trade, which 
he followed in Scotland until 1853. He 



came to America in that year, locating in 
New York city, and there remained fif- 
teen years, pursuing his trade ; as a jour- 
neyman for five and as a contractor for 
ten years. In 1868 Mr. Wilson removed 
to Oceanic, then not much more than a 
hamlet, where his trade grew with the 
growth of the town until he became quite 
a prosperous man. He is also a justice 
of the peace of his township, having been 
appointed to that position in 1891 by 
Governor Abbett to succeed the late 
Squire J. H. Haywood, who deceased 
while in office. Mr. Wilson has always 
been identified with the Republican 
party, taking an active interest in town 
and county politics and affairs. He was 
clerk of the school board during a term 
of three years, while he served as a mem- 
ber of that board, and he takes great in- 
terest in town improvements. He was 
one of the organizers of the Ocean Village 
Improvement Society, and is now its trea- 
surer. He has frequently served as a dele- 
gate to county and state conventions held 
by his party, and has always been ag- 
gressive in politics, and true to the Scotch 
blood that courses through his veins ; he 
cannot brook nor cares to acknowledge 
defeat. 

Mr. Wilson was united in marriage in 
1853 to Mary Stuart Cundill, a native of 
Edinburgh, Scotland, and to their union 
were born three sons : Stephen, a painter, 
married and residing in Oceanic ; An- 
drew, unmarried, and one of Oceanic's 
masons ; and John, a painter, residing at 
home. 



T3R0r. CHAELES D. WARNEE, a prom- 
-L inent insurance man, and a leading 
and public-spirited citizen of Red Bank, 
New Jersey, who has materially aided in 
the moral, intellectual and business de- 



274 



Biographical Sketches. 



velopment of his city, is the third son of 
Silas and Sarah Carr Warner, and was 
born at Williainsl)urg, Mass., Sept. 7, 
1831. The Warner foinily is of English 
extraction, and Silas Warner, grandfather, 
was a fanner of near Williamsburg, Mass. 

Silas Warner, father, was born at Wil- 
liamsburg, Mass., and died at Cumming- 
ton, Mass., having removed to that place 
twenty-six years prior to his death. Pie 
was a car|)enter by trade, which he fol- 
lowed all his life. He was a whig in 
politics, and a member of the Congrega- 
tional church. He married Sarah Carr, 
by whom he had six children: Lyman 
and Sarah, who are deceased ; Levi, who 
served three years in the late war, and 
died in the hospital ; Ann, married and 
a resident of northern Illinois ; Dorinda, 
the relict of Henry Smith, and Charles 
D., the third son, who is the subject of 
this sketch. 

On May 12, 1852, Professor Warner 
and Miss Maria A. Bestor, daughter of 
Rev. F. Bestor, of Hartford, Conn., were 
married, and to them have been born 
three children : Frank B., who died at the 
age of thirty-seven years; Catharine, who 
wedded James B. Weaver, resides at Red 
Bank, New Jersey, and Grace, who is a 
popular teacher in the public schools of 
Red Bank. 

Professor Warner received his early 
mental discipline in the common-schools 
of his native town, and afterwards at- 
tended the Cummington Academy of 
Cummington, Mass. He remained there, 
however, but a short time when he en- 
gaged in teaching, which he followed 
twenty-one consecutive years. During 
this time he was a close student as well 
as a proficient teacher. Among the po- 
sitions he filled may be mentioned the 
following : Principalship of the public 



schools, the South Wilbraham Academy, 
and a private school of Cheshire, Mass. 
In 1869 he abandoned teaching and em- 
barked in a general insurance business at 
Red Bank, New Jersey, where he has 
since continued. He is a strong advocate 
of the free school system, and has had a 
long and valuable experience in school 
work, both as teacher and director, and 
to-day he is regarded as one of the lead- 
ing educators of the state. In the autumn, 
after he located at Red Bank, he was 
elected a member of the board of educa- 
tion, has served the city in that capacity 
ever since, and is now president of the 
board. During his regime the value of 
the school property has increased from 
$4,000 to $70,000 ; and in recognition of 
his valuable service the patrons of the 
school of Red Bank have conferred upon 
him the sobriquet of "father of the public 
schools." Politicall}' he is a republican, 
and was mayor of Red Bank one year. 
He is a licensed minister of the Baptist 
church, and has preached frequently as 
a supply, but never in a regular charge. 
He is an earnest worker in the church 
and Sabbath-school. 



TTON. CORNELIUS McGONIGLE, ex- 
-*--J- mayor of South Amboy, New Jer- 
sey, and a leading jeweler of that city, is 
a son of Daniel and Cecilia Dougherty 
McGonigle, and was born Feliruary 18, 
18-15, in county Donegal, Ireland. The 
paternal grandfather, Wm. Dougherty, 
operated a grist mill at Milltown, in 
which the manufacture of barley and oat 
meals were his specialties. He died in 
1846, a devout believer in, the catholic 
faith. His wife, Ann, died in 184-3. They 
left four children — Edward, Ann, Rose, 
and Cecilia. 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



275 



Daniel McGonigle, the father, was a 
native of Ireland. He became a farmer 
and a trader in horses and cattle. In 
1848 he and his son Daniel, and daughter 
Marj, emigrated to America, and for two 
years he was a contractor and builder of 
levees along the Mississippi river. He 
then removed to Brooklyn, N. Y., and 
was engaged in the junk business for ten 
years. He came to South Amboy in 
1865, where he became a successful 
dealer in real estate, and remained in 
that business until his death in 1882. In 
religion he was a catholic, and in politics 
a democrat. His widow survived him 
ten years, and died in 1892. They had 
seven children : Daniel, Mary, John, Ann, 
Patrick, Michael, and Cornelius, the sub- 
ject of this sketch. 

Mr. McGonigle, with his mother and 
sister Ann, and three brothers, John, 
Patrick, and Michael, landed on these 
shores Jan. 1, 1851, debarking at Peck's 
Slip, New York city. He attended the 
public schools of Brooklyn, and later St. 
Mary's catholic school, on York street, 
in that city, until the age of fifteen years. 
In January, 1860, he went to California 
and worked two years for his brothers, 
Daniel and John McGonigle, who were 
gold miners in the hydraulic mines at 
Omega, Nevada county, Cal. From there 
he went to Virginia City, Nevada, but re- 
mained there only a short time. He went 
to Omega, Nevada county, Cal., in 1863, 
and took a position as engineer of a 
saw-mill, where he remained about two 
years. In the latter part of 1865 he be- 
came assistant engineer on a steamboat 
running between San Francisco and Pe- 
taluma. He subsequently worked for 
about a year in hydraulic mining. 

Mr. McGonigle returned from the west 
in 1867, and settled in South Amboy, 

15 



where he opened a shop for repairing 
clocks, watches, and jewelry. This busi- 
ness he continued until July 10, 1870, 
when he removed to his present location, 
at the corner of Bx'oadway and Davis 
streets. He became a dealer in jewelry, 
semng machines, and, later, bicycles. 
Mr. McGonigle is a catholic in religious 
faith, is a member of the Catholic Be- 
nevolent Legion, and was assistant leader 
of Liberty Cornet Band from 1869 to 
1876. He is a democrat in politics, and 
has held various offices in South Amboy. 
He was a member of the town committee 
from 1876 to 1882, and was chairman of 
that body for two years. In 1887 he was 
elected a member of the chosen free- 
holders, and he became very prominent 
and efiicient in their deliberations and 
work. He served as chairman of the 
committee selected to report the Cheese 
Creek bridge. In 1888 he was elected 
the first mayor of South Amboy. He is 
an ex-assistant chief and an ex-chief of 
the fire department of his town. In 1892 
he was elected a member of the town 
council, and he brought to its service 
marked intelligence and zeal allied to a 
broad and liberal public spirit. Mr. Mc- 
Gonigle was married Feb. 10, 1880, to 
Ann Monaghan. 



TTENRY H. CURTIS, ex-mayor of Red 
-L-L Bank, and a thriving hatter of 
that city, is a son of Timothy and Rebec- 
ca Conover Curtis, and was born Aug. 8, 
1843, at Shrewsbur}^, Monmouth county. 
The family name is of English origin. 
His paternal grandfather, John Curtis, 
was a well-known resident of Shrews- 
bury during the active part of his life. 
His father, Timothy Curtis, was a boat- 
man between Red Bank and New York 



276 



Biographical Sketches. 



city for a numljer of years, and after- 
wards captain of a schooner on the 
Navesink river. He was a democrat in 
politics and a w^ell-known citizen of Red 
Bank. His wife was Miss Rebecca Con- 
row, daughter of Luke Conrow, of Shrews- 
bury, and they had eiglit children : 
Charles, Alice, wife of T. W. Adams, of 
Brooklyn, N. Y. ; John, William, Henry 
H., George, R. H. and Maggie, wife of ' 
Japhia Van Dyke, of Long Branch, New ; 
Jersey. Mr. Curtis, Sr., died in 1879. \ 

Henry H. Curtis, the subject, received 
his education in the disti'ict schools at i 
Shrewsbury. When thirteen years of j 
age he went to New York city to learn 
the hatter's trade with M. L. Bryant, 
and remained thei'e a number of years, 
subsequently spending two years in the 
employ of Charles E. Bostwick, at Brook- 
lyn, N. Y., in the same trade. On Sept. 
11, 1868, he removed to Red Bank, and 
established a hat store at No. 3 Broad 
street, which was destroyed by fire in 
1882. He then opened his present store 
at No. 27 Broad street, and has been suc- 
cessful in building up a prosperous busi- 
ness there. | 

His political convictions are with the 
Democratic party, but he is independent 
in local affairs, voting for the best candi- 
date. In 189-3 he was elected mayor of 
Red Bank, and gave his fellow-citizens a j 
vigorous and clean administration. He 
had been town commissioner for two 
terms, and was school dii'ector at Red 
Bank for fifteen years. He is an active 
society man, and is a member of Lodge 
No. 21, F. and A. M. ; Clinton Com- 
manderv. No. 14, of Brooklyn ; Mecca 
Temple"; Post No. 61, G. A. R. ; the 
Royal Arcanum; Improved Order of Red 
Men, and the A. 0. U. W. 

Mr. Curtis saw eighteen mouths of ac- 



tive service during the civil war, with 
the Fifty-fifth New York regiment ; was 
in the Peninsula campaign at the battle 
of Fair Oaks and other engagements. In 
1867 he was married to Miss Margaret S. 
Borden, a daughter of Joseph W. Borden, 
of Red Bank, and they have had three 
children : Harr}' D. A., Fred W. and 
Gi'ace. Mr. Curtis is popular and re- 
spected in Red Bank. He is energetic 
and industrious in his business, and has 
built up success from small beginnings. 
He is genial and frank in his bearing, 
courteous in manners and outspoken in 
his opinions. 

~pvAVID D. DEMAKEST, D.D., LL.D., 
-'— '^ professor of homiletics and pas- 
toral theology in the Theological Semi- 
nary of the Reformed church in America, 
at New Brunswick, president of the 
Histoi'ical Club of New Brunswick, and 
vice-president of the Huguenot Society 
of America, is a son of Daniel P. Deraa- 
rest and Lea Bogert, and was born at 
Oradell, Bergen county. New Jersey, 
July 30, 1819. He is descended from a 
French ancestr}*, his ancestors being 
among the early Huguenots who came to 
America to escape religious persecution, 
and settled in New York, New Jersey 
and Pennsylvania. His grandfather, 
Peter P. Demarest, was a native of Ora^ 
dell, where he resided until his death, 
and was a thrifty and prosperous farmer. 
He was a member of the North Reformed 
Dutch church at Sclu'aalenbei'g, and con- 
tributed materially towards the erection 
of that church. He died in 1847 at Ora- 
dell, aged eighty-two 3'ears, leaving as 
descendants four grandsons, the children 
of his only son, Daniel P., who died in 
1822 in the thirty-second year of his age. 
Daniel P., the father, was educated in 



Biographical Sketches. 



277 



the common school of Oradell, and con- 
tinued on his father's farm after his mar- 
riage. With farming he connected the 
profession of surveyor. He also taught 
school for a very short time. He was a 
consistent and useful member of the 
North Reformed Dutch church of Schraa- 
lenberg, and was one of its deacons. 

He was a man highly respected and 
honored by the community in which he 
resided, and his early death, in 1822, 
was sincerely mourned and deeply re- 
gretted by a large circle of warm and 
personal friends and neighbors. He had 
the following children : Lea, who died in 
childhood; Isaac, Peter, David D., and 
Garret. The mother of subject dep>arted 
this life at Oradell in 1872, aged eighty- 
one years. 

David D. Demarest received his pri- 
mary education in the common school of 
Oradell, and at the age of twelve he went 
to Tappan, N. Y., and afterward to Pat- 
erson, New Jersey, where he prepared 
himself for college. He entered Rutgers 
College in 1835, and was graduated from 
that institution in 1837. He next en- 
tered the theological seminary at New 
Brunswick, and pursued a course of theo- 
logical studies, graduating thence in 
1840. He Avas ordained to the ministry 
and installed pastor of the Reformed 
Dutch church, of Flatbush, Ulster county, 
N. Y., in 1841. From Dec, 1843, to 
Aug., 1852, he was the first pastor of the 
Second Reformed chui'ch at New Bruns- 
wick, which had been organized early in 
1843. His next pastorate was over the 
Reformed Dutch church of Hudson, 
N. Y., where he remained until 1865, a 
period of thirteen years. He was elected 
to a professorship in the theological semi- 
nary of New Brunswick at this time, 
which he accepted and has since most 



acceptably filled, For more than thirty 
years Dr. Demarest has occupied a pro- 
fessorial chair in this institution, and it 
is not too much to say that his eminent 
learning and great skill as a teacher have 
given it a most enviable position among 
our leading theological schools and insti- 
tutions of learning. His pre-eminent 
attainments as a scholar and teacher 
have been recognized by his alma mater, 
which conferred upon him the degree of 
Doctor of Laws (LL.D.), in 1892. The 
degree of Doctor of Divinity (D.D.) had 
previously been conferred on him by 
Princeton College in 1857. 

He is a warm friend of the Historical 
Club of New Brunswick, of which he is 
president; besides, he is an active and 
useful member of the Huguenot Society 
of America, being one of the vice-presi- 
dents of the society. He is a trustee of 
Rutgers College, having been elected in 
1858, and he has been the secretary of 
the trustees since 1866. He was the 
stated clerk of the General Synod of the 
Reformed Dutch church from 1862 to 
1871. 

Dr. Demarest married Miss Catharine 
L. Nevius, daughter of Justice James 
Schureman Nevius, of New Brunswick, 
on Aug. 19, 1846, and they have had 
the following children : Lea, married to 
Prof. Graham Taylor, D.D. ; James S. 
N., Catharine L., married to Oliver 
Davidson ; Mary A., Alfred H., William 
H. S., and Stephen DuBois, since de- 
ceased. 

Dr. Demarest is author of the " His- 
tory and Characteristics of the Reformed 
Church in America ; " of the " Historical 
Discourse," delivered at the centennial 
anniversary of the theological seminary 
in 1884; of the " Historical Discourse," 
delivered in 1886 in Albany, at the bi- 



278 



Biographical Sketches. 



centennial anniversary of the charter of 
that city ; of " Huguenots on the Hack- 
ensack ; " of '• Notes on Catechetics ; " 
on "Liturgies;" and on the "Constitu- 
tion of the Reformed Church in America." 
He has also furnished many articles for 
cyclopedias, reviews and newspapers. 



CHARLES E. ELKINS, a widely-known 
and prosperous farmer of North 
Brunswick township, Middlesex county, 
is a sou of Edward and Jane M. (Tuni- 
son) Elkins, and was born Feb. 14, 1832, 
in the First ward, New Brunswick. The 
name is of Scotch-Irish origin. His pa- 
ternal grandfather, George Elkins, was a 
native of Scotland, but settled in Ireland, 
where he died in his ninety-third year. 
His maternal grandfather was Jacob 
Tunison, of Holland. 

Edward Elkins (father) came from 
Ireland to Nova Scotia in early life, sub- 
sequently^ in 1814 settled at New York 
city, and was a successful distiller there 
for a number of years. Later he removed 
to New Brunswick and built a distillery 
and brewery on Crum Line creek, where 
he also operated a hotel and canal staljles 
until 1851. In the latter year he moved 
on his farm of one hundred and ninety- 
six acres, on the road between New 
Brunswick and Milltown, which he pur- 
chased in 1842, and continued there to 
reside until his death, in 1866, at the age 
of seventy-one years. He was an active 
democrat in politics, and held several 
minor offices during his lifetime, being 
county commissioner of Middlesex county. 
He was an attendant of Christ church. 
New Brunswick. In early life he was a 
memljer of the military troop known as 
the Horse Guards, under Capt. Van D3 ke. 
He was the oldest mason in New Bruns- 



wick, having joined the order in Ireland 
when a young man. His wife was Miss 
Jane M. Tunison, of New Brunswick, by 
Avhom he had nine children : Charles E.; 
Isaac, deceased; Elizabeth, deceased; 
Jane, deceased ; George, deceased ; Isar 
bella, deceased; Ada, Ann, wife of 
Joseph Grover, of New Brunswick, and 
Isaac, now residing in New Brunswick. 

Charles E. Elkins was educated at the 
grammar school in New Brunswick, un- 
der the tutorship of Rev. Mr. Van Liew, 
one of his fellow-students being DeWitt 
Talmage, the eminent divine. At the 
age of thirteen years he left school and 
worked on his father's farm at Milltown 
for several years. He liecame engaged 
subsequently in the boating trade be- 
tween New York and Philadelphia, and 
at one time controlled four boats on the 
North river. In 1857 he purchased 
ninety-three acres of his father's farm in 
North Brunswick township, Middlesex 
county, and has devoted himself to its 
cultivation ever since. He has occupied 
the old homestead for a number of years, 
and has a well-tilled and highlj'-produc- 
tive farm. It is located about two miles 
and a half from New Brunswick and one 
mile from Milltown. In politics Mr. 
Elkins is a Jacksonian democrat, and 
was a candidate for sheriff of Middlesex 
county upon that ticket in 180 9, but was 
defeated. He is a member of Christ 
church, New Brunswick. On jNIarch 13, 
1853, he was married to Miss Mary Isa^ 
bella Hoare, daughter of John J. Hoare, 
of London, England, by whom he has 
had four children : Edward, Marj' G., 
Charles Albert, deceased, and Margaretta 
Jane. 

Mr. Elkins is widely known as a man 
of progressive ideas, and ranks promi- 
nently among the farmers of Middlesex. 



Biographical Sketches. 



279 



TOHN J. ANTONIDES, a well-known 
^ wholesale liquor dealer at Red Bank, 
Monmouth county, and for many years 
proprietor of the West End hotel, in that 
town, is a son of Archibald and Diana W. 
(Johnson) Antonides, and was born Sept. 
24, 1833, at Middletown, in Middletown 
township. He received his education in 
the public schools of Middletown and 
Shrewsbury townships, and at the age of 
seventeen years, became employed upon 
his father's farm, where he remained for 
ten years. In 1861 he became proprietor 
of the West End hotel, at Red Bank, 
which he conducted successfully for seven- 
teen years. In 1882 he established his 
present wholesale liquor business at Red 
Bank, where he has continued ever since. 
He is a democrat, but is not active in 
public affairs. He is a member of Mystic 
Brotherhood Lodge, No. 21, F. and A. M., 
and the Monmouth Boat Club, both of 
Red Bank. He is also a prominent mem- 
ber of the Red Bank fire department. 

On January 20, 1857, Mr. Antonides 
was married to Miss Ann L. Robinson, 
daughter of George R. Robinson, of Mid- 
dletown township, who died in the year 
1864, after having born him two child- 
ren : Ann Ophelia, deceased ; and Vir- 
ginia F. Townsend, wife of Charles Davis, 
of Shrewsbury township. On March 18, 
1875, he was married a second time, 
his wife being Miss Minerva C. Willett, 
daughter of John Willett, of Middletown, 
New Jersey. Mr. Antonides is a pro- 
gressive citizen and a shrewd and suc- 
cessful man of business. He comes of 
Holland-Dutch ancestry, of whom the 
first American progenitor was the emi- 
nent divine, Rev. Vincentius Antonides, 
who was a native of Bergen, in the pro- 
vince of Vriesland, Holland, where he 
was born in 1670. He was sent to this 



country by the classis of Amsterdam, 
Holland, to preach their faith in the 
Dutch towns of Long Island. A leading 
paper of the day says of him : " He was 
a gentleman of extensive learning, of an 
easy, condescending behavior and con- 
versation, and of a regular exemplary 
piety, endeavoring to practice himself 
what he preached to others." 

Johannes, the eldest son of Rev. Vin- 
centius Antonides, was born in the Neth- 
erlands, Oct. 21, 1690, and was the great- 
grandfather of the subject. He married 
Johann Kowenhowen, about 1724, and 
emigrated to this country, locating near 
Freehold, Monmouth county, New Jer- 
sey. Their children were : Petrus, Bar- 
bara, and Johannes. 

Johannes Antonides, grandson of Rev. 
Vincentius Antonides, married Sarah Van 
Dorn, and they had the following child- 
ren : Jacob, born Dec, 1765; Johannes, 
born Dec. 18, 1767; William, born July 
15, 1770 ; Vincentius, born May 24, 
1771; Petrus, born June 26, 1774; and 
Jacob, born Nov. 12, 1780. 

Jacob Antonides, son of Johannes, was 
a blacksmith by trade, a man of con- 
siderable education and intelligence, and 
served in the American army in the war 
of 1812. He married Elizabeth Sutphin, 
of Freehold, who died in 1850. They had 
the following children : John, born Nov. 
23, 1801 ; Abraham, born Oct. 19, 1804; 
Sarah, born March 22, 1807, Archibald, 
born Nov. 2, 1808; Phoebe, born July 
26, 1810; Deborah, born Sept. 9, 1812; 
and Eliza Ann, born Dec. 20, 1816. 

Archibald Antonides (father) was born 
at Dutch Lane, near Freehold, New Jer- 
sey. He spent the early years of his life 
at the place of his birth, but subsequently 
purchased a small farm near Middletown, 
which he operated successfully for thirty 



280 



Biographical Sketches. 



years. His subsequent life was spent at 
Red Bank, New Jersey, where for a num- 
ber of years he was engaged in the manu- 
facture and sale of kindling-wood. He 
was a democrat and a member of the 
Presbyterian church of" Red Bank, of 
which he was successive!}' deacon and 
elder. 

He married Miss Diana Worth John- 
son, a daughter of John Nivison and Har- 
riet Platte Worth Johnson, and their 
children were as follows : Almira, born 
Ma}' 14, 1830 ; John J., the subject, born 
Sept. 24, 183.3; Jacob, born Nov. 9, 1835; 
Anna B., born Feb. 27, 1838 ; Hannah 
F., born March 17,1840 ; Sidney C, born 
March 8, 1842 ; Archibald, Jr., born Jan. 
16, 1844 ; Mary Catharine, born June 6, 
1846. Archibald, father of the subject, 
died June 3, 1883, his wife, Diana W., 
following him Nov. 2, 1888. 



TXTILLIAM HENRY DAVIS, the popu- 
' ' lar and well-known proprietor of 
the " American House," at Freehold, 
New Jersey, and one of the most promi- 
nent and best-known secret society men 
in the state, is a son of William and 
Sarah Wells Davis, and was born at Med- 
ford, Burlington county, New Jersey. 

The original American progenitor of 
that branch of the Davis family from 
which the subject is a direct descendant, 
was one of the traditional three brothers 
who came to this country from England 
some time prior to the American Revolu- 
tion, and settled in New Jersey. The : 
earliest descendant of whom we are able i 
to record any authentic account was John ■ 
Davis, grandfather of William H. Davis, 
who was the proprietor of a famous hos- 
telry at Bull's Head, six miles from 
Mount Holl}', Burlington county, New i 



Jersey, where he resided all his life. He 
was an enthusiastic old-line whig. His 
father bore a commission in the Conti- 
nental army of the Revolution. 

William Davis^ father of William H., 
was born and reared on the old home- 
stead, near Moorestown, in Burlington 
county. He learned the carpenter trade 
but never folloAved it to any extent. 
Later he engaged for a time in the hotel 
business at Medford, New Jersey, subse- 
quently at Mount Holly, and finally re- 
moved to Freehold and became proprie- 
tor of the American House, which he con- 
ducted up to his death, March 28, 1888, 
djdng at the age of sixty-one years. He 
was a liberal republican in politics, was 
a member of Pocahontas Lodge, I. 0. 0. 
F., of Moorestown, and of the encamp- 
ment at Mount Holly. He was the 
father of two children : Hannah A., who 
married James Shinn, son of Hon. George 
W. Shinn, and William H., the subject of 
this sketch. James Shinn and his wife 
resided at Freeliold, where he was en- 
gaged in the mercantile business up to 
his death in 1894. Mrs. William Davis, 
the mother, died April 26, 1823, at the 
age of seventy-one years. 

William Henry Davis received his 
education in various schools, and gradu- 
ated from the Freehold Institute, the 
well-known and popular seat of learning 
at that time. After leaving school he 
remained with his father, giving his 
entire time and attention to assisting in 
the management of the hotel business, 
and continued with him up to his death, 
when he succeeded him as proprietor and 
has continued as a popular host ever 
since. Politically he is a democrat, and 
as such has held various positions. 
While popular as a hotel proprietor he is 
more conspicuous and better known 



Biographical Sketches. 



281 



throughout the state as a society man, 
being a past master of Olive Branch 
Lodge, No. 16, F. and A. M. ; a past 
grand of Monmouth Lodge, No. 20, I. 0. 
0. F.; a past chancellor of Tennent 
Lodge, No. 69, K. of P., and at pres- 
ent deputy grand chancellor for the 
seventeenth district of the Knights of 
Pythias of the state of New Jersey, and 
first lieutenant of Freehold Division, U. 
R., K. of P. He is also a member of 
Hiram Chapter, No. 1, Roj^al Arch 
Masons, of Red Bank, of Corson Com- 
mandery. No. 15, Knights Templar, of 
Asbury Park and of the A. A. 0. of 
Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is 
also an active member of the vol- 
unteer fire department of Freehold, 
having served as president, vice-presi- 
dent, treasurer, member of the finance 
committee and foreman of the truck com- 
pany. He is especially deserving of 
credit for meritorious services rendered in 
the interest of this organization. He is 
also a member and at one time served as 
a director of the Freehold board of trade. 



T^DWARD S. ALLAIRE, a leading real- 
-*-^ estate and insurance man of Red 
Bank, Monmouth county, is a son of An- 
thony M. and Margaret Christie Allaire, 
and was born Aug. 28, 1834, at New 
York city. The name is of French Hu- 
guenot origin, and the American branch I 
of the family is descended from Alexander i 
Allaire, who came from Rochelle, France, 
in 1699, and settled in Westchester 
county, N. Y. Details of the family 
record will be found in the sketch of 
George D. Allaire. 

Anthony M. Allaire (father), was born i 
in New York city in 1810, and in early \ 
life learned trunk-making, which trade j 



he followed in New York city for several 
years. He subsequently became a butcher 
and conducted a successful business both 
in New York city and at Red Bank, 
whither he removed in 1860. He retired 
from active life in 1880, and died in 1881, 
when seventy years of age. He was a re- 
publican in politics, and an active mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church at 
Red Bank. During his residence in Ncav 
York he was a jarominent member of the 
fire department of that city. His wife 
was Margaret Christie, daughter of Wil- 
liam Christie, of New Y^ork, who died in 
1886, having born him these children : 
Matilda D., wife of Gilbert L. Crowell, of 
Arlington, New Jersey; Edward S., sub- 
ject; William C, deceased; Jemima, de- 
ceased ; and Anthony, Jr. 

Edward S. Allaire received a common- 
school and college preparatory education 
in New York city, and subsequently read 
law for fifteen months in the office of 
Wightman & Clark, of that city. He 
then spent four years in an insurance 
office there, and afterwards became asso- 
ciated with his father in the butchering 
business, Avhich he followed thereafter for 
twenty years. In 1872 Mr. Allaire re- 
moved to Red Bank and established him- 
self in the insurance business, in which 
he has been eminently successful ever 
since. His son, Edward S.. Allaire, Jr., is 
associated with him, the firm name being 
Allaire & Son, and in addition to I'epre- 
senting several of the leading insurance 
companies of the United States, they also 
conduct the largest real-estate business in 
Red Bank. Mr. Allaire is a republican 
in politics, but in local matters casts his 
vote for the best candidate, regardless of 
party. He was commissioner of Red Bank 
for four years. He is a member of the First 
Methodist Ejpiscopal church of Red Bank, 



282 



Biographical Sketches. 



of which he has been trustee for several 
years. On Sept. 28, 1859, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Sarah C. Parkes, daughter 
of L. W. and Julia S. Parkes, of New 
York, and they had nine children : Ed- 
ward P., deceased ; Julia S., deceased ; 
Margaret C, deceased ; Sarah C, Emma 
Louise, Edward S., Jr., Margaret C, Julia 
Spencer, and Josephine Bonaparte. Mr. 
Allaire is widely known and respected. 
He is energetic and industrious in his 
business, qualities which have brought 
him a full measure of success. 



TTERMAN GETSINGER, a leading gro- 
-L-L cer of Spring Lake, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, and a citizen promi- 
nently identified with its development 
and progress, is a son of Francis and Mar- 
garet Matthias Getsinger, and was born 
Nov. 14, 1849, in Trenton, New Jersey. 
His paternal ancestry is Teutonic, and 
on his mother's side is of French origin. 
His father was born at Baden, Germany, 
in 1818, and lived there until his twen- 
tieth year, when he emigrated to the 
United States, and located in New York 
city. He subsequenth" removed to Tren- 
ton, and later, in 1852, settled in Allen- 
town, New Jersey. His business was 
that of a manufacturer of and dealer in 
boots and shoes, which he carried on suc- 
cessfull}^ in the places named. He was 
a member of the Pi'esljytei'ian denomi- 
nation, and was especially active in the 
work of that church in Allentown. Po- 
litically, he was a democrat, but found no 
particular zest in party labor. He was 
for a time vice-president of the Allentown 
burial association. In 1844 he married 
Margaret Matthias, by whom he had 
seven children : Frank, William, Herman, 
Elizabeth (Mrs. Arthur Borden) ; Marga- 



ret, deceased; Mary (Mrs. Austin Curtis), 
and Henry, deceased. He died May, 
1891. The first three j-ears of Herman 
Getsinger's life were spent in Trenttm. 
He then moved with his parents to Allen- 
town, where he subsequently entered the 
district schools and acquired a common- 
school education. At the age of eighteen 
he returned to Trenton, and was appren- 
ticed to Snedeker & Jarvis, masons and 
contractors, for three years. He became 
a journe3'^man mason, and worked suc- 
cessfull}^ at his trade for ten years, three 
years in Philadelphia, three in Chicago, 
and four in Allentown. In 1881 Mr. 
Getsinger located at Spring Lake, his pre- 
sent home, as a pioneer builder, contrac- 
tor and business man of that town. He 
embarked in 1884 in the grocery business 
at Spring Lake with such success as en- 
abled him to move in two years from a 
small rented store, 16x18 feet in size, to 
his own building, 35 feet wide, 30 feet 
high and 51 feet in depth. Here he has 
been since 1886, in Thiid avenue, Spring 
Lake, a leading importer and jobber of 
staple and fancy groceries. 

Mr. Getsinger is a member of the Meth- 
odist Episcojjal church, and has been a 
steward of that church in Spring Lake 
for two years. He is conservative and 
independent in his political views, but 
adheres to the Democratic party. He is 
a memljer of council of the borough of 
Spring Lake, having received four suc- 
cessive elections, and during those eight 
years he has served on important com- 
mittees. He is an incorporator and stock- 
holder of the North Spring Lake Water 
Co. He was married to Miss Carrie Lud- 
low, an old-time resident of Spring Lake, 
and the}- have one daughter, Jessie. Mr. 
Getsinger devotes much time to the study 
of ways and means looking to the devel- 



Biographical Sketches. 



283 



opment of Spring Lake. Progressive 
himself, he is foremost in every work of 
internal improvement; intelligent and 
enlightened, he demands perfection in 
the educational system of his town. 



JOHN GAREETSON SCHANCK, presi- 
^ dent of the board of commissioners 
and a thriving coal, wood and ice dealer 
of Keyport, Monmouth county, New Jer- 
sey, is a son of Gordon and Catherine 
(Garretson) Schanck, and was born Jan. 
18, 1860, at Freehold, in the county 
above named. He, originally, is of Hol- 
land-Dutch extraction, but his grand- 
father and father are native-born Ameri- 
cans. The former, John Schanck, was 
born at Marlboro, but a few miles from 
Freehold. He received a common-school 
education, and later worked upon a farm. 
He subsequently became the owner of 
a tract of good farming land near Marl- 
boro, which he improved and brought to 
a high state of cultivation. In politics 
he was a democrat. He was twice mar- 
ried. His first wife, a Miss Hendrickson, 
bore him two children: Elizabeth, mar- 
ried to Daniel Conover, of Holmdel, and 
Gordon, father of subject. By his second 
wife, Mrs. Wilber, he had six children, 
four sons and two daughters: John, 
Kobert, Morris, Charles, Henrietta, wife 
of J. B. Crawford, of Holmdel; and Chris- 
tine, who married John Longstreet, of 
Keyport. He died about the year 1868, 
at the age of sixty-five years. 

Gordon Schanck, father, was born near 
Marlboro Dec. 15, 1828. He conducted 
a farm there until 1886, Avhen he moved 
to Asbury Park and went into the coal 
business. He was a large dealer in that 
place, and carried on a very successful 
business to the day of his death, Jan. 



23, 1894. He was a democrat politically, 
but he never engaged in any active work 
for the party. His widow still survives 
him and is living at Newark, New Jersey. 
They were the parents of three children : 
William G., John Garretson, and Katha- 
rine, who married Charles W. Jewett, of 
New York city. 

Mr. Schanck received his primary edu- 
cation in the common schools of Marl- 
boro, and later took a four years' course 
at the Glenwood Institute at Matawan. 
After remaining with his father on the 
farm for five years he went to Spring 
Lake, and there engaged with his brother 
William in the coal business. He sub- 
sequently, after two years, went to Marl- 
boro and resumed the occu|)ation of a 
farmer. In 1886 he removed to Asbury 
Park and jomed his father in the coal 
trade. He continued in this connection 
four years, and then came to Keypoi't, his 
present home, and opened up a large yard 
for the sale of coal, wood and ice. He 
has every reason to be satisfied with the 
results of this enterprise, for ever since 
its establisment he has done an extensive 
and remunerative business. Mr. Schanck 
is a director and the treasurer of the 
Holmdel and Keyport Turnpike Co., re- 
puted to be one of the best highways in 
the state, and he is one of the stock- 
holders of the People's National Bank of 
Keyport. In politics he is a democrat 
and is well-known as an active party 
worker. In 1891 he was elected presi- 
dent of the board of commissioners of 
Keyport, and is still the incumbent ot 
that office ; the length of his service in 
that honorable position exceeding that of 
any of his predecessors. Mr. Schanck 
was married Nov. 26, 1885, to Martha W. 
Seabrook, a daughter of Henry H. Sea- 
brook, of Keyport. They are rearing a 



284 



Biographical Sketches. 



family of five intei-esting children : The- 
rese W., Hilda, Gordon, H. Seabrook, and 
John Leon. 



IV /TOEGAN D. L. MAGEE, cashier of the 
-^-'- First National Bank of Manas- 
quan, Monmouth county, and one of the 
most progressive and influential citizens 
of that town, is a son of James and 
Catherine Warne Magee, and was born 
Sept. 17, 1858, at Matawan, Monmouth 
county. His early life was spent at 
Matawan, where he received an excel- 
lent education at the famous Glen wood 
Institute. From the age of fifteen he 
has been continuously connected with 
banking affairs, having become a junior 
clerk in the State Bank, Matawan, at 
that age, where he remained until 1883. 
He then removed to Manasquan upon 
the organization of the First National 
Bank of that town, and became a book- 
keeper; retaining that position until 
1886, Avhen, upon the resignation of 
Mr. John Terhnne, the first cashier, Mr. 
Magee was elected cashier by the board 
of directors. He has remained in that 
responsible position ever since, and by 
his zeal and energy has been largely 
instrumental in bringing about the pres- 
ent prosperous condition of the institu- 
tion. The bank is one of the most sub- 
stantial in the state, and during 1895 
declared a 12 per cent, dividend, the sur- 
plus and profits being $68,000. The 
stock, which is $1.00 at par, now sells at 
a premium of $1.50. In addition to the 
officers the institution employs four clerks 
and is run on the strictest business prin- 
ciples. Mr. Magee has devoted his career 
entirely to business affairs, and takes no 
active part in politics. He is a member of 
Wall Lodge, No. 73, F. and A. M. In 1881 
he was married to Miss Marie Louise 



Maggs, a daughter of J. Wm. Maggs, of 
Matawan, and they have had three chil- 
dren: Margaret T., Gladjs Louise, and 
Roger Mortimer. Mr. Magee is wrapped 
up heart and soul in his business, and has 
displaj-ed constant energy and enterprise 
in building up the affairs of the bank. 
He possesses the full confidence and es- 
teem of his fellow-citizens, and is regarded 
as one of the most influential men in the 
progress of Manasquan. 



pi EORGE J). ALLAIRE, a prominent 
^-^ retired mei'chant, of Red Bank, 
Monmouth county, and one of the best 
known citizens of that town, is a son of 
John Uytendale and Julia Van Tassel 
Allaire, and was born Sept. 5, 1822, at 
Sleepy Hollow, Westchester county, N. Y. 
The name is of French Huguenot origin, 
and the family is an old historic one. 
The earliest known ancestor was Pierre 
Allaire, of Rochelle, France, whose son, 
Alexander, came to America in 1699, and 
settled in Westchester county, N. Y. 
His son, Alexander, was the great-grand- 
father of the subject of this sketch, and 
was twice married; his first wife being 
Esther Clothworthy, and his second, Mary 
Lispenard. He had two sons, Anthony 
and Uytendale ; the latter, the subject's 
grandfather. Uytendale Allaire was a 
prosperous and wadely-known farmer in 
Westchester county, N. Y. His wife 
was Sarah Seaman, by whom he had 
thirteen children: Elizabeth, Catherine, 
Anna, Jane, Susan, Seaman, Alexander, 
Henrietta, Sarah U., John U., Samuel, 
Uytendale, and Edwin. He died about 
1825. 

John U. Allaire, father, was born in 
Westchester county, N. Y., in 1789, and 
taught school there during his early life. 




(^ X <AI ^ /^tc^^^i-T-t-o 



Biographical Sketches. 



287 



He was then engaged on the Hudson 
river steamboats plying between New 
York city and Sing Sing, and in 1838 re- 
moved to Red Bank, New Jersey, where 
he became a well-known boat builder. 
Among the vessels which he commanded 
on the Navesink river were the "Frank," 
"Isis," "Osiris," "lolus," and "Horus;" 
the latter being chartered by the govern- 
ment during the civil war. He also, 
about 1850, built the "Confidence" for 
Thomas Hunt, a wealthy New York cloth 
importer, after which he retired. He 
continued to reside at Red Bank until his 
death in 1879, when ninety years of age. 
He was an old-line whig in politics, and 
had served in the war of 1812. He was a 
devout member of the Protestant Episco- 
pal church at Red Bank. His wife was 
Miss Julia Van Tassel, of Tarrytown, 
Westchester county, who died in 1872 
after having born him seven children: 
John Edward, James D., who was lost on 
the steamer "Home" in 1837; George 
D., subject; Sarah Elizabeth, wife of 
Samuel Bennett, of Monmouth county. 
New Jersey; Anthony, Maria U., de- 
ceased, and Samuel. 

George D. Allaire, subject of this sketch, 
received a good English education in New 
York city, where his parents resided 
during his boyhood. When fifteen years 
of age he removed to Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, and became a school-teacher 
at Allaire, in Wall township, a place 
named after his family, and subsequently 
at Shrewsbury and Red Bank. In 1847 
he entered the lumber business at Red 
Bank. In 1855 he took in as partner 
Jos. A. Throckmorton, who succeeded 
him. He conducted a flourishing and 
successful business for twenty years, then 
retired and continued to reside at Red 
Bank ever since. He is a zealous church- 



man, was one of the charter members of 
the Protestant Episcopal church at Red 
Bank, has been warden, vestryman, and 
treasurer of the church, and superintend- 
ent of the Sunday-school, and was a lay 
reader for many years. He is a republi- 
can in politics, but takes no active in- 
terest in public aflairs. During the civil 
war he was exempted from service on ac- 
count of defective hearing. On Jan. 21, 
1847, he was married to Miss Mary M. 
Mount, daughter of Forman Mount, of 
Red Bank, by whom he has had six 
children : James D., Henry Clay, Flora, 
Mary M., wife of L. C. Brown, of Brook- 
lyn, N.Y.; Alexander F., deceased, and 
Alfred T., deceased. 



np\R. ARCHIBALD ALEXANDER HIG- 
-'-^ GINS, prominent as a physican 
and ex-lay judge of Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, residing at Manasquan, was 
born at Princeton, Sept. 29, 1827, and is 
a son of Henry and Catherine Duvary 
Higgins. He comes from Scotch-Eng- 
lish stock, his ancestors having emigrated 
from England and settled near Prince- 
ton, New Jersey, about the year 1700. 
His grandfather, Jediah Higgins, was 
born near Princeton, Jan. 18, 1762, and 
died Jan. 6, 1810, at the age of forty-nine 
years. His grandmother, Henrietta 
Cruser Higgins, was born Oct. 28, 1762, 
and died Jan. 25, 1824. His father, 
Henry Higgins, was born Sept. 15, 1784, 
at Princeton, and after obtaining his 
education learned the trade of a hatter, 
but more especially devoted himself to 
the business of insurance during his life- 
time. He was the organizer of the Mer- 
cer County Fire Insurance Company, and 
one of its directors. He was also one of 
the founders of the Pennington Seminary, 



288 



Biographical Sketches. 



and a member of its board of directors. 
For a number of years he was connected 
with the Mercer County Mutual Insur- 
ance Company, which is tlie parent of all 
the insurance companies in the state of 
New Jersey. Mr. Higgins left Princeton 
in 1836 and made Pennington his place 
of residence for ten years, returning to 
Princeton at the end of that period. His 
reputation for industry and ability while 
connected with the Mercer County Mu- 
tual Insurance Company was very high, 
and for a period of five years he was its 
only agent. He died in May, 1869, at the 
age of sixty-one. To his marriage were 
born ninechildren,two of whom died in in- 
fancy ; the others were : Maria, married 
to Rev. Peter Dougherty and deceased in 
1876 ; Susan, married to William Row- 
land, of Virginia; Cornelia, Archibald 
Alexander, subject ; Charles, deceased ; 
James, deceased, and Anna. 

Dr. Higgins attended the public schools 
of Princeton, and then studied under pri- 
vate tutors for a time, after which he 
entered Pennington Seminary, and en- 
joys the distinction of having been one of 
the first three pupils who attended that 
institution. Graduating from Penning- 
ton Seminar}' he entered the junior class 
of Princeton College, and Avas graduated 
in 1846, at the age of eighteen. He 
then adopted the profession of teaching, 
and for four years was a teacher in the 
Burlington county select school at Vin- 
centown. At the age of twenty-three he 
removed to Philadelphia and accepted a 
position in the office of Meade & Co., 
afterwards Meade & Biddle, on Spruce 
street, where he remained for three years. 
He then entered tlie medical school of the 
University of Pennsylvania, and gradu- 
ated therefrom in the class of '54. He 
also studied at the Pennsylvania and 



Wills' Eye hospitals. In the spring of 
1854 he removed to Freehold and en- 
gaged in the general practice of medicine, 
but his residence there was only tempo- 
rary, for in November of the same year 
he removed to Manasquan, where he has 
resided since. His practice has always 
been a large and lucrative one. 

Dr. Higgins has always been a demo- 
crat and an active worker for his party. 
He was a member of the general assem- 
bly in 1888 and 1889, and for many 
years a delegate to congressional and 
state conventions. In April, 1893, he 
was appointed by Governor Werts a lay 
judge of Monmouth county, and served 
until March 31, 1896, when he was legis- 
lated out of office by a special act of the 
legislature, removing all lay judges by 
abolishing the office. He has taken 
much interest in educational matters, and 
for a term of years was a member of the 
board of school trustees of Manasquan. 
He is a member and past officer of the 
masonic order. Lodge No. 73, and one of 
the charter members of Manasquan 
Lodge, I 0. 0. F. 

The successful development of the 
shore front of Wall township is owing in 
a very great degree to the effijrts of Dr. 
Higgins, and the good-roads movement 
along the shore received its impetus from 
his hands, he being the father of the 
turnpike bill in the legislature. 

Dr. Higgins was wedded to Eliza Sage, 
daughter of Josiah Sage, of Richfield 
county. Conn., and to their marriage 
have been born two children : Henry H., 
who died in infanc}', and Archibald Sage 
Higgins, M. D., a practicing physician at 
Manasquan, who graduated from Belle- 
vue Hospital Medical College in 1892 ; 
located for two years at Mendon, Monroe 
county, N. Y., and removed Jan., 1895, 



Biographical Sketches. 



289 



to Manasquan, where he now resides. 
Young Dr. Higgms, on Oct. 27, 1892, 
married Anna Tajdor, a daughter of Ben- 
jamin Darby, of Elizabeth, New Jersey, 
and they have two children : Caroline 
D. and Archibald Alexander, Jr. 



REV. ALEXANDER H. YOUNG, D.D., 
pastor of the Presbyterian church 
of Matawan, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Rev. Robert and Cath- 
arine Young, and was born in Louisville, 
Ky. He is of Scotch descent, all the 
members of his ancestral line reaching 
down to both father and mother having 
been natives of Scotland. His father. 
Rev. Robert Young, graduated at the 
University of Glasgow and was licensed 
to preach by the Established Church of 
Scotland. He came to America in 1831, 
and located in Cincinnati, 0. In addi- 
tion to preaching he spent a large part of 
his life as a successful educator of youth 
in the Ohio Valley. Catharine Young, 
the mother of Dr. \ oung, was the daugh- 
ter of Andrew and Elizabeth Harvey, 
who settled in Cincinnati about 1820. 
She still lives in Cincinnati, on part of 
the farm then purchased. 

Rev. Alexander H. Young attended 
the private school of his father, at Louis- 
ville, Ky., where he spent his earlier 
years, and subsequently in those at Cin- 
cinnati, 0., whither the family had re- 
moved. His collegiate education was 
obtained at Miami University, Oxford, 
0., and his theological course he took at 
Lane University, Walnut Hills, in the 
same state. He was ordained to the 
work of the presby terian ministry by the 
presbytery of Chillicothe. His first pul- 
pit assignment was at South Salem, 0., 
which he occupied from 1864 to 1869. 



During the civil war he was a delegate to 
the United States Christian Commission 
for two years, serving at Chattanooga, 
Tenn., in the winter of 1863, and at City 
Point, Va., in the spring of 1865. From 
1869 to 1872 he was pastor of the Ox- 
ford, 0., Presbyterian church, and during 
his residence in that town he was ap- 
pointed trustee of Miami University by 
the governor of Ohio. In 1872 he re- 
ceived a call to the pastorate of the 
Reformed church of Greenville, New Jer- 
sey, which he served as its first pastor 
until 1881, a term of nine years. In 
1882 he assumed charge of the Presby- 
terian church of Newton, New Jersey. 
Upon his advent there he found a united 
and powerful church, strong in numbers 
and beyond question the wealthiest and 
most influential in the Presbytery of 
Newton. Its line of progress was greatly 
augmented in every feature of church 
work by Mr. Young's great natural abil- 
ity as a pulpit orator and his christian 
diplomacy and pastoral tact. From an 
education by the best masters, from cul- 
tured associations and extensive travel, 
he has gathered polish. His wide ex- 
perience and excellent judgment, com- 
bined with his native southern character- 
istics make up an exceedingly pleasant 
personality and delineate the character 
in his countenance. During his minis- 
try of the Newton church a debt of five 
thousand dollars was liquidated, and a 
stone chapel, the most beautiful church 
edifice in northern New Jersey, was 
erected at an outlay of eleven thousand 
dollars free of incumbrance. While this 
was being done the beneficent work of 
the church constantly increased, and 
domestic and foreign missions received 
many thousands of dollars from his con- 
gregation, the church becoming known 



290 



Biographical Sketches. 



in the Newton Presbj'tery as the mis- 
sionary church. 

Rev. Mr. Young toward the close of 
his pastorate of the Newton church, in 
May, 1890, received the honorary degree 
of Doctor of Divinity from the College of 
Maryville, Tenn. After a service of 
nearly nine years Dr. Young was com- 
pelled, by reason of business affairs that 
demanded his attention, to resign the 
Newton church pastorate, and for about 
two and a half years he remained with- 
out any pastoral charge, although during 
that time it was a rare occurrence for 
him not to be occupjdng a brother minis- 
ter's pulpit and expounding Bible truths 
on each successive Lord's Day. On Dec. 
17, 1893, Dr. Young was invited to 
preach in the Presbyterian church in 
Matawan, and on the following Sunday 
a congregational meeting was called, at 
which he was chosen its pastor. This 
church, widely known for the marked 
intelligence, culture, and liberalit}' of its 
members, received Dr. and Mrs. Younsr 
with great cordiality, and from the first 
has co-operated with them most heartily 
in all lines of christian activity. Mrs. 
Young is well known throughout the 
state as one of the most devoted and 
efficient workers in the cause of mis- 
sions, and is frequently called upon to 
give Bible readings and to deliver ad- 
dresses in the interest of home and for- 
eign missions. Dr. Young was united in 
marriage to this estimable lady, Sarah 
(Everett) Oliver, youngest daughter of 
David and Mary Wade Oliver, March IG, 
1869. Her grandparents, David E. and 
Mary I. Wade, were among the earliest set- 
tlers of Cincinnati, 0., and migrated there 
from Connecticut Farms, New Jersey, 
about 1795. A. large number of both Dr. 
and Mrs. Young's relatives still reside in 



and around Cincinnati. The issue of this 
union were three sons : A. Oliver, gi-adu- 
ate from Princeton in 1892, deceased 
near the end of his first ^ear at Harvard 
Law College ; Harvey W., a graduate of 
Princeton, in the class of 1894, now in 
his senior }ear at the Medical departs 
ment of the University of New York, 
and Robert S., now attending the New- 
ark Academy. 



A LFRED L. STORMS, justice of the 
^^--*- peace at New Market, Piscataway 
township, and one of the oldest and most 
influential citizens of that town, is a son 
of John and Christiana Gates Stoi-ms, 
and was born August 1, 1824, at New 
York city. He received his elementary 
education in the New York public scliools, 
and subsequently took an academic course 
at Wilmington, Delawax'e, under Rev. 
Samuel M. Galey. Upon completing his 
studies he had a severe attack of brain 
fever, followed by inflammation of the 
eyes. When his health was restored he 
studied law under Ambrose L. Jordan, 
the celebrated criminal lawyer and attor- 
nej^-general of New York, and was ad- 
mitted to the bar as attorney and coun- 
sellor at law. He then went west, in 
1858, and for two years held a govern- 
ment position as surveyor of public lands 
in Kansas and Nebraska, and in 1859 he 
was appointed surveyor of Coffey county, 
Kansas, serving until the outbreak of 
the civil war, when he was made chief 
clerk in the receiving office of the com- 
missary department at Fort Leavenworth, 
Kansas, remaining there until the close 
of the war. He then moved to New 
Jersey, and bought a property at Clinton, 
where he resided for twelve years. In 
1877 he removed to New Market, which 



Biographical Sketches. 



291 



has been his home ever since. For ten 
years Mr. Storms was the state represen- 
tative of Ivison, Blakeman, Taylor & Co., 
of New York city, school-book publishers, 
and in this capacity he traveled all over 
New Jersey, and became well known in 
every school district in the state. In 
early life he was a democrat, but after- 
wards joined the republican party. He 
was elected justice of the peace at New 
Market, in 1878, and has served continu- 
ously ever since. He is a leading mem- 
ber of Stuart Lodge, No. 34, F. and A. 
M., of Clinton, New Jersey. In 1849, 
he was married to Miss Eliza Jordan, 
daughter of Daniel Jordan, brother of 
Ambrose L. Jordan, of Palmyra, N. Y., 
by whom he has had three children : 
William J., married to Miss Jennie Ever- 
ett, and resident of Mexico ; Victoi'ia 
Eva, wife of Isaac Bain, living in Kinder- 
hook, New York state : and Kate, wife 
of E. I. Ingham, living in Clinton, New 
Jersey. 

Mr. Storms, although no longer in ac- 
tive business life, is possessed of energy 
and enterprise. He is an intiuential 
factor in local affairs at New Market, 
and is respected by his fellow-townsmen. 
He is well-read, has seen a great deal 
of the world, and is an entertaining con- 
versationalist. 

The Storms family is of German origin. 
Mr. Storms' paternal grandfather, John 
Storms, was one of the early settlers of 
Duchess county, N. Y., and was a pros- 
perous farmer there all his life. He was 
a democrat in politics, and a faithful 
member of the Baptist church. He died 
in 1824, his children being, Gregory, 
John, William, Harrison, Rachael, Han- 
nah, and Elvira. 

Mr. John Storms, his father, was edu- 
cated in the common schools of Ontario 



county, N. Y., was a successful farmer 
throughout his life, and at the time of 
his death, in 1854, owned a fine farm of 
one hundred and thirty acres, near Ge- 
neva, N. Y. He was a democrat in 
politics, was colonel of a regiment in the 
New York state militia, and was a very 
active member of the Baptist church, of 
which he was a deacon for a number of 
years. He was twice married. By his 
first wife, Christiana Gates, who died in 
1840, he had two children : Mary Jane, 
wife of John B. Sweet, now living on the 
old homestead, near Geneva, and Alfred 
L., the subject of this sketch. His second 
wife, Malone Hall, died in 1860, and 
without issue. 



T30BT. L. ADAMS, or "Captain Adams," 
-'-*' as he is more popularly known in 
the social and business circles of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Luther and Catherine Adams of that 
city, and was born Nov. 5, 1859. He 
was reared and educated in the public 
schools of New Brunswick, his native 
city, and since reaching manhood has 
been closely identified with her material 
prosperity, and has been a prominent 
resident to the present time. When a 
young man he became employed on a 
river steamboat for some time. He, in 
course of time, through his fidelity to 
duty and general tact, succeeded to the 
command of a vessel plying on the Rari- 
tan river, and he profited by the experi- 
ence he gained to such an extent that he 
has now the entire charge of a number of 
boats running from New Brunswick to 
various other ports along the line of that 
river and Raritan bay, some of them going 
to New York. 

Captain Adams is a master of his call- 



292 



Biographical Sketches. 



ing, a thorough gentleman, and is highly 
esteemed in merchant marine circles. 
He is a staunch republican in politics, 
and an active spirit in its ranks. He is 
a faithful and attentive member of Good 
Will Council, No. 32, Jr. 0. U. A. M., of 
New Brunswick, and is ever alert and 
zealous in the advancement of its inter- 
ests. He is favorably regarded, and very 
highly esteemed, by all who intimately 
know him; and in business circles espe- 
cially his high sense of honor and strict 
integrity have gained for him no little 
prominence. Captain Adams was mar- 
ried on Nov. 28, 1889, to Miss Maria 
Allen, daughter of Elias T. and Elizabeth 
Allen, of Brooklyn, N. Y., and they have 
one child, Clarence L. 



~r O. BEDFORD, a leading grocer of 
^ • New Brunswick, Middlesex county. 
New Jersey, is a son of John and Ma- 
tilda Bedford, and was born Sept. 5, 
1821, at Columbia, Morris county. The 
grandfather, David Bedford, was a 
farmer by occupation, and resided all 
his life at Columbia, where he died 
at the age of sixty years. John Bed- 
ford, fathei", was a native of New Jersey, 
being born in Morris county. He pur- 
sued the occupation of an agriculturalist 
near the place of his birth up to the 
time of his death. In politics he was a 
democrat, and he served in the American 
army during the war of 1812-15. His 
union by marriage with Matilda Kichel 
resulted in the issue of these children : 
William, Phoebe, Margaret, J. 0., sub- 
ject; George, and David. 

J. 0. Bedfoi'd was reared on his father's 
farm, and his education was derived from 
the common schools of that neighbor- 
hood. In 1844 he left the farm and en- 



gaged as traveling salesman in the broom 
business until 1861, when he removed to 
New Brunswick. During a period of 
thirty years subsequent to his locating 
here he was engaged as an express mes- 
senger on the New Jersey railroad, his 
operations being carried on between New 
Brunswick and New York city. He re- 
signed this position and ernbai-ked in the 
retail grocery trade at New Brunswick, 
a business he is still conducting very 
successfully. He carries a large line of 
fine goods, is neat, orderly and method- 
ical in his business habits, and enjoys a 
lucrative trade. Mr. Bedford originally, 
was an old-line whig, but upon the dis- 
ruption of his party and the formation, 
in 1856, of the Republican party, he be- 
came identified with the interests of the 
latter, and voted for its first presidential 
nominee. Gen. John C. Fremont. He 
has since that time been an uncompromis- 
ing republican, but has never aspired to 
political preferment. In religious mat- 
ters he is a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church of New Brunswick, 
and has ever been an active and iniiuen- 
tial worker, not only in the church of 
that denomination, but with breadth of 
mind and liberalitj' in his religious views, 
he has cordially cooperated with christ- 
ians of other creeds in all measures hav- 
ing for their object the furthering of the 
cause of Christ. He is highly respected 
and much esteemed by all classes of 
society, and exerts a marked influence 
wherever he goes. 

Mr. Bedford was united Sept., 1852, 
in the bonds of matrimony with Liddy 
E. Miris, a daughter of Z. Miris of Mor- 
ris county, and to this unioji have been 
born six children, Charles W., deceased, 
E. Norwood, J. O., Jr., George C, Wil- 
lie, Orrin, and liedford. 



Biographical Sketches. 



293 



G ROVER T. APPLEGATE, M. D., 
president of the New Jersey State 
Homoeopathic Society, and a skillful 
medical practitioner at New Brunswick, 
Middlesex county. New Jersey, is a son 
of Grover T. and Margaret Herbert Ap- 
plegate, and was born April 5, 1859, on 
a farm near Eed Bank, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey. He is an extrac- 
tion from mixed Dutch and English 
blood. His mother was a Herbert and 
descended from ancestors who emigrated 
from Holland more than two centuries 
ago, and settled in Middletown, New 
Jersey. His paternal forefathers came 
to this country from England some time 
during the fifteenth century, and settled 
in New England. From them descended 
Bartholomew Applegate, who migrated 
nearly two hundred years ago to the 
southwest and negotiated with the In- 
dians for an extensive tract of land on 
the shores of Lower New York bay, op- 
posite Sandy Hook, in identity yet as- 
sured by its long retention of the name 
of Applegate Landing. 

Dr. Applegate possessed few advan- 
tages in early life, and his primary edu- 
cation was acquired at the common 
school, during intervals of arduous toil 
on the farm. His absorbing desire was 
to obtain a collegiate education with the 
view of fitting himself for a physician ; 
so, while his companions slept, he was 
hard at study, imbued with the hope that 
he might be qualified to teach school, 
and thus acquire the means with which 
to enter college. At the age of seventeen 
years his efforts were rewarded by his 
appointment as teacher of the district 
school at Chapel Hill, Monmouth county. 
Li the following year he was elected prin- 
cipal of the Holmdel Academy, where he 
toiled until 1881 ; meanwhile, during 

16 



the summer months, clerking in a hotel 
at Sea Bright, New Jersey. In 1881 he 
entered the Hahnemann Medical College 
and Hospital, of Chicago, 111., from which 
he was graduated with distinguished 
honors three years later. His leisure 
time, during one year, having been de- 
voted to service as clinic clerk in the hos- 
pital. In the spring of 1883 he received 
additional diplomas from the hospital of 
Chicago, making in all nine substantial 
memorials of his faithful application to 
the study of medicine. In Feb., 1884, 
after nearly a year spent in traveling 
throughout the United States, he re- 
turned to New Jersey, settling at New 
Brunswick, where he has since been en- 
gaged in a successful practice of surgery 
and medicine. He is a contributor at 
times to the medical press on subjects of 
interest to the profession and takes pride 
in his extensive library of medical, class- 
ical and general works. Dr. Applegate 
served several terms as treasurer of the 
New Jersey State Homoeopathic Medical 
Society. 

In May, 1894, he was promoted to the 
presidency of the society. He is also a 
member of the American Institute of 
Homoeopathy and other kindred associa- 
tions. He has been president of the 
Provident Building and Loan Associa- 
tion for several years, and is a member 
of the board of trade. Politically he is 
a democrat, and was a member of the 
board of education from 1887 to 1889. 
He is at present a member of the board 
of water commissioners, and was presi- 
dent of that body from 1892 to 1893. In 
the Royal Arcanum he is both active and 
prominent, and for several years has 
been chairman of the finance committee 
of the Grand Council of New Jersey. He 
was an incorporator of the Loyal Addi- 



294 



Biographical Sketches. 



tional Benefit Association, auxiliary to 
the Royal Arcanum, of which he lias 
been state medical examiner since its or- 
ganization. He is greatly interested in 
masonry, being a member of Palestine 
Lodge, No. Ill, F. and A. M. ; Scott 
Chapter, No. 6, R. A. M., and of Coeur 
de Lion Commandery, No. 4, Knights 
Templar. In religious matters he is a 
member of the Fourth Reformed church 
at New Brunswick. He was united in 
marriage Oct. 25, 1888, to Sara Mundy, 
a daughter of Mrs. Gertrude Mundy, of 
Holland ancestry, residing at Newtown, 
Long Island, who is also a member of the 
Fourth Refomied church. 

Dr. Applegate's office and residence is 
at No. 25 Livingstone avenue, in an old 
colonial mansion occupied by members of 
the Van Rensselaer family, prior to their 
removal to New York city. Dr. Apple- 
gate is conducting an extensive practice 
among the leading fiimilies of New Bruns- 
wick, who regard him as one of the best 
physicians of his school in the state. 
Medical skill, easy refinement and gentle 
deportment have constituted the touch- 
stones to his success. 



TTENRY R. BALDWIN, M.D., an emi- \ 
-'--L nently successful physician and , 
surgeon of forty years' expei-ience, presi- 
dent of the city board of health, and ' 
prominently identified with large busi- 
ness interests of New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, is a son of Eli and Phoebe Van 
Nest Baldwin, and was born in the city 
of New York, Sept. 18, 1829. Dr. Bald- 
win's ancestors were Hollanders on the 
maternal side, and, paternally, were 
among the original settlers of 1639 in the 
state of Connecticut, iiaving located and ! 
for many ^ears lived at Milford, Conn, i 



His grandfather, Jotham Baldwin, mar- 
ried Joanna Baldwin, liis cousin, and of 
this union was Eli Baldwin, Dr. Bald- 
win's fiither. His maternal grandfather, 
Abraham Van Nest, married Margaret 
Field, and of their union was Phoebe 
Van Nest, who subsequently married 
Eli Baldwin, and became the mother of 
Dr. Baldwin, the subject of this sketch. 

Dr. Eli Baldwin, the father, was a 
native of Hackensack, New Jersey, born 
Nov. 1, 1791, and was endowed with a 
great taste for books. He graduated 
from the Medical and Chirurgical Uni- 
versity of New York city, in 1817, and 
commenced to practice the medical pro- 
fession, but later turned his attention to 
the study of theology. After graduating 
from the Reformed Dutch Theological 
Seminary, he entered the ministry, and 
located at Green and Houston streets, 
New York city. He labored faithfully 
as pastor of the Dutch Reformed church 
at the above-named place, until the 
spring of 18-39, when he removed to New 
Brunswick, New Jersej^, where he died 
six months later, Sept. 6, 1839. 

On May 8, 1827, Dr. Baldwin's father 
married Mrs. Phoebe Van Nest (widow), 
daughter of Abraham Van Nest, of New 
York city, and to them were born six 
children : Theodore Eli, Henry Rutgers, 
subject; Margaret Van Nest, Avho be- 
came Mrs. E. G. Smith, of Newark, New 
Jersey; John V. N., Alfred J., and 
George V. N. Mrs. Eli Baldwin died 
July, 1853, and is buried with her hus- 
band at New York city in the Van Nest 
family vault. 

Henry Rutgers Baldwin, subject, first 
attended a private school in New York 
city, where he made necessary prepara- 
tion for entering Rutgers College, New 
Brunswick, from which he graduated in 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



295 



the class of 1849. He then clerked for 
some time in a store in New York, and 
later began to read medicine with Dr. 
George J. Janeway, of New Brunswick, 
and one year thereafter entered the Col- 
lege of Physicians and Surgeons of New 
York, and received his degree of M.D. in 
1853. During the year that followed his 
graduation (1853-54), Dr. Baldwin was 
on the Bellvue Hospital staff of physi- 
cians, and served through the deadly 
cholera epidemic of that well-known 
period. After serving eighteen months 
as a resident physician at the above 
institution, he located at Stapleton, Staten 
Island, N. Y., and after a brief stay 
there, became physician and surgeon to 
the steamship " Baltic," plying between 
New York and Liverpool, England. In 
Dec, 1855, Dr. Baldwin came to New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, and began the 
practice which has since widened and 
lengthened into an active experience of 
quite forty-one years, and still continues 
actively engaged in the noble profession 
to which he has so ably and successfully 
devoted so many years of his life. Dr. 
Baldwin's reputation as an eminent and 
successful practitioner having brought 
him more patronage than he could possi- 
bly attend to alone, he associated with 
himself on Oct. 1, 1883, his son, Dr. A. 
Van Nest Baldwin, a graduate of Rut^ 
gers in 1879, and a member of the class 
of '82, College of Physicians and Sur- 
geons, New York city. 

Dr. Henry E. BaldAvin is a member of 
both the Middlesex County and State 
Medical societies, and served as president 
of the State Society in 1877, and as 
treasurer of the same from 1866 to 1875. 
He is at present chairman of the business 
committee of the above society, and has 
held this position for the last twelve 



years. Dr. Baldwin is also a member of 
the Society of Internes of Bellevue Hos- 
pital, New York city, as well as of the 
American Academy of Medicine, and of 
the American Medical Association. In 
his political views Dr. Baldwin is demo- 
cratic, and has taken a very active part 
in the public affairs of his city during 
the long period of his active and pro- 
gressive career there. He has served as 
councilman ; as a member of the board 
of education ; of the board of freeholders ; 
was one of the leading spirits in the 
erection and development of the city 
water-works ; and at present is president 
of the city board of health, for which 
position he is so highly fitted. The rela- 
tions he sustains to the business interests 
of New Brunswick have been very im- 
portant. He has been a director, and is 
still a stockholder of the New Brunswick 
Rubber Co. He was at one time a stock- 
holder in the Norfolk and New Bruns- 
wick Hosiery Co., and is now interested 
in the house of the Johnson & Johnson 
Co., of New Brunswick, manufacturers 
of medical supplies. 

On Dec. 27, 1855, Dr. Baldwin mar- 
ried Miss Elizabeth V. C, daughter of 
Anthony Rutgers, of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey, and they have reared a 
family of eight children : Dr. A. Van 
Nest, Margaret, Bayard, Henry R., 
George V. M., Elizabeth R., Charles J., 
and Gerard R. ; both the latter died in 
childhood. Dr. Baldwin has been a 
member of the Dutch Reformed church 
since 1853. He has served officially as 
elder and deacon, and has always been 
regarded as one of the prominent factors 
in the religious work of this community. 
During the course of his ripe and ample 
experience, he has contributed some very 
important papers on various phases of 



296 



Biographical, Sketches. 



medical science, and ranks as one of the 
eminently successful physicians of his 
day. He has contributed articles on the 
following important subjects : "Anthro- 
pology and Diagnosis," and " The Preven- 
tion of Diseases of Childhood." 



TTENRY J. CHILDS, justice of the 
-*— *- peace at Red Bank, Monmouth 
county, and a popular and respected citi- 
zen of that town, is a son of William and 
Sarah Wall Cliilds, and was born Jan. 4, 
1839, at Chertsey county, Surrey, a short 
distance from London, England. His 
grandfather, Thomas Cliilds, was a school- 
teacher, and a member of the Episcopal 
church. His children were William, 
Samuel, Thomas, and Elizabeth. 

William Childs (father) was born at 
Surrey, England, received a boarding- 
school education, and was engaged in the 
grocery business in that country. He 
came to the United States in 1852, settled 
at Red Bank, and taught school for a year 
at Eatontown, after which he established 
a stationery store at Red Bank, which he 
conducted successfully until his death in 
March, 1882. He was an exceedingly 
popular man, and all the stores in Red 
Bank closed out of respect for his memory 
on the day of his funeral. He was jus- 
tice of the peace at Red Bank for ten 
3'ears, his term expiring the day he died. 
He was a local preacher in the Methodist 
Episcopal church, and supplied in all the 
churches when his services were needed. 
He was an active democrat in politics. 
His wife was Miss Sarah Walls, of Tun- 
bridge, Kent county, England, by whom 
he had four children : Joseph, Henrj^ J., 
Sarah, and Agnes. 

Henry J. Childs, subject, was educated 
partially in England, at Latcham, and 



afterwards in the district schools of Red 
Bank. He was eleven years of age when 
he came to the United States with his 
father, and at the age of fourteen he be- 
came a clerk in the dry-goods store of S. 
Huljbard, Red Bank, where he remained 
seven j'ears. He then went to New York 
city, and spent six A-ears in Vose & 
Joyce's grocery store, after which he es- 
tablished a bakery, at Red Bank, in con- 
nection with his brother, which they 
operated for one year, at the end of which 
time he sold out his interest. He next 
became clerk and cashier in the store of 
James H. Peters, Red Bank. In 1868 he 
went to Missouri, and located upon a farm 
in Webster county, where he spent eight 
years developing his land, and part of the 
time teaching school. He still owns this 
fixrm. In 1877 he returned to Red Bank, 
and assisted his father until the latter's 
death. When in Nov., 1882, the store 
was burnt out he rebuilt it, and continued 
the business till 1885, when he sold 
out. 

Mr. Childs is a democrat in politics, 
but supports the best candidate irrespec- 
tive of party. He was elected justice of 
the peace of Red Bank in 1881, and has 
served ever since with the exception of 
two years. He is also a member of the 
board of health. He married Miss Mar- 
garet E. Palmer, daughter of William A. 
Palmer, of Red Bank, and they have had 
four children : Margaret, Agnes, Clara B., 
and Anna R. 

Mr. Childs is popular and enterpris- 
ing. His official career has been an 
honorable one, and he discharges the 
duties of his office with probity and dis- 
cretion. He is always interested in phi- 
lanthropic work, and has a wide reputa- 
tion Hjr aiding deserving men to obtain 
employment. 



Biographical Sketches. 



299 



TTTILLIAM WESLEY TROUT, M. D., 

' ' a successfiil medical practitioner 
of Spring Lake, is the son of Abraham 
and Eliza Grubb Trout, and was born 
March 5, 1854, at Carlisle, Pa. The 
Trout family is of Scottish origin; the 
first of this substantial line to come to 
the United States being Jacob, who set- 
tled in Lancaster county, Pa., in the early 
days of the state's history. 

Abraham Trout (father) was one of 
those who had the good fortune to locate 
in the richest, most picturesque and lovely 
agricultural districts, " the Garden Spot 
of the World," Cumberland county, Pa., 
and where he pursued farming all his ac- 
tive life. In 1835 he married Eliza 
Grubb, daughter of John Grubb, the re- 
sult of this marriage being six children : 
George W., who enlisted in Company H, 
Third Pennsylvania cavalry, and was 
killed at New Hope, in a skirmish during 
the Virginia campaign, Nov. 27, 1863; 
John Grubb, also a soldier in the late 
war, who was exposed to all the horrors 
of Andersonville prison, and died at An- 
apolis, Md., Dec. 25, 1864, from the ef- 
fects of the terrible sufferings he had 
endured ; Annie, wife of Michael Wolf, of 
Cumberland county. Pa. ; D. Henry, of 
Philadelphia, who also served in the late 
war ; Abraham Grubb, of Ohio ; and W. 
Wesley, the subject of this sketch. Abra- 
ham Trout died in April, 1862, but Mrs. 
Trout still survives at an advanced age. 

W. Wesley Trout passed his boyhood 
days in the well-known town of Carlisle, 
Pa., the seat of Dickinson College. He 
received his elementary instruction in the 
public schools of the same place, and was 
graduated from the high school in 1872. 
He entered Blair's drug store. Eighth and 
Walnut streets, Philadelphia, July 4, 1 872, 
and in March, 1876, completed the course 



at the Philadelphia College of Pharmac3^ 
He then secured a position in Hancock's 
pharmacy. Thirty-fifth and Spring Garden 
streets, Philadelphia, where he I'emained 
one and a half years. In the fall of 1877 
he was compounding prescriptions for 
George X. McKelway, 1410 Chestnut 
street, Philadelphia, and the next year 
became manager of McKelway's Spring 
Lake store, the original of the present 
Bye store, which he managed until 1881, 
when he purchased the business and con- 
ducted the same until the spring of 1889. 
He then disposed of it to Mr. Charles A. 
Bye, the present proprietor. Mr. Trout 
then read medicine under Professor James 
C. Wilson, the original summer resident 
physician of Spring Lake ; attended Jef- 
ferson Medical College during the terms 
of '84-85 and '85-86, and received the 
degree of M. D. with the class of 1886. 

Dr. Trout began his successful career 
as a practicing physician in Spring Lake 
immediately after graduating, being the 
first resident physician of the place, and 
rapidly built up a large practice by his 
own efforts, affable manners and successes 
in medical treatment and surgery. His 
first residence was the cottage near At- 
lantic avenue, and which is now owned 
by Henry Fehling, of Philadelphia. He 
enjoys a large general j)ractice, extend- 
ing over Spring Lake, Wall township, and 
vicinity ; stands high in the estimation 
of the medical fraternity of his county 
and state, and holds membership in the 
Monmouth County Medical Society, of 
which he is president ; also in the State 
Medical Society of New Jersey, and is 
physician to the Wall township board of 
health for the third year. The political 
affiliations of Dr. Trout identify him with 
the Democratic party, in the intei'ests of 
which he is actively engaged. In local 



300 



Biographical Sketches. 



affairs, however, he maintains an inde- 
pendent position. He has served as a 
member of the borough council for two 
jears, and is also clerk of the boai'd of 
education. Dr. Trout is locally inter- 
ested in all the churches of his town, but 
with his family attends the Presbyterian 
church. In fratei'nal circles he is one of 
the best known men in the state. He is 
a past master of the Masonic Lodge of 
Manasquan ; past high priest of Goodwin 
Chapter of Manasquan ; a knight of the 
Corson Commandery of Asburj' Park ; has 
taken the thirty-second degree, Scottish 
Rite, in New Brunswick Excelsior Con- 
sistory, New Jersey, and is a noble of 
Lu Lu Temple, A. 0. Mystic Shrine, 
Philadelphia. He is also an affiliant of 
Iroquois Lodge, No. 508, I. 0. 0. P., of 
Philadelphia ; Wall Castle, K. G. E., of 
Spring Lake ; Jr. 0. U. A. M., of Belmar ; 
D. of L., of Belmar, and the Royal Ar- 
canum, of Asbury Park. He is also 
treasui'er of the Spring Lake Fire Co., 
No. 1. 

Dr. Trout resides in a handsome resi- 
dence, corner of Atlantic and First ave- 
nues. Spring Lake, and, with other inter- 
ests, is the owner of a farm in Wall 
township, one-half mile from the ocean, 
and adjoining the borough of Spring Lake. 
In 1878 Dr. Trout married Irene Coates, 
daughter of Chalkley and Mary Ann 
Coates, of Chester county, Pa., descen- 
dants of an old line of Quakers. She 
died in 1889, leaving two children : Harry 
W. and Irene. In October, 1892, he mar- 
ried Rebecca Riley Porter, daughter of 
Dr. George W. Porter, and a granddaugh- 
ter of ex-Governor Porter, of Pennsylva- 
nia, also a great-granddaughter of Major 
Andrew Porter, of Revolutionary fame. 
One daughter, Elsie Porter, has come to 
bless his second marriage. 



/CAPTAIN GEORGE BAILEY, retired 
^-^ sea-captain and extensive property 
owner of Manasquan, is a son of William 
H. and Mary Green Bailey, and was 
born Nov. 11, 1839, at Manasquan, New 
Jersey. The Bailey family is an old and 
honorable one in East Jersey, and four 
generations back was allied with the 
Curtis family, who were among the old- 
est settlers in this section of the state. 

John Baile}' (great-grandfather) resided 
on the Curtis homestead at Manasquan, 
New Jersey, and was a prominent 
builder and land-owner. His son, Peter 
Bailey, grandfather, was a thriving car- 
penter and builder of Manasquan, N. J. 

William H. Bailey (father) was born 
in 1812, and for man}^ years was a well- 
known and influential citizen of Mana- 
squan. The early part of his life was 
spent as a sea-captain in the coast trade, 
diiring which time he was the owner of 
several vessels. He retired from the sea 
in 1866, and subsequently operated his 
farm in Wall township. He was also a 
member of the firm of Braimin & Bailey, 
who conducted a stone and lumber j^ard 
in Manasquan for a number of years. 
They built the first school-house in Man- 
asquan, which stood until the present 
district schools were opened. He was a 
large contributor of the Presbyterian 
church of Manasquan, and an active 
democrat in political affairs. He was the 
father of four sons, George, the subject. 
Foreman 0., John, and Henry, all of 
whom subsequently followed the sea. 

Captain Bailey received his education 
in the common schools of Wall town- 
ship, and subsequently spent one or two 
years in the employ of Brannin & Bailey, 
at Manasquan. At the age of eighteen 
years he went to sea on one of his father's 
vessels, and during twenty-six years was 



Biographical Sketches. 



301 



in the coastina; trade between eastern 
and South American ports, during which 
time he commanded a number of vessels 
and became owner of several. In 1891 
he retired from active service, but still 
owns the schooner " Calvin B. Orcutt " 
and is financially interested in other ves- 
sels. Captain Bailey now resides on 
South street in Manasquan. He is one 
of the leading spirits in public affairs in 
that borough, is a staunch democrat in 
politics, and has been honored on numer- 
ous occasions by the votes of his fellow- 
citizens. He was elected mayor of Man- 
asquan in 1892 and again in 1893, there 
being no opposition to his second term. 
He was offered a third term but declined 
to accept. He has been a member of the 
township executive committee, and from 
1892 to 1894 was a member of the board 
of freeholders. He is a heavy real-estate 
owner in and around Manasquan. He 
is a prominent member of the Pi'esby- 
terian church, in which he has been an 
elder for a number of years. He is a 
member of Wall Lodge, F. and A. M., 
one of the oldest masonic bodies in New 
Jersey. He married Miss Annie M. 
Godfrey, a daughter of Andrew S. God- 
frey, a well-known citizen of Cape May 
county, and they have three children : 
Foreman T., Hannah, and Mary. 

Captain Bailey is a popular, progres- 
sive and widely respected citizen. He is 
an expert navigator, as is attested by the 
fact that during his entire sea-faring ca- 
reer of over a quarter of a century he 
never met with an accident or serious 
misfortune. His business career has been 
a prosperous and honorable one, and his 
private life is marked with a calmness, 
simplicity, and hospitality, that have 
won for him the esteem and admiration 
of his fellow-citizens. 



JACOB DEGENRING, an enterprising 
^ hotel-keeper of Red Bank, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is a son of Chaiies 
F. and Katharine (Scheiber) Degeni'ing, 
and was born Sept. 12, 1844, at Rhodt, 
Rhenish Bavaria, Germany. 

The grandfather, Daniel Degenring, 
was a native of Baden, Gei'many, where 
he acquired an education in the national 
schools, and sul^sequently became — what 
he remained all his life — a tradesman. 
He was the father of five children : 
Daniel, Jacob, August and Charles, all 
deceased ; and Catharine, who married 
Gustav Sabel, a leather manufacturer, in 
Germany. 

Charles F. Degenring (father) was born 
in Carlsruhe, Grand Duchy of Baden, Ger- 
man}-. He received a common-school edu- 
cation, and learned the trade of a shoe- 
maker, which he followed at Carlsruhe 
and Neustadt until he came to this coun- 
try in 1853. He first located at Haver- 
straw, N. Y., and subsequentl}^ removed 
to Red Bank, New Jersey, in both of 
which places he pursued his trade, learned 
in the old country. In Feb., 1864, he 
enlisted in the Union army, where, as a 
brave soldier, he gave four months' ser- 
vice in the defence of his adopted country, 
and was killed at the battle of Cold Har- 
bor, in June of the same year. His widow 
survived him twenty-two years, her death 
occurring in 1886. They had seven 
children : Anna Mary, married to Sefer 
Blouse ; Katharine, married first to Chris- 
tian Burky, and subsequently to Jacob 
Schleith ; Magdalena, deceased ; Freder- 
icka, wife of John Mertz ; Caroline, mar- 
ried to Jacob Serr; Jacob, the subject, 
and Charles F. 

Jacob Degenring, after acquiring a 
common-school education in the town of 
his birth, learned the trade of a shoe- 



302 



Biographical Sketches. 



maker, at which he worked until he 
ari'ived at the age of sixteen years. He 
then came to the United States, and 
worked on a farm for three months at Nut 
Swamp, after which he enhsted in the 
Fifty-second New York regiment. After 
a service of one year he was discharged i 
on account of a wound which he received ; 
in the head at the battle of Fair Oaks, | 
June 1, 1862. The period of his conval- \ 
escence was spent by him in his father's 
employ at Red Bank, and in 1864 he re- 
enlisted, and served most gallantly until 
the war ended. Ten months' employment 
as barkeeper in a saloon kejit by Jacob ' 
Kress, at Red Bank, then ensued. In 
1867 he went to New York cit}^, where 
for the four succeding years he was em- 
ployed as porter in the wholesale house 
of C. F. Van Blankensteyn & Co. Re- 
turning to Red Bank, he conducted a 
saloon for a period of about five years, 
when he removed to 21 Front street, in 
the same town, where he combined a 
bottling business with that of saloon- 
keeping, and for seventeen years he car- 
ried on a very profitable business. He 
then sold out this business and proceeded 
to build an addition to his house, with 
the view of entering more largely in the 
hotel business. Success attending his 
enterprise, he erected another addition to 
his property in 1895, and now he owns 
and conducts the most modern hotel in 
Red Bank. 

Mr. Degenring is a member of the Pro- 
testant Episcopal church in that town, 
and in politics he is a democrat. He is a 
mem])er of the following organizations : 
Post No. 61, G. A. R. ; Red Bank Lodge, 
No. 263, B. P. 0. E. ; the Monmouth 
County Liquor Dealers' Association ; the 
German Singing Society', of which he is 
also president; the Fire Department of 



Red Bank, in which he has held all Jhe 
offices up to and including that of chief 
engineer; and the New Era Benevolent 
Association, of which he has l:)een presi- 
dent. Mr. Degenring was married June 
10, 1867, to Susanna Zeigler, a daughter 
of Philip Zeigler, of Red Bank. They 
are the parents of four children : Anna 
M., married to Leon de la Reussille, of 
Red Bank ; Katharine B., wife of Samuel 
Coggins, of Red Bank; Caroline, Avife 
of Fred. J. Smock, of Red Bank, and 
Henry G. 

Mr. Degenring Avas a brave soldier, and 
on the tented field he fought with un- 
daunted courage for the preservation of 
the Union. In like manner he has fought 
the battle of life. From nothing he has 
acquired a competence, and with it all he 
commands the respect of his fellow-towns- 
men. In his business successes he has 
been ably seconded by his helpmate and 
life-partner, Susanna Degenring, whose 
extraordinary household management 
and consummate neatness and tidiness in 
all domestic aflixirs are second to none in 
Red Bank. 



np\ANIEL \y. WHITE, a leading hotel- 
-*-^ keeper, of Red Bank, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is a son of William 
and Juliette Green White, and was Jjorn 
Dec. 16, 1836, in New York city. The 
family is of Scotch origin, the immigrant 
ancestor having come to America about 
the jear 1760, and settled in Monmouth 
county, New Jersey. 

Breton White, the grandfather, was a 
native of Scotland, where he was born in 
1745, and emigrated with his parents. 
He was b}' occupation a farmer. His 
son Michael removed to New York, and 
became a shoe-dealer hy occupation. He 
was married to Eleanor Gray, of Scotland, 



Biographical Sketches. 



303 



in 1795, and died in 1815. His wife 
survived him until 1848. They were 
the parents of six childi'en : Michael, 
Margaret, Elsie, Maria, Ellen and Wil- 
liam, father of subject. 

William White (father,) was born in 
New York in 1803. He received a com- 
mon English education, and subsequently 
was engaged for a number of years in 
the boot and shoe business in New York 
city. At a later period he was the super- 
intendent of the New York stage line, 
running from 142d street to the Battery. 
He became quite active in democratic 
politics, and in religion was a member of 
the Baptist church. He was married in 
1825 to Juliette Green, whom he sur- 
vived until 1885, her death having oc- 
curred in 1861. They had four chil- 
dren : Thomas Jefferson, William V., 
Daniel Webster, the subject, and Mary, 
deceased. 

Daniel W. White attended the public 
schools of New York city until he was 
sixteen years of age. His first employ- 
ment, after leaving school, was with 
Charles Dodge, who was engaged in the 
ship-carving business at New Yoi'k. After 
remaining in that service for two years, 
he became interested in the Manasquan 
hotel, at Manasquan. In 1879, he took 
charge of the Park hotel at Oceanport, 
where he remained for two years, and 
afterward at the Angola house at Asbury 
Park, for two years. He removed to 
Red Bank in 1890, and became proprie- 
tor and owner of the Globe hotel, the 
largest house for the entertainment of 
guests in the town. In this business he 
has been very successful, and a large and 
profitable patronage bears testimony to 
his able and popular management. Mr. 
White has been an active democrat for a 
great many years, but he has never soli- 



cited nor held any political office. He 
is a member of Lodge No. 96, K. of P., 
at Oceanj)ort, New Jersey ; a charter 
member of the lodge of B. P. 0. E., of 
Red Bank, and of Red Bank Council, 
No. 984, Royal Arcanum. 

Mr. White was married, May 13, 1856, 
to Mary Jeanne Carlock, a daughter of 
Abram Carlock, of New York. They 
are the parents of four children : John 
H. ; Mary E., married to William J. 
Doig, residing at Red Bank ; Lillian, 
wife of Edgar E. Harlow, of Greenville, 
Me. ; and Anna E., wedded to James S. 
Throckmorton, Jr., of Red Bank. 



nPvR. HARRY NEAFIE, a prominent 
-'-^ physician of Monmouth county 
and the leading practitioner of Freehold, 
is a son of John and Kate Taylor Neafie, 
and was born at Freehold, on Aug. 4, 
1859. 

The name is of Dutch origin, the origi- 
nal American progenitor having come 
from Holland in 1651 and settled at New 
Amsterdam, N. Y. 

Dr. Neafie received his elementary 
educational training at Freehold Insti- 
tute ; upon graduating fromthis institution 
he conceived the idea of medicine for his 
future vocation, and accordingly entered 
upon the study of that profession under 
the tutorship of Dr. John Vought, at 
Freehold. He studied with him three 
years, whereujjon he entered that famous 
and time-honored medical institution, the 
Bellevue Hospital Medical College, of 
New York city, from which he graduated 
in 1880. He at once located in the prac- 
tice of his profession at Turkey, New 
Jersey, where he remained three years, 
when, in 1884, he came to Freehold, 
where he has continued in the active and 



304 



Biographical Sketches. 



successful practice of his profession ever 
since. Dr. Neafie enjoys one of the 
largest and most profitable clienteles in 
Monmouth county, and although by no 
means the oldest practitioner at Freehold 
his practice may be the largest. 

Dr. Neafie is thoroughly equipped for 
his professional work, keeps in touch 
with the leaders of his profession, and is 
posted upon each new discovery to the 
medical science, as well as new and more 
successful methods of treatment. As a 
a diagnosist he is keen, reliable and 
sympathetic, and of proverbial humanity - 
in his treatment. He is a member of the 
Monmouth County Medical Association, 
and in Felj. of 1896 was appointed b^- 
Governor Griggs as assistant surgeon of 
the Seventh regiment. Fraternally Dr. 
Neafie is a member of Freehold Council, 
Ancient Order of United Workmen, and 
Adelphia Lodge, Knights of Pythias, of 
Turkey, in which organizations he has 
taken an active interest. He married 
Miss Belle, a daughter of James W. 
Ayers, whose sketch is found elsewhere 
in this work. Two children, a girl Kate, 
and a boy, John H., bless their union. 



TTT H. CAWLEY, an active business 
' ' • man of Somerville, and a vete- 
ran of the late civil war, is a son of 
Thomas S. and Mary A. Smith Cawley, 
and was born in Hunterdon counts', New 
Jersey, June 13,1840. His grandfather, 
Thomas Cawle^^ Sr., was a farmer and an 
old-line whig, and reared a f^imily of eight 
children: Thomas, Eli, Franklin, James, 
Absahmi, William, Sarah, and Jacob. 

Thomas, the eldest son, was born in 
1809, in Northampton county. Pa.; re- 
ceived a conniion-school educaticm, and 
then learned the trade of a shoemakei", j 



which he followed up to his death in 
1859. He was a republican, and an ac- 
tive member of the Christian church, in 
which he held at dillerent times all the 
lay offices. He married Mary A. Smith, 
a daugliter of James Smith, who passed 
away Nov. 5, 1888, aged seventy-five 
years. Their children were : Tliomas F., 
James S., and Sarah, who are all dead ; 
and W. H., subject; Jennie and Atarah. 
W. H. Cawley received a common- 
school education, and left the f^vrm at six- 
teen 3'ears of age to enter the Union arim^, 
in which he served as a corporal, sergeant 
and regimental commissary, until Lee 
surrendered. Returning from the arm}', 
he engaged for a short time in the spoke- 
tui'ning business, and then embarked in 
the wholesale and retail restaurant busi- 
ness, owning two restaurants. He estab- 
lished a bottling business at Somerville, 
Avhich he has successfully operated for 
four years, beside being interested in a 
similar establishment at Dover, New Jer- 
sey. Mr. Cawley owns a good farm, has 
been a director for some time of the Sec- 
ond National Bank, of Somerville, New 
Jersey, and is interested in various other 
financial and business enterprises. He is 
a staunch and active republican in poli- 
tics ; is a member of Gen. Wadsworth 
Post, No. 75, G. A. R. ; Lodge of the 
Castle, No. 82, K. of P. ; Solomon Lodge, 
No. 46, F. and A. M., and Magnolia Lodge, 
I. 0. 0. F., in which last-named organiza- 
tion lie passed through the chairs. On 
July 3, 1867, Mr. Cawley married Mary 
A. Gilbert, a daughter of Joseph Gilljert. 
Their union has been blessed with three 
children : William H., Jr., teller in the 
Second National Bank, of Somerville ; 
Jennie B., now taking a college course at 
Chaml)ersburg, Pa., and Chester A., at 
home. 



Biographical Sketches. 



307 



William H. Cawley has a war record 
of which he may be justly proud. On 
June 28, 1862, he enlisted in Company 
G., Fifteenth Regiment New Jersey vol- 
unteers, and participated in the following 
battles: Second Bull Run, Antietam, Fi-ed- 
ericksburg, Salem Heights, Gettysburg, 
Wilderness, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, and 
Cedar Creek. He was at the taking of 
Petersburg, the pursuit and capture of 
Lee, and then went to North Carolina, 
where he was engaged in a skirmish with 
some of Johnson's troops. He was pro- 
moted from private to corporal, to sergeant, 
to regimental commissary, for meritorious 
service, and received five wounds at Get- 
tysburg and in other battles. 



J H. VAN BUSKIRK, the well-known 
^ • real-estate dealer and surveyor, late 
of Bayonne city. New Jersey, but now a 
resident of Eatontown, traces his ancestry 
to the Hollanders, whose names for cen- 
turies have been synonymous with thrift, 
industry, and intelligence. He is the 
son of Nicholas C. and Elizabeth (Vree- 
land) Van Buskirk, and was born at 
Bayonne city, Hudson county, New Jer- 
sey, Sept. 28, 1-849. 

James C. Van Buskirk (grandfather) 
was born at Saddle, Jan. 25, 1787. He 
was educated in the common schools and 
settled down to farming, which occupa- 
tion he followed during his entire life. 
In politics he was a whig, and upon the 
lapse of that party became a republican. 
He was a member of the Dutch Reformed 
church at Bayonne, then called Bergen 
Neck, and his earnest devotion to church 
work, both as an official and as a member 
of the congregation, made him virtually 
one of the pillars of the church. He 
married Ann, daughter of James Van 



Buskirk, and to whom Avere born nine 
children : Sarah, Mrs. Abram Simmons ; 
Cornelius, James B., Jeane Ann, Han- 
nah, Mrs. Cadmus ; Nicholas C, Maria, 
Abram J., and Lavinia. 

Nicholas C. Van Buskirk (father) was 
born and educated at Bergen Neck, Hud- 
son county, New Jersey, and began his 
present profitable business as a truck 
farmer near Bayonne. He is a republi- 
can and an active member of the Re- 
formed church at Bayonne, and in con- 
nection with his christian work has held 
all the oflices within reach of laymen. 
On March 16, 184-3, he married Miss 
Elizabeth Vreeland, daughter of Peter 
and Ann Vreeland, and to this happy 
alliance were born four children, three 
sons and one daughter : Peter V., Ann 
Maria, Mrs. E. C. Earle ; John H., and 
De Witt. Father and Mother Van Bus- 
kirk are still living in quiet contentment 
at their home in Bayonne. 

J. H. Van Buskirk received his ele- 
mentary instruction in the common 
schools of Bayonne, and later entered 
the University of New York, where he 
took a course in civil engineering. On 
the completion of the course he was 
graduated with the degree of Batchelor of 
Sciences and Civil Engineer in the class 
of 1871. Upon leaving college he en- 
gaged in the work of his profession, and 
later became the surveyor of the city of 
Bayonne for two years. With shrewd 
foresight he saw a wide and remunerative 
field of operation in the development of 
Baj^onne real estate, and at once de- 
voted his time to that business. During 
the ten years that followed he was the 
most enterprising and successful man in 
real-estate interests of this thriving town, 
and built two hundred new houses, be- 
sides dealing in and handling many other 



308 



Biographical Sketches. 



properties. At the close of this most 
active business career Mr. Van Buskirk 
removed to Eatontown, although he has 
still many interests and is a heavy real- 
estate owner at Bayonne. He is a re- 
publican, and as a public-spirited business 
man is deeply interested in political af- 
fairs. While at Bayonne he was assessor 
for years. On Nov. 15, 1877, Mr. Van 
Buskirk was united in marriage to Re- 
becca Louise Biirgess, daughter of Ed- 
ward G. Burgess, of Jersey City, aud 
.they have the following surviving chil- 
dren : Edward B., Grace B., and Russell. 



^^ EORGE TAYLOR, a retired farmer of 
^-^ Freehold, New Jersey, was born in 
Holmdel, Middletown township, now 
called Atlantic township, Sept. 27, 1818. 
He is a son of John G. and Mary Couo- 
ver Taylor. His mother was the daugh- 
ter of Tunis Conover, of Matawan, New 
Jerse3^ The family is of Scotch de- 
scent on the paternal and English on the 
maternal side. George Taylor (grand- 
father) was born in Scotland, came to this 
country, and settled in what is now 
known as Montrose, in Monmouth count}', 
but which was then called Barren-town. 
He was a cooper by trade, and a fiirmer. 
He was an attendant of the Holmdel 
Baptist church. His children were as 
follows : James, George, John G., Ed- 
ward, Hannah, married to John Smith ; 
Rachel, married to James Anderson, and 
Betsy. 

John G. Taylor (father) received his , 
education at the district school, and for a ' 
time thereafter was employed on his 
father's farm. He learned the cooper 
trade, which he followed to some extent 
during his etirly life. Later he paid 
especial attention to farming and milling, i 



and became one of the proprietors of a 
grist-mill known as " Taylor's MiU," in 
Atlantic township, the place being then 
known by the name of Baptist-town. He 
was successful as a farmer and gi'ain- 
dealcr, and accumulated considerable 
wealth. He was a whig in politics and 
held the offices of township commissioner 
and overseer of roads at Middletown. He 
was three times married ; his first wife 
being Eliza Conover, and the second her 
sister, Mary. His third wife was Lydia 
Morford. There were three children by 
his first wife, and eight by the last. The 
issue hy the first marriage were : John, 
George, the subject, and Martha, since 
deceased. Mr. Taylor was a member of 
the Baptist church, and died at the age 
of seventy-eight. 

George Taylor, suljject, passed the early 
part of his life near Holmdel, and re- 
! ceived his education at private schools in 
j that vicinit}^ He entered the employ of 
I his father, working in his mill, and re- 
mained with him until the age of twen- 
1 ty-seven. He then cultivated a farm be- 
I lonoino; to his father, and at the end of 
! three years purchased the same. This 
farm he retained and cultivated until 
1871, when he disposed of it to his son, 
William W. He then bought a farm 
near Freehold, on which he moved and is 
now living. 

Mr. Taylor's career has been that of a 
successful agriculturalist, and he is a man 
of great influence among farmers. For 
twenty years he has been a member, and 
is now the treasurer, of Monmouth 
Grange, at Freehold. He is also a mem- 
ber of the Monmouth County Agricul- 
tural Society. Though not a politician 
he gives his allegiance to the Republican 
party, and has Ijeen honored with the 
offices of overseer of roads and commis- 



Biographical Sketches. 



309 



sioner of appeals. He is a member of 
the Baptist church at Freehold, occupies 
the honorable position of deacon, and for 
some years was one of its trustees. Mr. 
Taylor married Margaret Conover on 
Feb. 11, 1844, and their union has been 
blessed with three children : Mary Jane, 
married to George h'chanck ; William W., 
married to Sarah H. Schanck, and EUie 
C, married to William H. Du Bois, Jr. 



nV/TATTHIAS WOOLLEY, present high 
-^^ sherifl' of Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, is the son of Montilion and Cor- 
nelia (Maps) Woolley, and was born at 
Long I5ranch, New Jersey, Dec. 10, 1837. 
He received his education in the public 
schools of Ocean township, New Jersey, 
and at Charlottesville Seminary, New 
York state. He is of English extraction. 
His grandfather Avas an old settler at 
Long Branch, and his maternal grand- 
father fought in this country under the 
English flag during the Revolution, as an 
officer of rank. 

Montilion Woolley (father), was born 
at Long Branch, New Jersey, July 15, 
1810. He was a carpenter by trade, but 
owned and operated a farm at Oakhurst, 
south of Long Branch, where he resided 
up to his death, in 1880. He was for- 
merly a whig in politics, but latterly be- 
came a republican, and in religious 
matters he was a member of the official 
board of the Methodist Episcopal church 
at Long Branch. His marriage to Cor- 
nelia Maps resulted in eight children : 
Matthias, the subject; Hannah E. Smock, 
Mary A. Morris, Lavinia Conrow, Wil- 
liam E. Woolley, who is proprietor of the 
Iroquois hotel at Buffalo, and the Grand 
Union hotel at Saratoga Springs; Mar- 
garet Emma, who died in infancy ; Cor- 



nelia, and James E., a mason and con- 
tractor at Long Branch. In 1851 he 
was bereaved b}' death of his wife, Cor- 
nelia, who passed away at the age of 
thirty-five years. 

Matthias Woolley, the subject, at the 
age of nineteen years accepted the position 
of teacher of public schools, which he 
held until 1864, when he retired from 
professional work, and opened a grocery 
store at Long Branch. While engaged 
in the grocery business, he was elected 
secretary of the Long Branch Building 
and Loan Association, in Dec, 1869, and 
served as such up to 1893, when he 
resigned. He continued his grocery busi- 
ness, in association with a number of 
partners, until Dec. 10, 1874, when he 
was appointed postmaster of Long Branch 
by Postmaster-General Marshall Jewell. 
He at once assumed the duties of the 
office, and served until some time after - 
Mr. Cleveland's inauguration in 1885. 
During his long term as postmaster, he be- 
came widely known throughout the state. 
He was a member of the Republican state 
committee and an active worker in the 
party. On Dec. 6, 1859, he married Han- 
nah Truax, daughter of Anthony Truax, 
a farmer at Poplar, Monmouth county, 
the marriage resulting in three children: 
Cornelia W. Stewart, widow; Anthony 
Truax, a partner in the insurance busi- 
ness with his father, a member and treas- 
urer of the board of education at Long 
Branch, and an active member of the 
Royal Arcanum and the A. 0. U. W. ; and 
Alida W., wife of J. Harrison Davis, Jr., 
clerk of the First National Bank of Long 
Branch. 

Matthias Woolley, the subject, became 
a partner in the firm of C. D. Warner & 
Co., a fire, life and accident insurance 
agency, after resigning as postmaster, and 



310 



Biographical Sketches. 



remained in said firm, doing business at 
Red Bank and at Long Branch, until tlie 
spring of 1895. He tlien witlidrew from 
said firm and associated himself in the 
same business at Long Branch with his 
son, Anthony T. Woolley, under the firm 
name of Matthias Woolley & Son. In 
1893 Mr. Woolley was elected sheriff of 
Monmouth county, and enjoys the dis- 
tinction of being the first republican 
sheriff of the county. He consequently 
removed to Freehold and entered upon 
the duties of his office, appointing Mr. 
Houston Fields his deputy and Mr. John 
A. Ilowland his confidential clerk. His 
efficient management of this office has 
given him manj^ friends in both parties. 
During his life at Long Branch he served 
as a member of the board of education 
for sixteen years and was its treasurer 
for six yeai's. He became a member of 
the M. E. church in 1856, and was on 
the board of trustees that built Simpson 
church. In 1892 he was elected a lay 
delegate, and has since been re-elected, 
to represent the church at the next con- 
ference, to be held at Bridgeton, New 
Jersey, this year (189G). He is a steward 
of the M. E. church at Freehold, and is 
a member of four lodges at Long Branch : 
Arioch lodge, No. 77, I. 0. 0. F. ; Ocean 
Lodge, No. 183, K. of P. ; L 0. O. F. 
Encampment; and Long Branch Council, 
No. 429, Royal Arcanum. At the ex- 
piration of Mr. Woolley's present term 
of office he will return to his home at 
Long BrancU. 



/CHARLES V. CRAWFORD, a retired 
^-^ hardware manufacturer of Keyport, 
Monmouth county, and owner of a pros- 
perous farm in Holmdel township, is a 
son of William H. and Leah Conover 



Crawford, and was born Nov. 17, 1842, 
at Holmdel. 

His father, William H. Crawford, was 
a well-known and thriving farmer in 
Holmdel township throughout his life, 
and upon his death in 1874 divided his 
extensive farm among his children. He 
was a staunch democrat in politics, but 
never sought office. His children were 
nine in number : Holmes C, William H., 
Jr., John B., Albro B., Charles V., Mary 
J., James, Anna L., Sarah E., wife of 
Daniel T. PoUiemus, of Holmdel ; and 
Katherine B., wife of Horace A. Field, 
of Wellsboro, Pa. 

Charles V. Crawford received his ele- 
mentary education in the district schools 
of Holmdel township and Matawan In- 
stitute. His first start in life was in 
mercantile business at Red Bank, carried 
on for two years; and subsequently at 
Freehold for another two years. In 
1862 he removed to New York city and 
engaged in the manufacture of tools 
and hardware, which business he con- 
ducted with notable success for eighteen 
years, during Avhich time he amassed a 
considerable fortune. He then returned 
to his birth-place, and was overseer of 
his late father's estate until June, 1895, 
when he removed to Keyport. He occu- 
pies a handsome residence in the latter 
town, and lives a quiet, retired life, 
although still continuing to operate his 
share of the fathei''s farm in Holmdel 
township. He is a republican in poli- 
tics ; is a member of Lodge No. 14, F. 
and A. M., of Freehold, and a director 
in the Keyport Banking Co. at Keyport. 
Mr. Crawlbrd's success in life has been 
due to his inherent qualities of energy, 
industry and perseverance. He is person- 
ally of a kind, genial nature, and is most 
highly esteemed in all circles. 



BioGRAPHicAiv Sketches. 



313 



ALONZO BROWER, an extensive 
builder and contractor, and a re- 
spected citizen of Freehold, is a son of 
Gilbert V. and Amelia (Hasketh) Brower, 
and was born Sept. 29, 1851, on his 
father's farm in Freehold township, near 
Freehold. He was educated in the dis- 
trict schools of that township, and spent 
his boyhood on the farm. When fifteen 
years old he was apprenticed to a car- 
penter at Freehold, where he subsequently 
spent three years as a journeyman at his 
trade. In 1872 he formed a partnership 
with William McDermott, Jr., and, as 
carpenters and builders, they remained 
associated for one year, after which Mr. 
Brower entered into a business relation- 
ship with E. T. Conover, of Tennent, 
Manalapan township, and they conducted 
a prosperous business for ten years. In 
the spring of 1883 Mr. Brower established 
his present independent business at Free- 
hold, and continued alone until the spring 
of 1895, when he associated with him his 
son, Frederick A. Brower, under the firm 
name of A. Brower & Son. They are 
contractors, carpenters and builders, and 
are the leading firm of the kind in Free- 
hold, having erected most of the large 
buildings put up in that vicinity for 
several yeai's. During twenty years' ex- 
perience Mr. Brower has erected over 
one hundred residences and tenement 
houses in Freehold and vicinity. In 
politics, Mr. Brower is independent, and 
although not a seeker for office he was 
elected a town commissioner of Freehold 
in 1892, serving until May 1, 1896, when 
he resigned on account of the growing 
demands of his business. He is vice- 
president of the Freehold branch of the 
New Jersey Building, Loan and Insurance 
Co., of Trenton. His religious affiliations 
are with the Freehold Dutch Reformed 



church, of which he has been a member 
for twenty-three years. He was elected a 
deacon in 1887, serving for two years, and 
became an elder in 1889, serving for two 
years. He was one of the organizers, 
and at one time president, of the Christian 
Endeavor Society of Freehold, and has 
been prominent in the conventions of 
that organization ; at New York, in 1892; 
at Montreal, in 1893 ; at Cleveland, in 
1894, and at Boston, in 1895. 

Mr. Brower was married in 1872 to 
Miss Isabella Handley, of Brooklyn, N. 
Y., and they have three children : Fred- 
erick A., Jennie A., and McLain F. Mr. 
Brower is one of the most successful and 
widely-known business men of Monmouth 
county, is especially prominent in church 
work, and always in evidence in charita- 
V'^ organizations. 



JOHN ENEIGHT, county superinten- 
dent of schools, is a son of John and 
Margaret (Gear}') Enright, and was born 
at Colt's Neck, April 28, 1852. His boy- 
hood was spent on his father's farm, 
where he was taught those habits of in- 
dustry and frugality which are so import- 
ant in the training for useful and success- 
ful enterprise. He had two brothers and 
five sistei's : James, Thomas, Elizabeth, 
Ellen, Mary, Julia, and Margaret. It was 
the great care of the elder Enright that 
his children should have the best educa- 
tion that the village school could afibrd. 
An intelligent and well-informed man 
himself, he saw the value of a good edu- 
cation. The home training was both by 
precept and example, a powerful aid to 
the training in the village school. In 
that farm-house could be found magazines 
and newspapers and books at a time when 
the cost made them a luxury indeed. 



314 



Biographical Sketches. 



John Enright received his preliminary 
education in the public school at Colt's 
j^eck. While still young he evinced an 
unusual aptitude for books, and was espe- 
cially noted even when a small boy for 
his knowledge of mathematics. It was 
this early tendency that first pointed to 
him the teacher's profession as one that 
would enable him to gratify his thirst for 
knowledge. Although, like most farm 
boys, Mr. Enright could not attend school 
after his ninth year, except during the 
winter months, yet he had made sufficient 
progress in his studies to enal)le him to 
enter the state normal school at Trenton 
in 1869, at the age of seventeen, and take 
a high standing in a large class from the 
very beginning. The prescribed course at 
the school at that time was two years. It 
was finished by Mr. Enright in one year 
and a half He graduated in 1871. In 
August of the same year he was engaged 
to take what was then known as the 
Orchard school in the town of Freehold. 
This was a mixed school requiring teach- 
ing in all the grades. At that time the 
condition of public-school education in 
the town of Freehold was at a low ebb. 
It was only those who could not afford 
to pay tuition in the excellent private 
schools of the town who sent their chil- 
dren to the public school. 

Mr. Enright was from the beginning a 
successful teacher. He first introduced 
into Freehold normal methods in teach- 
ing. Although another public school, 
more favorably located, was kept in the 
town, yet in a short time there Avas a de- 
mand from pupils all over the town to 
enter the Orchard school. The overflow 
had to be provided for in an adjoining 
private house, where Mr. Enright was 
furnished an assistant teacher. 

In 1875, imbued with the new spirit of 



education that had been so successfully 
awakened, the trustees of the schools saw 
that more advanced educational facilities 
were required. Hence a movement for a 
new school building which should accom- 
modate all of the children was made. 
This building, costing $20,000, was com- 
pleted and ready for occupancy in Feb., 
1875. Mr. Enright was the unanimous 
choice of the board of trustees for princi- 
pal. He organized the school, established 
a course of study, and thus started one of 
the first graded schools in Monmouth 
county. Since that time the school has 
grown in attendance from two hundred 
and twenty-five scholars and five teachers 
to an enrollment at present of more than 
six hundred, employing fourteen com- 
petent and wide-awake teachers. Under 
Mr. Enright's regime the school has be- 
come exceptionally popular, as evinced 
by the remarkable attendance and patron- 
age from non-resident pupils. The course 
of study has been extended, and the 
standard raised until now Freehold boasts 
of having one of the best schools in all 
its departments in the state. 

Mr. Enright ranks professionally as 
one of the most popular educators of 
New Jersey. He served as president of 
the State Teachers' Association for two 
terms, from 1891-2. In 1894, upon the 
death of Dr. Samuel Lockwood, who had 
l)een county superintendent of schools 
in Monmouth county for twenty-seven 
years, Mr. Enright was appointed to fill 
the vacancy, by the state superintendent 
of schools, and at the expiration of the 
term he was, in Septemljer of the same 
year, permanentlj'^ appointed by the state 
board to the same position, in which 
capacity he is serving at the present 
time. From 1873 to the time of his 
appointment as county superintendent 



Biographical Sketches. 



315 



he served continuously on the examinmg 
board of teachers for Monmouth county, 
a position in which he served longer than 
any other teacher in the state. 

His first year as county superinten- 
dent was one that was full of difficulties 
in the educational work all over the 
state. The new township act went into 
effect in July following his appointment. 
Mr. Enright, with his accustomed zeal, 
plunged into the work, reorganized and 
dii'ected the new boards of education, 
instructed them in their new duties and 
overcame opposition to the new law so 
effectually that Monmouth county be- 
came conspicuous among the counties of 
the state for the smoothness with which 
the change from the old to the new was 
made. 

He is at present vice-president of the 
New Jersey Association of High School 
Principals, and is a member of the state j 
council of education, the highest educa- ! 
tional body in the state. Notwithstand- 
ing his varied and absorbing duties by 
reason of the numerous positions that he 
occupies along the lines of his educa- 
tional work, he yet finds some time foi' 
civil and industrial enterprises. He is a 
director in the Central National Bank, 
and a member and secretary of the board 
of water commissioners. As a member 
of this board he commands the credit of 
being one of the projectors and chief pro- 
moters of the present efficient system of 
water-works of Freehold. Mr. En right's 
recognized knowledge of the geology and 
water supply of this section eminently 
recommended him to the position of 
water commissioner. The successful lo- 
cation of the artesian wells, the source of 
water supply, was largely due to his 
efforts. He became very closely identi- 
fied with the work in every detail, and 
17 



his exhaustive report of the expense of 
plans and total cost of construction was 
copied through various reports and jour- 
nals of the country. The report has 
been regarded as a complete guide for the 
construction of water-works in small 
towns. He still retains his connection 
with the board as its secretary, and main- 
tains an active interest in its success. 

While thus potent and active, educa- 
tionally and civilly, as well as industri- 
ally, he has been equally conspicuous 
fraternally. He is a member of Olive 
Branch Lodge, F. and A. M., and a past 
grand master of A. 0. U. W., of the state 
of New Jersey, an order comprising in 
this state a membership of more than 
five thousand. He has served as repre- 
sentative to the supreme council of the 
order, and attended its meeting held in 
Chicago in June, 1895. 

On Aug. 17, 1875, he was married to 
Emma Mulford, daughter of William 
Mulford, of Cumberland county, New 
Jersey. He has four children : John 
Mulford, a student in the New York Law 
School ; James Geary, a medical student 
in tlie University of Pennsylvania ; 
Emma Mulford and Mildred Lamont, 
undergraduates in the Freehold High 
School. 



TDETER DE WITT, the -well-known 
-^ president of the First National 
Bank of Somerville, New Jersey, comes 
from a sturdy Holland-Dutch stock, his 
maternal grea(>grandmother, Dinah Von- 
burg, having emigrated from Holland. 
She married Theodore Frelinghuysen for 
her first husband, and Jacob R. Hardeh- 
burgh for her second. The maternal grand- 
mother was Rachel Wynkoop. Mr. De 
Witt was born in Sussex county. New 
Jersey, March 1, 1815, and is a son of 



316 



Biographical Sketches. 



John H. and Cornelia Wjnkoop De Witt, 
both natives oi' Ulster count}', N. Y. 

John H. De Witt was born in 1787 and 
died May 24, 1827, at the age of forty ' 
years. He was a prosperous farmer, and 
the father of four sons: Henry, Evart 
W., Peter, and Cornelius W. 

Peter De Witt attended the public 
schools in his native county, and for one 1 
3'ear subsequently was a student at a j 
school in Sonierville. At the age of ' 
twenty-one he engaged in the occupation 
of farming in Sussex county, and con- 
tinued in this until the ^year 1855, when 
he moved to Millford, Pa., and engaged 
in the milling and lumber business. Here 
he remained for a period of five years 
when he disposed of his mill property 
and farm in Sussex county, moved to 
Sonierville and bought a ftirm in Somer- 
set county, which he successfully con- 
ducted until 1866, when he retired from 
active business. In 1888 he was called 
from his retired life to assume the jiresi- 
dency of the First National Bixnk of 
Sonierville, one of the oldest institutions 
of its kind in the state, it having been 
organized in 1866, with a paid-in capital 
of one hundred thousand dollars, and of 
which he has been for some years a 
director. He has been continuously 
elected president each year since his first 
election, and is now one of the oldest, 
if not the oldest, bank-officer in the state. 
He is also one of the trustees of the 
Somerville Savings Bank. Mr. De Witt 
has never aspired to public office; but 
during his farming career in Sussex 
county he held numerous township of- 
fices. He was married Nov. 30, 1841, to 
Sarah Broadhead, daughter of William 
Broadhead, of Pike county. Pa., and to 
their union was born one daughter, Mary 
B., married to the late George W. San- 



born, of Somerset, deceased in Sept., 
1895. 

Mr. De Witt is an active churchman, 
has been a member of the First Re- 
formed church of Somerville for more 
than twenty-five years, and during a 
greater portion of that time has served 
as deacon and elder. At the present 
time he occupies the latter office. He 
takes especial interest in Sunday-school 
work, has given much time to educiv 
tional matters, and has served sixteen 
3'ears as a member and three years as 
president of the school board, having 
been first elected in 1863. In 1889 he 
resigned and has since declined re-elec- 
tion. He had the misfortune to lose his 
life's companion in 1885 from a stroke of 
apoplexy, received during a visit she was 
making to her brother, John C. Broad- 
head, at Shelbyville, Ky. Her remains 
were interred in Somerville. Mr. De 
Witt has long been recognized as one of 
the leading citizens of Somerset county, 
an able business man, and one of the 
most reliable financiers in the state. 



T^UMONT FEELINGHUYSEN, one of 
-'-^ the oldest and most successful 
lawyers of Somerset county, residing in 
Somerville, New Jersey, is a son of 
Frederick and Jane Dumont Freling- 
huysen, and was born Feb. 8, 1816, at 
Millstone, in said county. Both parents 
were among the early settlers of Somerset 
county. Frederick Frelinghuysen (father) 
was regarded as one of the most brilliant 
members of this highly-gifted famil}', 
and is said to have been the brightest 
lawyer that New Jersey has produced. 
From 1814 to 1820 he was public prose- 
cutor of the counties of Somerset, Mid- 
dlesex and Hunterdon. His two bro- 



Biographical Sketches. 



317 



thers, John and Theodore Frelmghuysen, 
hkewise became men of national reputa^ 
tion. Theodore was attorney-general and 
senator from New Jersey in congress, 
president of the University of New York, 
and subsequently of Rutgers College in 
New Jersey. He was also a candidate 
on the whig ticket for vice-president with 
Henry Clay. Frederick Frelinghuysen 
was a member of the Dutch Reformed 
church for many years, and found time 
in the midst of his busy professional and 
political life to labor earnestly in the 
Master's vineyard. His wife was Jane 
Dumont, a daughter of Peter B. Dumont, 
a farmer, of Somerset county. They 
were the parents of five children : Susan, 
wife of William D. Watterman, of New 
York city ; Gertrude, married to William 
T. Mercer, of Newark, New Jersey ; 
Louise, who married John C. Elmendorf, 
of New Brunswick, New Jersey; Dumont, 
who married Martina Vanderveer, of 
Somerset county, New Jersey ; and Fred- 
erick, who wedded Matilda Griswold, of 
New York city. 

Dumont Frelinghuysen, the subject of 
this sketch, received his preliminary edu- 
cation in the Somerville Academy, and 
subsequently entered Rutgers College, 
New Brunswick, from which he was 
graduated in the class of 1835. He at 
once began studjang law with the late 
ex-Governor Peter D. Vroom, at Somer- 
ville, and was admitted to the bar in 
1838. He practiced before the courts of 
Somerset county until 1840, when he 
was elected clerk of the county court for 
a term of five years. Retiring from office 
at the expiration of his term he returned 
to his profession, and has been engaged 
ever since that time in the practice of 
the law, and doing an extensive business 
in the settlement of estates, some of them 



notably large ones. He has been uni- 
formly successful in his legal as well as his 
business affairs, and has accumulated a 
substantial competence. His practice 
thus far covers a period of fifty-one years, 
and he is the only surviving member of 
his immediate family, his brothers and 
sisters all having deceased. Mr. Freling- 
huysen was originally a whig in politics, 
but since then he has been a consistent 
republican. He always took the deepest 
interest in the welfare of his party, and 
in the preservation of its principles. 
This was especially so during the late 
civil war ; but his activities and his sym- 
pathies were compelled to take other 
forms than that of personal service in 
the army, as he had reached the age pre- 
cluding him from enlistment. In former 
days his face was seen and his voice 
heard at many recurring conventions, 
whither he was sent as a delegate to 
repi-esent his township and his county. 
Having now reached the venerable age 
of four-score years, he is well contented 
to retire from the political arena and 
leave its diversions to younger men. 
Mr. Frelinghuysen was united in mar- 
riage, Dec. 23, 1845, to Martina, a 
daughter of Ferdinfind and Maria Elmen- 
dorf Vanderveer, who were members of 
another old and prominent family of 
Somerset county. Mrs. Frelinghuysen 
is still living, at the age closely approxi- 
mating that of her consort, who is her 
senior by six days, and is likewise the 
sole survivor of her own family. Mr. 
Frelinghuysen has been a member of the 
Dutch Reformed church, at Somerville, 
for more than forty years, and almost 
constantly during that time has been in 
official connection therewith. He was 
once a deacon, several times an elder, 
and for twenty years was superintendent 



318 



Biographical Sketches. 



of the Sunday-school, at which time he 
was doubtless the oldest man in New 
Jersey directing the ail'airs of a religious 
school. He has been and is yet a wel- 
comed and ent<?rtaining speaker before 
church meetings, Sunday-schools and 
other religious associations. In this con- 
nection he has fi'equently declared that 
delivering addresses before such gather- 
ings was infinitely more congenial to his 
mind than was the practice of the law. 
He was for several years vice-president 
of the Young Men's Christian Associa- 
tion of Somerville, on which he has left 
the dural)le impress of his cultivated 
christian mind and his active, devoted 
labor. He is justly pi'oud of his many 
old-time successes in the forum, where 
intellectual fii'e was born of friction 
between mental steel and mental flint; 
he is proud of his line of patriotic and i 
statesmen-like ancestors who form an ; 
integral part of the history of this 
country, and in his heart there is a 
feeling of satisfaction that he has won 
jewels for his crown in the hereafter. 

Theodore Jacolnis Frelinghuysen, the 
founder of the family in this country, 
was a native of Lingen, Hanover, Ger- 
many, and after acquiring a theological 
training was sent in 1720 to the Raritan 
valley, Somerset county, as a missionary 
of the Dutch Reformed church. He sub- 
sequently occupied joulpits at New Bruns- 
wick, Somerville and North Branch, and 
was the editor of a book of sermons which 
is still extant. He was the father of 
seven children ; two daughters and five 
sons. Three of these sons were .sent to 
Holland to be educated, and on their re- 
turn to this country were drowned. A 
fourth son became a minister, and after 
occupying for a time a pulpit in Rochester, 
N. Y., was stricken with small-pox and 



deceased. John Frelinghuysen, the fifth 
son, was also a minister. He received a 
call to Somerville, and alter preaching 
three years to various congregations there 
and in the surrounding country he too 
died. He left one son, the sole survivor, 
to perpetuate the family name, who be- 
came a lawyer at Millstone, Somei'set 
county, and Avas later heard from during 
the Revolutionary war as the celebrated 
General Frederick Frelinghuysen, partici- 
pating in the battles of Trenton, Prince- 
ton and Monmouth, and at a later period 
was assigned by Washington to suppress 
the " Whiskey Insurrection " in Pennsyl- 
vania. He represented New Jersey in 
the senate of the United States from 
1775 to 1777, and his subsequent re- 
sumption of law practice was terminated 
by death in the fifty-first year of his age. 
He was the fiither of six children : John, 
Theodore, Frederick (father of subject), 
Maria, Catharine, and Elizabeth. 



TTENRY C. WINSOR, president of the 
-*--*- Asbury Park and Ocean Gi'ove 
Bank, and one of Asbury Park's most 
progressive citizens, is a son of Thomas 
and Aletta Christopher Winsor, and wfis 
born at Bound Brook, New Jersey, in 
1852. The Winsors were oi'iginally an 
English family, coming from the county 
of Devonshire, and settling in New Jer- 
sey in the early colonial days. 

George Winsor (grandfather) was a na- 
tive of Devonshire, England, and became 
the proprietor of a large tract of land 
upon which the town of Bound Brook 
now stands. He was a successful agri- 
culturist and conducted the development 
of Bound Brook in an able manner. He 
was a membei of the whig party and ac- 
tively engaged in the afliairs of the local 



Biographical Sketches. 



321 



Methodist Episcopal church. His chil- 
dren were as follows : Thomas, George, 
Wesley, Johanna, Maria, Agnes and 
Elizabeth. 

Thomas Winsor (father) passed his 
boyhood days on the homestead farm 
and received his education in the district 
schools. Upon reaching maturity he en- 
gaged in farming at Bound Brook, and 
so continued during all his life. He was 
an aggressive republican and a hard 
worker for his pai'ty's interests. Mr. 
Winsor took especial interest in the work 
of the First Methodist Episcopal church 
of Bound Brook, and served as steward 
and trustee. He married Alelta, daugh- 
ter of Joseph Christopher, whose family 
was well known in Revolutionary times. 
Their children were : Elizabeth, de- 
ceased ; George W., John C, deceased ; 
Joseph C, and Henry C. 

Henry C. Winsor was educated in the 
public schools of Faririingdale and at 
Pennington Seminary, Pennington, New 
Jersey ; subsequently at the Freehold 
Institute, from which he was graduated 
with the class of 1870. He then entered 
the profession of teaching at Whitesville, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey, and in 
1873 removed to Asbury Park. Here he 
soon became actively identified with the 
various interests of the town, and has be- 
come a power in financial and political 
circles. In 1876 he was elected secre- 
tary of the Asbury Park Building and 
Loan Association, and has served up to 
the present time. The First National 
Bank of Asbury Park was incorporated 
in 1886, and he became its first presi- 
dent, holding said office until 1889. He 
is also one of the organizers of the Asbury 
Park and Ocean Grove Bank, has been 
president of that institution ever since its 
incorporation, and has been eminently 



successful in the management of its 
financial and general interests. When 
the latter banking-house erected its new 
building Mr. Winsor was chairman of the 
committee in charge of the erection of 
the same. He also owns considerable 
local real estate. The First Methodist 
Episcopal church of Asbury Park num- 
bers him among its most faithful and far- 
sighted members. Mr. Winsor has 
served his church with great- satisfaction 
and success in the capacity of steward, 
and has been a trustee since 1878. He 
is a member of the Masonic Lodge, No. 
142, and Council No. 23, Jr. 0. U. A. M., 
both of Asbury Park. In local politics 
Mr. Winsor is an energetic worker and 
strongly defends the principles of the Re- 
publican party. On Dec. 31, 1876, he 
was united in marriage to Miss Mary 
Bartram, a daughter of James and Mary 
Bartram, of Philadelphia, Pa., and they 
reside in their handsome residence at 
No. 701 First avenue, with three daugh- 
ters : Mabel, Bessie and Marie, and one 
son, Henry C, Jr. Mr. Winsor in ability 
as a financier has no superior among his 
fellow-citizens, and his untiring energy, 
guided by sagacious judgment, has guar- 
anteed him a successful career. 



TTON. WILLIAM J. KEYS, ex-state 
-'— ^ senator and capitalist, is one of 
the most prominent men in New Jersey. 
Born at Dobbs Ferry, New York, April 
13, 1838, his life has been a conspicu- 
ously useful one, not only to his fellow- 
citizens of immediate environment, but 
to his country at large. His parents 
were James and Anna (Fisher) Keys, his 
father having been a native of Massa- 
chusetts and a large contractor for, and 
one of the original builders of, the Hud- 



322 



Biographical Sketches. 



soil River railroad. He died in 1872. 
At the age of thirteen years William J. 
Keys found employment in the city of 
New York, where he remained for a 
number of years. Upon the breaking 
out of the civil war, or shortly after, 
he was awarded the contract for haul- 
ing and delivering supplies for the east- 
ern department, Chester A. Arthur hav- 
ing charge of it, with headquarters at 194 
Broadway, Ncav York. Between these 



two gentlemen was formed a 



strong 



friendship, which was continued until 
the death of Mr. Arthur. The position 
which Mr. Keys assumed was no sine- 
cure, for his contract was a large one, 
and the proper fulfilment of his duties 
gave plenty of occupation to his brain 
and hands, for the times were exciting 
and full of peril, and decision of character 
and prompt action were required on the 
part of those who were filling contracts 
for the government. One of the greatest 
difficulties Mr. Keys met with in the 
execution of his duties was the obtaining 
of drivers for his wagons, for it was often 
almost worth one's life to attempt to 
make the required deliveries of food for 
the hungiy soldiers. On one occasion 
there was a tremendous excitement, oc- 
casioned by the government drafts, and 
the streets were filled with turbulent 
and riotous men. A frenzied crowd al- 
most completely blocked the avenues 
between Thirty-fifth and Thirty-sixth 
streets, surrounding the state arsenal, 
and Mr. Keys found it absolutely impos- 
sible to obtain a driver. A load of pro- 
visions had to be delivered, and, not to 
be foiled in the dut}', Mr. Keys took the 
reins of the team himself and proceeded 
up town undaunted by the threats of the 
angry crowds. Traversing Greenwich 
street he was assailed from every side , 



with stones, and a few of the more reck- 
less rioters fired their pistols at him. 
Although wounded in several places he 
pluckily maintained his position, urging 
on his team, until he succeeded in reach- 
ing his destination and delivering the 
much-needed food to the hungry soldiers. 
He foiled an attempt on the gas house, 
and on numerous other occasions of a 
similar nature Mr. Keys showed the 
bravei'y and determination of his char- 
acter; it was of a sort needed in those 
troublous times. On the following Sun- 
day an attempt was foiled hy him to 
take the St. Nicholas hotel, where a com- 
pany of regulars were quartered — a point 
of special importance in the situation at 
that time. The soldiers were on the 
point of starvation; but Mr. Kej-s suc- 
ceeded in delivering the rations, though 
at perilous hazard to himself. Perhaps 
no other man in the world can say that 
he has stabled his horses in the New 
York city hall park and Battery park, 
3'et such was Mr. Keys' privilege by vir- 
tue of a special permit issued by the gov- 
ernment. 

In his earl}' years, before his connec- 
tion with the arm}', Mr. Ke^s was in the 
produce business in Washington market. 
New York city. Later he became con- 
nected with the Citizens' Line of steamers, 
running between New York and Troy, 
and he still maintains an mterest in that 
company, as well as in other steamboat 
lines. 

Li politics Mr. Keys has always been a 
staunch democrat, and during the life of 
Samuel J. Tilden was his warm friend. 
During his residence in New York he 
took an active part in political affairs 
and was a member of Tammany Hall. 
Later he purchased a farm at South 
Branch, and although he made, no effort 



BioGRAPHicAiv Sketches. 



323 



at any prominence in j)olitics in Somerset 
county his party friends were so numer- 
ous and so energetic in their determina- 
tion that he should represent them in 
the legislature that he yielded to their 
solicitations, was nominated and elected 
senator in 1890, after a very warm con- 
test, being the first democratic senator 
from that section for many years. Dur- 
ing Mr. Keys' term in the senate he 
made many warm friends on both side?, 
and gained the reputation of being a 
man whose word could be depended 
upon at all times and under all circum- 
stances. 

Mr. Keys married Carrie E. Ellis, 
daughter of Amos Ellis, of Philadelphia. 
He has a charming home at Somerville, and 
being a great lover as Avell as a good judge 
of horse flesh, keeps some very fine stock, 
valued at about |65,000. At present he 
owns the celebrated " Harry Wilkes," 
2:13i ; also "Jerseyman," his mate; 
" Bayonne Prince," and "Lady Medium." 
He now owns in all twelve head of very 
fast horses. 



TTAROLD K. ALLSTROM, of Red 
■•'--L Bank, is one of the best musicians 
in the state of New Jersey, and has be- 
hind him a line of ancestors long recog- 
nized for their genius and musical abili- 
ties. He has rich Swedish blood flowing 
through his veins, and is a son of Jacob 
Nicolas and Brigitta Christine Allstrom, 
and was born at Stockholm, Sweden, 
Sept. 2, 1849. 

Jacob N. Allstrom (father) became a 
prominent musician and composer of well- 
known and popular operas and other 
productions. Among his most famous 
compositions are the operas " Alfred the 
Great," and " Urdur ; or the Daughter of 
Necken," besides several national songs 



sung by Jenny Lind. In 1845 he was the 
musical director of the Royal Theatre at 
Stockholm, Sweden, and also was leader 
of the Royal Band at the palace. Mr. All- 
strom, Sr., was a member of the church 
founded by the immortal Luther. In 1823, 
Jacob N. Allstrom married Miss Brigitta 
C. Tuttstrom, and they had a family of 
eleven children : John V., who lives at 
Long Branch ; C. 0. Ludwig, deceased ; 
H. Nisida, deceased ; Maria C, deceased ; 
Gust N., drowned in the North Sea ship- 
wreck ; Pehr A., died in infancy ; Ida 
Elizabeth ; Otto Rudolph, living in New 
York city ; Amanda Mathilda ; Harold 
K. ; and Elva Caroline Augusta. Jacob 
N. Allstrom died at Stockholm in 1857, 
and his wife passed away Dec. 14, 1890. 
They are buried at Stockholm. 

Mr. Harold K. Allstrom inherited 
the national musical genius of his tal- 
ented father and forefathers. When 
quite 3^oung he was brought into public 
notice as a vocalist, and soon became recog- 
nized as a musician of great proficiency 
and true musical instinct. He came to 
this country in 1867, locating at Red 
Bank, and became associated with his 
brother, John V. Allstrom, who was en- 
gaged in the sale of musical instruments 
and the teaching of music. Here Mr. 
Allstrom has since remained and has es- 
tablished a large and successful business in 
this branch of trade, and as an instructor 
in the beautiful and noble art of music 
and harmony, has gained a reputation 
second to none in his state and city. Mr. 
Allstrom, having associated with him 
Mr. F. C. Storck, under the firm name of 
Allstrom & Co., carries a large and full 
line of all instruments pertaining to his 
business, and is regarded as a reliable 
and successful dealer. He is a republi- 
can in his political affiliations, and a 



324 



Biographical Sketches. 



member of the Grace Methodist Episcopal 
church, of Red Bank, and is organist and a 
trustee in this organization. His fraternal 
connections associate him with Navesink 
Lodge, No. 39, I. 0. 0. F., Red Bank 
Council, No. 984, Royal Arcanum, and 
the Ancient Order of United Workmen, 
of Red Bank. On Oct. 29, 1879, Mr. 
AUstrom was married to Miss Mary 
Bejer, daughter of John and Elizabeth 
Bej^er, of Red Bank, and to them have 
been born two children, Henry W., and 
Elva L., deceased. 



TTON. ROBERT CARSON, ex-postmas- 
-*— *- ter of New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
and ex-assemblyman from Middlesex 
county, is a son of Robert and Catharine 
S. Carson, and was born Dec. 26, 185-3, in 
that cit}'. The name Carson is of Scotch 
origin, andthe oldest nativity of the ances- 
tral line this side of the Atlantic is em- 
braced in that stretch of country covered 
by Mercer and Monmouth counties. ! 

Robert Carson (father) was born at 
Hightstown, Mercer county, in 1822, 
and after acquiring his education in the 
common schools of that town, he became 
a grocer and ship-chandler at New Bruns- 
wick. He resided there up to the time 
of his death in 1862, aged thirtjMiine 
years. He was married to Catharine S., 
daughter of Arnold Farmer, of North 
Brunswick township, in 1850, who is yet 
living. They had six children : Ann 
Eliza, Arnold, Robert, Helen, Anthonj', 
and William F. 

Mr. Carson attended the public schools 
in his native city until he reached the 
age of eighteen years, when he entered 
upon a clerkship with I. S. Manning, a 
New Brunswick furniture dealer, and 
subsequently for three years he was em- j 



ployed as a clerk by John S. Ferguson, 
who was in the real-estate business. In 
1873 Mr. Carson was appointed to a 
clerkship in the New Brunswick post- 
office, by Joseph F. Fisher, then post- 
master, where he remained during the 
seven years next ensuing. He resigned 
at the expiration of this time and em- 
barked for himself in the business of gen- 
tlemen's furnishing, at the corner of 
Church and Dennis streets, New Bruns- 
wick, which he still carries on. In Oct., 
1881, he was tendered the republican 
nomination for the legislatui-e, but he de- 
clined in favor of James H. Goodwin, who 
was nominated. Mr. Carson represented 
the second ward of New Brunswick for 
two terms, 1882-86, in the common coun- 
cil, and his friends in the Republican party 
of which he was alwaj^s a true, staunch, 
and aggressive member, were so gratified 
with the abilit}^ he displayed in the mu- 
nicipal service and the stand he took in 
the memorable fight against the ho.se 
deal, the three-years'-term gas contract, 
and the granting of tlie street-railway 
franchise to the former owners, that they 
nominated him for the legislature in 
1884, and again in the following year. 
He was elected both times ; by a major- 
ity of two hundred and fifty votes in 
1884, and by seven hundred and eighty- 
four votes in 1885. While in the assem- 
bly Mr. Carson was chairman of the 
committee of corporations, as well as 
chairman of the committee on the James- 
burg reform school, and he wielded such 
influence as to cause speedy recognition 
as a leader. On March 4, 1885, while 
serving out his term in the New Jersey 
legislature, Representative Carson was 
appointed postmaster of New Brunswick 
by President Artliur. This was the last 
appointment of that character made by 



Biographical Sketches. 



325 



President Arthur during his administra- 
tion. Mr. Carson took charge of the af- 
fairs of the posi^oflftce on March 4, 1885, 
the identical date of the first inaugura- 
tion of President Cleveland, and there 
remained until he was removed, April 
11,1887; cause, offensive partisanship. 
From that time till Feb. 1, 1892, he de- 
voted himself to his gentlemen's furnish- 
ing business, which he had not in 
the meanwhile abandoned. He was re- 
appointed postmaster early in January, 
1892, by President Harrison, and was 
confirmed by the U. S. senate, Jan. 6, 
1892. Mr. Carson entered upon the du- 
ties of his office on Feb. 1 of that year, 
in which he served continuously up to 
March -31, 1896. He is a charter mem- 
ber of Goodwill Council, No. 32, Junior 
0. U. A. M., the wealthiest secret organ- 
ization in New Brunswick, and in ma- 
sonry he is a member of the following 
bodies : Union Lodge, No. 19, F. and A. 
M. ; Scott Chapter, R. A. M. ; Temple 
Commandery, No. 18, Knights Templar, 
and Mecca Temple, Nobles of the Mystic 
Shrine; also a member of Friendship 
Lodge, No. 30, Knights of Pythias, and 
an exempt fireman of New Brunswick. 
He has served as chairman of both the 
city and county executive committees of 
his party. 

Mr. Carson was married Jan. 13, 1886, 
to Kate Adams, a daughter of Captain 
Luther Adams, of New Brunswick, N. 
J. To this marriage was born a lovely 
daughter, Helen. 



/CHARLES H. WARDELL, cashier of 
^-^ the Farmers and Merchants' Bank 
of Matawan, Monmouth countj^. New 
Jersey, is a son of Robert and Jane 
Williams Wardell, and was born Sept. 
16, 1838, in New York city. 



The grandfather, Benjamin Wardell, 
was born Sept. 13, 1765. He resided at 
Monmouth Beach, and subsequently at 
Long Branch. He was a farmer all his 
life, and owned a large tract of land ex- 
tending from Monmouth Beach as far 
north as Sandy Hook. In his political 
relations he was a whig, and in religious 
matters he was a quaker. His wife, 
whose maiden name was Deborah Hance, 
was born Oct. 5, 1762, and deceased Oct. 
23, 1830. He died Feb. 25, 1821, in the 
fifty-sixth year of his age. They were 
the parents of nine children : Henry, 
deceased Aug. 22,1795; Charles, .John, 
deceased in Jan., 1837; Sarah, deceased 
April 21, 1874 ; Henry, deceased Dec. 8, 
1851; Robert, deceased Oct. 11, 1863; 
Edward, deceased Aug. 20, 1818 ; Owen, 
deceased June 10, 1833, and Deborah, 
deceased Nov. 1, 1895. 

Robert Wardell (father) was born May 
22, 1798, at Monmouth Beach, New Jer- 
sey. He became a merchant at Freehold, 
New Jersey, where he resided a number 
of years, and subsequently was engaged 
for about seven years in the wholesale 
grocery business at New York city. In 
1840 he I'emoved to Eatontown, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, where he 
prosecuted a successful business in gen- 
eral merchandising during the remaining 
twelve years of his life. He was origin- 
ally a whig, and later a republican in 
politics, and he became very active in 
party affairs. In religion he was a mem- 
ber of the Protestant Episcopal church. 
He deceased Oct. 11, 1863, preceded by 
his wife, who died Jan. 17, 1861. They 
had seven children : George Williams, 
born Jan. 27, 1835, died Aug. 25, 1862; 
William H., born August 19, 1 836, re- 
siding at Ocean Grove, New Jersey ; 
Charles Henry, the subject; Tyler W., 



326 



Biographical Sketches. 



born Nov. 20, 1840, died Dec. 17, 1873; 
Mary W., born April 9, 1843, died Aug. 
19, 1865; Sarah Jane, born Nov. 2, 
1845,-married to Harry Shoemaker of 
Point Pleasant, New Jersey, and Robert, 
born April 18, 1848, died Oct. 25, 1853. 
Mr. Wardell attended the public 
schools of Eatontown until he reached 
the age of sixteen years. Pie then be- 
came a clerk in his father's store, where 
he remained two years. He was subse- 
quently emploj-ed as a clerk by Williams 
& Sanger, in the dry goods business at 
New York city, and two years later by 
B. C. White, proprietor of a general store 
in Eatontown. In 1862, he enlisted in 
the Twenty-ninth regiment. New Jersey 
volunteers, for a term of nine months. 
At the expiration of his term of service 
ill the arm}^, he returned to Eatontown, 
where he resumed his relations as clerk 
for Mr. White. In 1864 he was ap- 
pointed to a clerkship in the Fanners 
and Merchants' Bank at Matawan, in 
which 250sition he rendered the bank 
faithful and efficient service for nine 
years. He reached the goal of a bank- 
clerk's ambition in 1873 when he was 
elected cashier of the Farmers and 
Merchants' Bank and continues in that 
responsible position to this day. Politi- 
cally Mr. Wardell is a republican, and re- 
ligiously a presbyterian, a member, trus- 
tee and treasurer of that church in Mat- 
awan, and is a teacher in its Sunday- 
school. He was married August 26, 
1875, to Mary E. Simpson, a daughter 
of Francis P. Simpson, of Matawan. 



r^ EORGE V. TUNISON, a long-estab- 
^^ lished and prosperous wholesale 
grocer at Somerville, Somerset county, 
New Jersejf, and one of the leading citi- 



zens of that town, is a son of Philip and 
Alleta Tunison, and was born ]\Iarch 17, 
1825, on his father's farm, in Bridgewater 
township, near Somerville. The name is 
of German origin, and for three genera- 
tions past the Tunisons have been promi- 
nent in the agricultural and commercial 
interests of Somerset county. 

Abram Tunison (grandfather) was a 
thriving farmer in Bridgewater township 
all his life. He was a staunch democrat, 
participated actively in the public affairs 
of his day, and was a member of the First 
Reformed church at Somerville. He was 
married twice ; his first wife being Miss 
Wortman, by whom he had five children: 
Philip, Abram, William, Deborah, and 
Abigail. His second wife was Miss Wort- 
man, the children by this marriage being 
Miller, James and Margaret. He is now 
deceased. 

Philip Tunison (father) owned and 
operated a large farm in Brancliburg 
township, and was highly esteemed. He 
was a democrat, and a member of the 
First Reformed church at Bedminster, 
and was active in the discharge of his 
duties as a christian. His wife was 
Miss Alleta Vroom, a daughter of George 
Vrooin, of Pluckarain, by whom he had 
nine children : Jane, Abram, Maria, Paul 
Voorhees, George V., Abigail, Philip, 
Henry, and Gareta. He died in 1888; 
his wife died in 1882. 

George V. Tunison passed his early life 
on his father's farm, in Brancliburg town- 
ship, and was educated in the public 
schools. In 1855 he removed to Somer- 
ville, and there laid, in a modest way, 
the foundation for his present extensive 
grocery business. During the Rebellion 
he gratuitously furnished provisions to 
the wives and families of hundreds of the 
absent soldiers, relieved their distresses 




J2^ [/(<^^JA<^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



329 



in every possible way, and deferred all 
expectation of payment until its conclu- 
clusion. Mr. Tunison is a republican, 
but while strongly alive at all times to 
the best interests of the community, is 
not a seeker after public office. He is 
a staunch supporter of the Second Re- 
formed church at Somerville, and has 
held all the offices in the church. He 
was married on Feb. 22, 1854, to Miss 
Angelina Naylor, a daughter of Samuel 
R. Naylor, of Somerville, and they have 
two daughters : Annie, wife of H. F. Gal- 
pin, of Somerville ; and Elizabeth, widow 
of J. W. Euhl. 

Mr. Tunison enjoys the esteem and 
respect of his fellow-citizens, and has 
long borne the reputation of being one of 
Somerville's best and worthiest citizens. 



nPvR. CLAUDIUS E,. P. FISHER, alead- 
-L^ ing medical practitioner of Bound 
Brook, and surgeon of the Lehigh Valley 
railroad at that place, is a son of James 
S. and Catherine L. (Stout) Fisher, and 
was born in Hunterdon county. New 
Jersey, on Aug. 12, 1857. His boyhood 
education was obtained in the high school 
or seminary at Ringoes, Hunterdon 
county, after leaving which he entered 
the Jefferson Medical College, Philadel- 
phia, and graduated from there on March 
10, 1877, before reaching the legal age 
for graduation; The same year he loca- 
ted in practice at Neshanic, Somerset 
county. New Jersey, remaining there 
until 1883. He then removed to Bound 
Brook, where he has resided ever since. 
He has built up a large and lucrative 
practice, and is well known all over the 
northern part of New Jersey. He is a 
member and second vice-president of the 
New Jersey State Medical Society, and is 



also a member of the Somerset Covinty 
Medical Society. He is a member of the 
organization formed by the surgeons of 
the Lehigh Valley railroad, as also of the 
National Railway Surgeons' Association. 
Being a man of wide popularity and of 
rare social instincts, he is also promi- 
nently identified with a number of other 
well-known organizations, including East- 
ern Star Lodge, No. 105, F. and A. M., 
at Plainfield ; Keystone Chapter, No. 
25, R. A. M., and Trinity Commandery, 
K. T. He is health officer of the Bound 
Brook board of health, and active in all 
affairs tending to promote the sanitary 
betterment of the town. Dr. Fisher was 
married on March 15, 1881, to Miss 
Mary L. Stryker, daughter of Thomas 
C. Stryker, a well-known farmer of 
Frankfort, New Jersey. They have two 
sons : William A. and Robert S. Dr. 
Fisher is a hard-working, conscientious 
practitioner, constantly abreast of the 
times in all matters relating to his pro- 
fession, and possessed of read}- tact and 
sympathy. 

The family name is of German origin. 
William Fisher (grandfather), was a 
prosperous farmer of Hunterdon county, 
a staunch whig, and a well-known man 
in his day. His wife was a Miss Lucre- 
tia Slack. 

James S. Fisher (father) was born in 
1800 on the Hunterdon county farm, 
which he operated during his life. He 
had a common-school education, was a 
man of proverbial honesty, and one who 
commanded the respect of all who knew 
him. He was a whig and a republican, 
held several local offices, and was a stead- 
fast mason in the early days of the order 
at Bound Brook. His wife was Miss 
Catherine L. Stout, daughter of William 
Stout, descendant of a well-known colo- 



330 



Biographical Sketches. 



nial family, and they had ten children, 
seven of whom are living. 

William Stout (maternal gr.indfather) 
Avas a resident of Arnwell township, 
Hunterdon county, and a magistrate and 
23rominent public man of that locality. 
One of his brothers, Nathan, was a cap- 
tain in the Continental army during the 
Revolution, and another served through 
the war of 1812. The origin of the 
family in this country was a romantic 
one. A little colony of Dutch immi- 
grants who had settled in the wilds of 
New Amsterdam (now New York) were 
set upon by Indians, and all were killed 
except one — Penelope Van Princess, from 
Holland. She was partially disemboweled 
and left lying upon the ground for dead, 
but revived and dragged herself into a 
hollow log, where for many hours pieces 
of decaying wood were her only suste- 
nance. Finally driven out by hunger, 
she was immediately captured by the 
Indians, who, after a dispute, took her 
across the river in a canoe; but she was 
rescued and taken back to New Amster- 
dam. Subsequently, in her twenty- 
second year, she was married to Richard 
Stout, a native of England, and a bache- 
lor of forty years, who had settled in the 
young colony. The couple located in 
Monmouth county, New Jersey, and had 
a family of seven sons and three daugh- 
ters. The seventh son, David Stout, was 
the direct maternal ancestor of Dr. Fisher. 
One of his sons, James, had a son John, 
who had a son Nathan, who had a son 
William, and the latter was the father of 
Mrs. James S. Fisher, the mother of Dr. 
Fisher. 



TOHN L. ANDERSON, the county super- 
^ intendent of the schools of Somerset 
county, New Jersey, was born at Ber- 



nardsville, in that county, Dec. 25, 1854. 
He is a son of John H. and Susan O. 
Anderson. His great-grandfatlier lived 
on the old homestead, now owned and 
occupied by his mother. His father was 
a well-known and prosperous business 
man and prominent in state and county 
politics, having served as surrogate, judge 
and member of the state senate and as- 
sembly. 

Mr. Anderson received his earl}' educa- 
tion in the public schools of Bernards- 
ville, and a private school at Mendham. 
He then entered Princeton College and 
graduated therefrom in 1879, with the 
degree of B. A. While at Princeton 
College he was an active member of Clio 
Hall, and graduated from it, an honor 
not taken by all Princeton men. Re- 
turning to Bernardsville Mr. Anderson 
engaged in business for some months, 
chiefly in connection with lumber opera- 
tions and contracting. He also spent 
one 3^ear in Georgia. In 1891 he moved 
to Somerville and became a local editor 
of the Somerset Messenger, which position 
he has since satisfactorily filled. Before 
going to college Mr. Anderscm had been 
a school-teacher, and on account of his 
marked educational qualifications he was 
appointed county superintendent of 
schools of Somerset county, and on the 
1st of September, 189.3, took possession 
of his office. When the new law went 
into effect in New Jersey giving free text 
books and making other radical changes, 
Somerset county was one of the foremost 
in making the required changes, and the 
number of jiupils in that county who 
have free text books is stated as about 
ten per cent, higher than in any other 
county, and Mr. Anderson is credited 
with having worked zealously in bring- 
ing about the change. He has made au 



Biographical SKKfCHHS. 



331 



.active and efficient superintendent, de- 
votes almost his entire time to the duties 
of his office, and is constantly on the alert 
to raise the standard among the teachers 
and increase the efficiency of their ser- 
vice. There are now in Somerset county 
about one hundred and twenty teachers 
and five thousand two hundred pupils. 

Mr. Anderson was united in marriage 
June 25, 1884, to Maria H., daughter of 
John V. and Hannah Breece Stevens, 
one of the oldest and most respected 
families in Morris county, and to this 
union have been born two children : 
Susan S. and Margaret H. 

Politically, Mr. Anderson affiliates with 
the democrats, and takes a general 
interest in political matters. He is a 
member of the Knights of Honor and its 
financial reporter, as also of a number of 
other social organizations. 



TTTINFIELD WHITE, a leading horti- 
' ' culturist of Little Silver, Shrews- 
bury township, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, was born Jan. 6, 1850, near his 
present home and place of business. He 
is a brother of Theodore F. White, a 
prominent real-estate and insurance man 
of Red Bank, whose sketch contains the 
ancestral history. 

Winfield White was educated in the 
common schools of his native township, 
and at an early age was employed by his 
father upon the farm, with whom he re- 
mained until 1881. Upon that date he 
purchased land at Little Silver and en- 
gaged in trucking and growing vege- 
tables, which he has since continued 
successfully. He is a progressive and 
energetic young man, possessed of good 
judgment and a thoroughly practical 
knowledge of his business. He was 



probably the first man to grow plants 
and vegetables under glass in that sec- 
tion of the county. He commenced 
upon a tract of eight acres of land and 
subsequently purchased twenty-two acres 
more, and also rented another tract, in 
order to supply the increasing demands 
of his increasing trade. He employs fif- 
teen men in his business and has seven 
hot-houses covering a space of 19,250 
square feet. Politically Mr. White is a 
staunch republican, as are all the mem- 
bers of the family. And while he takes 
an intelligent interest in the j^olitical 
issues of the country, he has never yet 
aspired to office. On Dec. 15, 1880, he 
married Adaline Sherman, a daughter of 
William Sherman, now deceased. Mrs. 
White, who died Oct. 9, 1892, gave birth 
to one child, a daughter, christened 
Elizabeth White, who was born April 5, 
1882. Mr. White is careful and pains- 
taking in his business, economic in his 
habits, and carefully and judiciously in- 
vests the profits of his business. He 
owns realty in Red Bank, Asbury Park, 
and Macedonia. 



/CORNELIUS ACKERSON, assistant 
^-^ cashier of the People's National 
Bank of Keyport, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Henry E. Acker- 
son, and was born Sept. 11, 1852, in 
Holmdel township, near Hazlet, Mon- 
mouth county. The name Ackerson is 
of Dutch origin. For details and ances- 
tral history see sketch of Capt. Henry 
E. Ackerson in " History of Monmouth 
County." 

Cornelius Ackerson attended the dis- 
trict schools of his native place until he 
was seventeen years of age. He then 
entered Packard's Business College at 



332 



Biographical Sketches. 



New York City, and received a thorough 
training in that institution. He subse- 
quently became a farmer in Holmdel 
township, and for sixteen years he suc- 
cessfully pursued that avocation. He 
still owns two fine farms in that town- 
ship, but, having retired from that branch 
of industry, he leases them to others. 
On April 1, 1890, he removed to Key- 
port, where he became interested in the 
People's National Bank, then organizing, 
and he was elected one of its directors. 
He was subsequently oifered the position 
of assistant cashier of the bank, which 
he accepted after resigning from the 
board of directors. Mr. Ackerson is a 
member and treasui'er of the board of 
water commissioners of Keyport. He is 
also a member of the Royal Arcanum, 
Coronal Council, No. 1456, of that town, 
and politically is a democrat. He was 
united in marriage, Feb. 3, 1875, to Anna 
B. Stilwell, a daughter of John S. Stil- 
well, of Hazlet. To this union have 
been born two sons, Henry E., Jr., and 
Cecil S. 

Mr. Ackerson is a man of exact and 
methodical habits, and is a careful and 
conservative banker. He is of pleasant 
address, and is never provoked to acer- 
bitj', a failing common to so many men 
behind bank counters. 



JACOB SHURTS, one of the oldest and 
^ most trusted engineers on the Cen- 
tral railroad of New Jersey-, and a well- I 
known citizen of Somerville, is a son of 
George F. and Mary Ann Snyder Shurts, 
and was born Jan. 16, 1848, at Hamp- 
ton Junction, Hunterdon county. New Jer- 
sey, where he received a common-school 
education. He learned the flouring trade 
and followed it for five years at New 



Hampton. He entered the employ of 
the Central railroad in 1869, and was a 
brakeman and conductor for a jear and 
a half. He then moved to Somerville 
and was baggage master for the company 
for a 3'ear, after which he was a fireman, 
and later in 1873 was promoted to engi- 
neer, which position he has retained ever 
since. 

Mr. Shurts is an active member of the 
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, is 
a staunch democrat and takes a deep in- 
terest in politics. On Feb. 29, 1888, he 
was married to Miss Catherine Sheridan, 
daughter of the late P. C. and Mary Sheri- 
dan, of Somerville. Mr. Shurts is one of 
the most skillful and experienced engineers 
in the employ of the Central railroad, and 
his career of nearly twenty years in the 
position has been unbroken by an}- seri- 
ous mishap. He is cool-headed, careful 
and trustworthy. 

In Somerville where he resides he is 
well-known and respected, and is re- 
garded as one of the most progressive 
citizens of that town. Peter Shurts, his 
brother, is postmaster of Junction, N. J., 
and a prominent mei'chant, being propri- 
etor of the largest general store in the 
town. He likewise owns and operates a 
fine fertile farm on the outskirts of As- 
bury Park, New Jerse}-. He is a demo- 
crat and an active leader in local politics, 
is a member of the Presbyterian church, 
and a faithful member of the masonic order. 
In 1876 he married Miss Anna Riddle, 
daughter of E. G. Riddle, of Junction, 
New Jersey, b}- whom he has had three 
childi'en : James, Bertha, and George 
Jacob. 

Jacob Shurts, his grandfather, was an 
influential farmer at Cherryville, New 
Jersey, all his life ; was an active demo- 
ci'at and a member of the Presbyterian 





■jP^^ ^^ 


* 









Biographical Sketches. 



335 



church. He died in 1838, having been 
the father of nine children : Catherine, 
wife of Theodore Yard, of Flemington ; 
George F., deceased; Sarah, Michael, 
WilHam, Jacob, Elizabeth, Mary and 
Kuhl, all deceased. George F. Shurts, 
his father, was born at Cherryville, 
New Jersey, and during the greater por- 
tion of his life was a successful and re- 
spected farmer near Hampton Junction, 
New Jersey. In 1872 he was elected 
township collector of Bethlehem town- 
ship, serving two terms, and he was for 
fifteen years constable of the township. 
He was an assiduous member of the Bap- 
tist church of Hampton Junction, as also 
of the masonic order. His wife, who 
was Miss Mary Ann Snyder, daughter of 
Peter Snyder, of Junction, New Jersej^, 
died in 1880, after having born him 
four children : Sarah A., Jacob, Peter S., 
and Mary E., wife of George Oliver, of 
Junction, New Jersey, who is also a 
skillful and experienced locomotive engi- 
neer on the New Jersey Central. Mr. 
Shurts' father died at Hampton Junction, 
July 2, 1896. 



rrON. JOEL PARKER, deceased, the 
-'—'- wai'-governor of New Jersey and, 
at the time of his death, a justice of the 
supreme court of the state, was born 
November 24, 1816, in Freehold town- 
ship, Monmouth county. New Jersey, in 
a house still standing on the Mount 
Holly road, four miles west of Freehold. 
His father was Charles Parker, also 
born in Monmouth county, of which he 
was sheriff, and a representative in the 
state assembly. He was treasurer of 
New Jersey for thirteen years, and for a 
like period he was state librarian. His 
mother, a native of Monmouth county. 



was a daughter of Captain Joseph Cow- 
ard, of the Continental army. 

Joel Parker received his primary edu- 
cation at Trenton, his father's official 
residence at that time, where he attended 
the Trenton Academy. He subsequently 
spent two years as manager on a farm, 
owned by his father, at Colt's Neck, and 
later he took a course of instruction and 
prepared himself for college at the Law- 
renceville high school. Graduating from 
Princeton College in 1839, he at once 
commenced the study of law in the office 
of Hon. Henry W. Green, at Trenton, 
and was admitted to the bar in 1842. 
He commenced the practice of his pro- 
fession at Freehold, where he continued 
to reside, except during the periods of 
his official residence at the state capital, 
until his death. Mr. Parker began his 
political career in 1844, when he entered 
into the closely contested campaign be- 
tween James K. Polk and Henry Clay, 
and won distinction as a public speaker. 
In 1847 he was elected to the assembly 
of New Jersey, and served one year. 
Although the youngest member of that 
body, he at once became the -democratic 
leader, particularly in matters of legal 
import. He introduced into the assem- 
bly a bill to tax personal, as well as real, 
property and supported his measure by 
an able speech, which was reproduced in 
all the newspapers of the state. In 
1848 he declined a nomination as candi- 
date for the state senate on account of 
the demands of his increasing practice. 
On October 28, 1852, he was appointed 
prosecutor of the pleas of Monmouth 
county, which office he held for five 
years, and discharged its duties in an 
especially able manner. His strongest 
effbrt, and the one which gave him a 
leading position before the New Jersey 



336 



Biographical Sketches. 



bar, was toward the close of his term, 
when he secured the conviction, at the 
September term of 1857, of James P. 
Donnelly for the murder of Albert 
Moses, after a legal battle of nine days, 
in which were engaged himself and 
Attorney-General Dayton for the prose- 
cution, and Ex-Governor Pennington, A. 
C. McLean and Joseph P. Bradley, who 
became associate justice of the United 
States Supreme Court, for the defense. 
In 1860 Mr. Parker was elected a presi- 
dential elector, and in the electoral col- 
lege he cast his vote for Stephen A. 
Douglas for Pi-esident. He was again 
elected one of the presidential electors 
for New Jersey in 1876, and cast his 
vote for Samuel J. Tilden for President. 
He was twice prominently named for 
congress, in 1854 and in 1858, but de- 
clined being considered as a candidate 
for the nomination, once for personal 
reasons, and again for reasons involving 
party patriotism. In 1856 his name was 
mentioned for governor of the state, but 
he declined in favor of Colonel William 
C. Alexander, who received the nomina- 
tion. In 1859 he was again named for 
gubernatorial honors, but these he again 
declined. On December 1, 1857, Mr. 
Parker was unanimously elected, by the 
regimental officers of the Monmouth and 
Ocean brigade, brigadier-general of the 
brigade, and on May 7, 1861, General 
Parker was nominated by Governor Olden 
and confirmed by the senate to be major- 
general, succeeding General Moore, of 
Ocean county, as commander of the third 
division of the state militia, comprising 
the counties of Mercer, Middlesex, Mon- 
mouth and Ocean, and in that position 
he promoted volunteei'ing at the open- 
ing of the civil war and aided largely, 
by his energy and inHuence, in securing 



I'egiments of volunteers for the Union 
army. . His services in this line have 
passed into history. In the autumn of 
1862 General Parker was nominated by 
the Democratic state convention as a 
candidate for governor of New Jersey, 
and he was elected by a majority of 
14,600 votes, a majority three times as 
great as had ever before been given any 
candidate for that position. His admin- 
istration was a successful one, although 
the thnes were stormy and troublous and 
the country was undergoing the throes of 
war. Governor Parker seemed not only 
to rise equal to, but to anticipate, every 
emergency in time of danger or of need. 
Every wounded Jerseyman seemed to be 
his special protege, and the dead of 
Gettysburg were carefui'ly re-interred 
under his direction. He established 
agencies for looking after all material 
comforts of the soldiers of his state, and 
appointed a conniiissioner to inquire what 
legislation was necessary for disabled 
soldiers and their families. During his 
second term he supplemented this by 
reconmiending the establishment of a 
soldiers' home, which recommendation 
was acted upon, and homes were estab- 
lished that brought comfort and su.ste- 
nance to hundreds of New Jersey sol- 
diers, who otherwise would have been 
dependent on county charity. In 1863 
Governor Parker received the thanks of 
Pi'esident Lincoln and of the people of 
Pennsylvania, through Governor Curtin, 
for sending several regiments of troops 
to aid in repelling General Lee's invasion 
of that state before the citizens of Phihi- 
delphia had recovered from their panic, 
or had raised even a single company to 
defend their state. At the close of his 
gubernatorial term Governor Parker re- 
sumed his professional practice. In 1868, 



Biographical Sketches. 



337 



in the National Democratic convention 
at New York, he received the unanimous 
vote of the New Jersey delegation for 
the nomination for President of the 
United States on every ballot, and in 
1876 he received the same vote for the 
same position. In 1871 he positively 
declined, prior to the assembling of the 
Democratic State convention, to be a 
candidate for nomination as candidate 
for governor, but the convention broke 
down the barriers of his objection by 
acclamation. He was subsequently 
elected by about six thousand majority, 
the considerable reduction from his ma- 
jority in 1862 being due to the unusual 
strength of the Republican party through- 
out the country that year and the pres- 
ence of negro voters for the first time in 
New Jersey, "ully seven thousand of 
whom voted against Governor Parker. 
He ran about nine thousand votes ahead 
of his ticket, the other democratic candi- 
dates being beaten by about three thou- 
sand votes. Governor Parker's second 
term, like his first, was conspicuously 
successful, although his dealings this time 
were with civil instead of military ques- 
tions. After the expiration of his second 
term he resumed his professional business 
at Freehold, and acquired a large prac- 
tice. In January, 1875, he was nomi- 
nated by Governor Bedle to be attorney- 
general of the state, and was pi'omptly, 
and without reference, confirmed by the 
senate. He filled this position until the 
5th of April ensuing, when he resigned 
it in order that his private practice might 
not suffer. In 1880 he was nominated 
by Governor McClellan, and confirmed 
by the senate, as a justice of the supreme 
court of the state. He was assigned "to 
the second judicial district, embracing 
Gloucester, Camden and 

18 



Burlington 



counties, and he was re-appointed to the 
same position, at the expiration of his 
term, by Governor Green, in February, 
1887. While he was, perhaps, not a 
profound jurist nor a brilliant and elo- 
quent orator, he was more than com- 
pensated by his strong common sense, by 
his sagacity and his faithfulness, and he 
secured and retained the respect and de- 
votion of the members of the bar in his 
district. Governor Parker had the hon- 
orary degree of Doctor of Laws conferred 
upon him, June 18, 1872, by the trus- 
tees of Rutgers College. He was one of 
the original members of the lodge of Odd 
Fellows of his town and, in his earlier 
years, took an active interest in its affairs, 
filling the different official positions and 
representing it in the Grand Lodge of 
New Jersey. He was a member of the 
Masonic Lodge of Freehold ; was a mem- 
ber of the fire department of said town 
and of the Union Fire Company at 
Trenton. He was also a member of the 
following : Tammany Society of New 
York city ; the commandery of the state 
of Pennsylvania of the military order of 
the Loyal Legion of the United States, 
and an honorary member of the Society 
of the Cincinnati of the state of New 
Jersey. In 1881 he united himself with 
the Presbyterian church of Freehold, and 
remained until his death a faithful com- 
municant of that church. 

Governor Parker was married Dec. 21, 
1843, to Maria M., eldest daughter of 
Samuel R. Gummere, clerk in chancery 
of New Jersey, and at one time principal 
of the Fiiends' school at Burlington in 
said state. They were the parents of 
four children : Charles and Fi-ederick, 
who subsequently became members of 
the Monmouth county bar; Elizabeth 
and Helen. Governor Parker died on 



338 



Biographical Sketches. 



Monday morning, Jan. 2, 1888, at the 
residence of Mns. Cecelia Root, 1019 
Mount Vernon street, Philadelphia. On 
the previous Saturday he held a special 
session of the Burlington County courts, 
and later in the day he went to Phila- 
delphia for the pur230se of calling to see 
some friends. At half-past four o'clock 
in the afternoon he reached the home of 
Mrs. Root, where he was taken suddenly 
ill, and Dr. E. C. Bailj^ was summoned. 
He at once pronounced the governor a 
sufferer from a stroke of paralysis, and 
the family were immediatelj' called from 
Burlington, where they were spending 
the winter. His wife and his niece. Miss 
Redmond, reached his bedside at eleven 
o'clock the same evening, and his sons, 
Charles and Frederick, arrived on Sun- 
day. He recognized Mrs. Parker, then 
relapsed into unconsciousness, and died 
shortly after midnight Sunday. His 
death created a profound sensation 
throughout New Jerse}^, and numerous 
were the tributes to his memor}-. Gov- 
ernor Green issued a proclamation, direct- 
ing the draping of the puljlic buildings 
for thirty da^'s ; placing the flags at half- 
mast until the day of the funeral ; clos- 
ing the public oflices during the funeral, 
and the firing of a salute. Pulpit and 
press, civic and military societies, and 
bench and bar vied with each other in 
memorializing the illustrious dead, while 
the different fraternal organizations of 
which he had been a member voted 
touching resolutions of sjaiipathj- to the 
bereaved family, and of respect to his 
memory. His body was borne to its 
last resting-place in Freehold cemetery 
by ex-Chancellor Runyon, Justice Depue, 
Justice Knapp, Justice Scudder, Chan- 
cellor McGill, Justice Dixon, Justice 
Reed and Justice Vansyckel, and it was 



attended by an immense concourse of 
citizens and societies, officials of all 
grades, and men high in authority 
throughout the nation and the state of 
which the deceased was so proud. 



TpREDERICK PARKER, counsellor-at> 
-L law, ex-president of the board of 
trade and present chief commissioner of 
Freehold, Monmouth count}-. New Jersey, 
is a son of ex-Governor Joel and Maria 
M. (Gummere) Parker, and was born Jan. 
14, 1856, in Freehold. The Parker 
family is of English origin. The first of 
the name emigrating to these shores was 
a native of England who settled in north- 
ern New Jersey. From him has de- 
scended a progeny that has became con- 
spicuous in the history of the develop- 
ment and growth of New Jersey. They 
all were good and true citizens, and 
many of them achieved distinction in 
public life. The maternal grandfather, 
Samuel R. Gummei'e, was a native of 
Burlington, New Jersej', and for many 
years was principal of the Friends' school, 
now St. Mary's Hall, at Burlington. He 
subsequently was appointed clerk in 
chancery, which position he held seveial 
years. The j)aternal grandsire, Charles 
Parker, was born in New Jersey. He 
was a man of considerable prominence 
in local and stale politics, and he pos- 
sessed business qualifications of a high 
order. He served as sheriff of Mon- 
mouth county, state treasurer of Kew 
Jersey and state librarian. He resided 
in Monmouth county the greater jjortiou 
of his life, but during his term of office 
as state treasurer he resided at Trenton. 
He married Sarah Coward, a daughter of 
Captain Joseph Coward, of the New Jer- 
sey militia, and who, as a soldier of the 



Biographical Sketches. 



341 



Pulaski Legion, served in the Conti- 
nental army, during the American Revo- 
lution, at the battle of Monmouth. 

Frederick Parker received his element- 
ary education at Freehold Institute, from 
which he was graduated in 1873. In 
September of the. same year he entered 
the sophomore class of Princeton College, 
and was graduated from that noted seat 
of learning in 1876 with the degree of 
A. B. Three years later the faculty of 
Princeton invested him with the degree 
of Master of Arts. He prosecuted his 
law studies in the office of his father for 
about two years, and subsequently took a 
course of one year at Columbia Law 
School in New York. He was admitted 
as an attorney in June, 1879, and as a 
counsellor in 1882. In 1880, after a 
practice of a few months in his father's 
office, he formed a law partnership with 
William H. Vredenburgh, under the firm 
name of Vredenburgh & Parker. He 
was associated with that gentleman until 
1889, when the connection was severed, 
and Mr. Parker thenceforth to the pres- 
ent time has continued practice alone, 
confining himself strictly to civil busi- 
ness. Mr. Parker in 1888 was appointed 
examiner of candidates for admission to 
the bar. He has ever been an enthusias- 
tic democrat, and has always evinced a 
lively interest in the principles and in 
the campaigns of that party. His first 
experience at stump-speaking was in the 
presidential campaign of 1880, when he 
traveled the length and breadth of Mon- 
mouth county in the interest of the hero 
of Gettysburg. He has also taken part 
in each subsequent national and state 
campaign, either as a public speaker or 
as a delegate to conventions. He has 
never sought office, and has repeatedly 
declined the candidacy for the legisla- 



ture. He is a member of the Freehold 
board of town commissioners (being the 
chief commissioner), and he was president 
of the board of trade for two years. He 
is a member and vice-president, for sev- 
eral years, of the New Jersey Society of 
Sons of the American Revolution. He 
is a member of the Lawyers' Club of New 
York, and he is a director and attorney 
for the Central National Bank of Free- 
hold. He is a trustee and deacon in the 
First Presbyterian church at Freehold. 
In masonry he is especially prominent. 
He is past master of Olive Branch Lodge, 
No. 16, at Freehold, and served one year, 
1894, as district deputy grand master for 
the Fourth Masonic district of New Jer- 
sey. He is a member of Excelsior Con- 
sistory of Camden, New Jersey; a mem- 
ber of Corson Commandery, No. 15, 
Knights Templar, at Asbury Park ; and 
a member of Mecca Temple, Nobles of the 
Mystic Shrine, of New York city. He 
has taken thirty-two degrees in masonry, 
and is well versed in its ritual and deeply 
interested in its precepts. He is a mem- 
ber of the American Whig Society of 
Princeton College, and a stockholder, 
trustee and treasurer of the Freehold 
Ladies' Seminary. 

Mr. Parker was united in marriage, 
April 30, 1890, to Mary H. Bedle, a 
daughter of Elihu B. Bedle, cashier of 
the Central National Bank of Freehold. 
Thev have one son. 



JOHN S. STEWART, vice-president of 
the Mutual Fire Insurance Co., of 
New Brunswick, Middlesex county, New 
Jersey, and a prosperous merchant of that 
city, is a son of Otis D. and Lydia Ann 
(Vansickle) Stewart, and was born June 
20, 1824, in the above-named city. The 



342 



Biographical Sketches. 



paternal grandfather, Stephen Stewart, 
was of Scotch extraction, and was born 
in 1778 in New England. His trade 
was that of a machinist, and he was en- 
gaged in that occupation all his life at 
Philadelphia. In politics he was a whig. 
His wife, Annie W., who he married in 
1797, deceased in 1SG3. He deceased 
Jan. 12, 1862, aged eightj-four years. 
They were the parents of five children : 
Stephen, Otis D., father of the subject; 
Rensselaer, John, and Mary Ann. 

Otis D. Stewart, after receiving a com- 
mon-school education, learned the trade 
of a hatter at Wallpole, N. H., where he 
was born July 14, 1799. In 1821 he 
migrated southward to New Brunswick, 
where he opened a hat store, and con- 
tinued in that business until 1861, when 
he retired and devoted himself thence- 
forward, until his death in 1875, to deal- 
ing in stocks and other secui'ities. Po- 
litically, he Avas formerh" a whig, and 
during the last twenty years of his life 
he was found in the ranks of the Repub- 
lican party. He was a member of the 
artillery, a military company at New 
Brunswick, and in religious aft'airs he 
was a member of the Reformed church 
in the same city. His marriage, Sept. 
20, 1823, to Lydia Ann Vansickle, who 
deceased July, 1864, resulted in the 
birth of eight children : John S., the 
subject ; Edwin, Charles, deceased ; 
Amanda L., who married Ed. G. Acker- 
man, of Spring Valley, N. Y. ; Wm. 
Dextei', Thomas J., Rens.selaer S., and 
Anna, deceased. 

J. S. Stewart quitted the grammar 
schools of New Brunswick at the age of 
sixteen years, and learned the hatter 
trade. This avocation he followed un- 
varyingly at New Brunswick until 1861. 
In that year he took the business at 



New Brunswick, from which his father 
had retired, and associated liimself in 
partnershij) with his brother Edwin, 
under the firm name of J. S. & E. Stew- 
art. This partnership remained intact 
until 1888, when Edwin retired, and 
since that time Mr. Stewart has been 
conducting alone an extremely success- 
ful business as a dealer in hats, furs and 
gentlemen's furnishings, in what is now 
known as the oldest established hat store 
in New Brunswick. In addition to his 
extensive mercantile business, Mr. Stew- 
art has interests in various other enter- 
prises of the town, among which is the 
Mutual Fire Insurance Co., of which he 
has been the vice-president for the last 
two years. In his younger days he was 
a member of the City Guards, a military 
organization. He was a i-epublican in 
politics ; for two years served as a mem- 
ber of the board of aldermen, and was 
also a member of board of education for 
ten years. In religious matters he is a 
member of the Reformed church at New 
Brunswick, and he is esteemed as an 
active christian man, a merchant of the 
highest probity, and the friend of every 
person in his community. He is a mem- 
ber of the following named secret socie- 
ties : Union Lodge, No. 19, F. and A. M. ; 
Scott Chapter, No. 4, R. A. M. ; Coeur 
de Lion Commaudery, No. 8 ; Scott 
Council, R. and S. M. ; New Brunswick 
Lodge, No. 6, 1. 0. 0. F., and Friendship 
Lodge, No. 30, Knights of Pythias, all of 
New Brunswick. Mr. Stewart was 
united in marriage Sept. 13, 1853, to 
Revina N., a daughter of Stephen De 
Hart, of New Brunswick. To their 
union liave been born two children : 
Lydia Ann, married to P. J. Fuller, of 
New York, and Frank A., born Jan. 24, 
1856. 



BioGRAPHicAiv Sketches. 



343 



HON. A. S. WILLIAMSON, ex-judge 
of the court of common pleas of 
Somerset county, New Jersey, was born 
at Millstone, in said county, May 31, 
1819, and is a son of Peter N. and Maria 
(Nevius) Williamson. The immigrant 
ancestor came from Holland and located 
on Staten Island. His paternal grand- 
father was a life-long farmer in Hills- 
boro township, Somerset county. His 
children were Anna, William, and Pe- 
ter N. 

The father of subject, Peter N. Wil- 
liamson, was born in Hillsboro township, 
Somerset county, Aug. 19, 1780, and re- 
ceived a common-school education, after 
which he learned the trade of a carpen- 
ter, and followed it for some years, but 
the most of his life was passed in pursu- 
ing the avocation of a farmer. He was a 
member of the Democratic party, a zeal- 
ous christian, and for many years an el- 
der and deacon of the Reformed church. 
He was mai-ried in 1807, and his chil- 
dren were : Phcebe, wife of H. V. Hoag- 
land; John B., William, Peter S., Nicho- 
las, A. S., Anna Maria, Matilda, married 
to John Hummer ; Jacob, and Cornelius 
who died in infancy. The father's death 
occurred Feb. 25, 1865, at the age of 
eighty-four years. 

Hon. A. S. Williamson was educated 
at the public schools of Millstone, and 
afterwards entered Rutgers College, at 
New Brunswick, where he remained one 
year. He then obtained employment on 
a farm, and for twenty-five years followed 
the life of a farmer. In November, 1862, 
he was elected to the office of surrogate of 
Somerset county, without even the for- 
mality of a nomination, by the largest 
majority ever given to any one previously 
elected to that office, a tribute to his 
high character and a mark of the esteem 



in which he was held by his fellow-citi- 
zens of the most flattering kind. Subse- 
quently he was appointed judge of the 
court of common pleas of Somerset 
county, and held that office for five 
years. He also held the office of assessor 
for three years, and was a freeholder. 
Judge Williamson has always taken and 
still takes an active interest in politics, 
and for many years has been one of the 
most prominent members of the Demo- 
cratic party in Somerset county. He is 
a zealous member of the Reformed church 
of Somerville, where he resides, takes an 
active interest in church work, and for a 
number of years was a teacher in the 
Sunday school. He was married Feb. 
21, 1842, to Adaline Stryker, daughter 
of D. M. Stryker, Esq., of Millstone, 
Somerset county, and to their marriage 
have been born four children : William, 
married to Blanche Veighte ; Anna M., 
married to Henry J. Brokaw ; Mary 
Elizabeth, married to Abraham Vantyce ; 
and Theodore, married to Mary Stein. 
Up to the present time Judge Williamson 
has been so fortunate as never to have 
had a death in the family. He is now 
li\'ing a retired life, free from all business 
cares except those incidental to the set- 
tlement of a few estates of which he has 
charge, and enjoys the universal respect 
and esteem of all who know him. 



DR. A. L. STILLWELL, a prominent 
medical practitioner of Somerville, 
Somerset county, is a son of Rev. Aaron 
L. and Rosina Johnson Stillwell, and 
was born December 14, 1864, at North 
Branch, Somerset county. The name is 
of Holland-Dutch origin, and the early 
American members of the family were 
among the pioneer settlers of New Jersey. 



344 



Biographical Sketches. 



Rev. Aaron L. Stillwell, his father, 
was a noted Reformed Dutch minister at 
Bayonne for many years, and died about 
thirty years ago, leaving three sons : Dr. 
A. L., John L., a Reformed minister 
located at Bloomsburg, N. Y., and Robert 
J., a merchant .at Irvington, New Jersey. 

Dr. Stillwell was educated in the ele- 
mentary and grammar schools of Somer- 
ville, and subsequently entered Rutgers 
College, New Brunswick, where he gradu- 
ated in 1886. He then began the study 
of medicine with Dr. H. G. Wagoner, at 
Somerville, and afterwards took the regu- 
lar course at the College of Physicians 
and Surgeons, New York city, receiving 
his degree of M. D. in June, 1889. He 
entered upon the practice of his profes- 
sion the same year at Bayonne, New Jer- 
sey, with Dr. Alexander Dallas. In Feb., 
1890, he located at Somerville, where he 
has since built uj) a large and lucrative 
practice. Dr. Stillwell is a member of 
the Somerset County District Medical 
Society, and has Ijeen reporter for that 
body for the past three years. He is also 
delegate to the New Jersey State Medi- 
cal Society, and is president of the board 
of health of Somerville and one of the 
coroners of Somerset county. He is 
a member of Solomon Lodge, No. 46, 
F. and A. M. ; the Knights of Pythias, 
and the Jr. 0. U. A. M. His religious 
affiliations are with the Second Reformed 
church of Somerville. In April, 1895, 
he was married to Miss Adaline W. Voor- 
hees, daughter of Abraham Voorhees, of 
Middlebush, New Jersey. 

Dr. Stillwell is an ambitious and pro- 
gressive member of his profession, and 
possesses the confidence and esteem of 
his fellow-townsmen to a high degree. 
He is a skillful practitioner, is careful, 
clear-headed and conscientious, and keeps 



himself fully informed upon every mod- 
ern advance in the theory and practice of 



the healing art. 



A LBION R. BERRY, a leading real- 
-^-^ estate and insurance broker of 
Woodbridge, New Jersey, was born in 
said town September 17, 1854, and is 
a son of William Henrj^ and Margaret 
Coddington Berry. He came from dis- 
tinguished ancestors, his paternal great 
grandfather. Captain Nathaniel Berry, 
having served with distinction in the 
Revolutionary war, as a member of 
General Washington's life guard, and 
participated with him in the terrible 
hardships of the winter at Valley Forge. 
He was born at Bath, Me., Dec. 22, 1755. 
The paternal grandfather, John Berry, 
was born Feb. 17, 1783, and followed the 
occupation of a farmer. The paternal 
grandmother, Elizabeth Robinson, was 
born Oct. 26, 1784. To their union were 
born seven children : William Henry, 
born Sept. 18, 1805 ; Albert, born Feb. 
12, 1808 ; Elbridge, born July 23, 1811 ; 
John J., born Oct. 26, 1814 ; Mary J., 
born March 24, 1818 ; Arthur, born 
Jan. 8, 1820, and Harriet, born Jan. 20, 
1823. 

William Henry Berry (father) was 
born in Litchfield, Me., and Avas educated 
at the public schools of Gardener, in the 
same state. At the age of nineteen he 
shipped as a sailor and followed the sea 
for six years, eventually advancing to 
the rank of first officer of a vessel. In 
1830 he settled in Jersey City and became 
a dealer in hay ; removed to Woodbridge 
two years later and continued the same 
business. In 1845 he commenced fire- 
I brick manufacturing at that place, and 
was connected for more than forty-five 



Biographical Sketches. 



345 



years with the busmess he established. 
During this time he was associated with 
Messrs. Brown and Valentine for thirty- 
eight years. At the time of his death, 
March 5, 1891, he was, without doubt, 
the oldest clay miner and fire-brick manu- 
facturer in the country, having been 
directly interested in the latter industry 
since 1845. He was an energetic and 
public-spirited citizen, and it was largelj^ 
through his efforts that the public schools 
of Woodbridge were consolidated. He 
was a democrat originally, but later 
became a republican, and held several 
important local offices. For many years 
he was an active member of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church, and one of its 
trustees. He was married to Margai'et 
Coddington, April 28, 1835, and to their 
union were born five children : William 
C, who was killed at the battle of Wil- 
liamsburg, Va., in 1862, and after whom 
the G. A. R. Post at Woodbridge is 
named ; James E., Albion R., Elizabeth, 
and Arthur. 

Albion R. Berry attended the public 
schools at Woodbridge, and then pursued 
a course of study at Pennington Semi- 
nary, Pennington, N. J., after which he 
graduated from the Peddie Institute at 
Hightstown. He graduated in 1874 from 
the Business College of Newark, N. J., 
of which William C. Whitney was the 
president. Having finished his studies 
he entered the employ of his father in 
his brick manufacturing works at Wood- 
bridge, and remained with him six years. 
At the expiration of this time he engaged 
in the I'eal-estate and insurance business, 
with offices at No. 749 Broad street, 
Newark, N. J., and a branch office in 
Woodbridge. This business he has ener- 
getically pursued since. In politics Mr. 
Berry is staunchly republican, and a 



very active and energetic worker for his 
party. He was elected town clerk in 
1879, again in 1880, and for three years 
was assessor of Woodbridge township. 
In the spring of 1896 he was elected a 
meml)er of the board of education for the 
term of three years, and has recently 
been elected district clerk. The only 
secret society to which Mr. Berry belongs 
is the Royal Arcanum. 



XpRANK McMAHON, a successful flor- 
-*- ist at Sea Bright, Monmouth coun- 
ty. New Jersey, is a son of Matthew and 
Ann Graney McMahon, and was born 
April 20, 1861, at Fair Haven, in the 
above named county. His father was a 
native of County Clare, Ireland, along 
whose southern banks flow the waters of 
the Shannon, celebrated both in history 
and in song. 

Matthew McMahon emigrated to the 
United States during early manhood, set- 
tling first at Red Bank and subsequently 
removing to Fair Haven, where he spent 
by far the greater part of his life, and 
deceased August 7, 1881, at the age of 
sixty-six years. His occupation was that 
of a nursery-man, and he was engaged 
in the employ of Asher Hance & Son 
until the firm ceased its existence in 
1879. His wife, who he married in 
1856, was born in County Galway, north 
of County Clare, and south of the county 
of Mayo, on Irish soil. She is still living 
at Fair Haven, and is the mother of two 
children, one of whom is Frank, the 
subject ; the other being Anna, who is 
married to Daniel Dean, residing at Fair 
Haven. 

Frank McMahon attended the com- 
mon school suntil he was fifteen years of 
age when he entered into service with 



346 



Biographical Sketches. 



A. Hance & Son, nursery-men and flor- 
ists, and remained with them until their 
failure. He was occupied during the 
following two years as an assistant book- 
keeper in the First Niitional Bank of 
New York city, a position he was obliged 
to relinquish on account of his health. 
In 1885 he resumed horticultural pur- 
suits ; this time for himself, by purchas- 
ing at sheriff's sale his present establish- 
ment at Sea Hright, formerly owned by 
John Curtin. Here he cultivates and 
supplies in season, to a large local as 
well as a very extensive New York city 
trade, all manner of hardy trees, flower- 
ing shrubs, and climbing vines, together 
with hedges and plants adapted to the 
sea-shore, which form his specialty in 
that direction. He is the largest pro- 
ducer for New York city, except one, of 
cut flowers for winter trade, and is one 
of the leading spirits and a director in 
the New York Cut Flower Association, a 
co-operative commission house at New 
York city established in 1895, which 
practically controls the trade. His con- 
servatories are large, requiring 80,000 
square feet of glass to roof them, and 
furnish employment to fifteen men 
throughout each year. Mr. McMahon 
personally supervises this extensive es- 
tablishment, and his success is thorough 
and complete. In politics he is a repub- 
lican, but takes no especial interest in 
party or local affairs except the interest 
of a public-spirited citizen, devoted to 
the welfare of his town. He is a mem- 
ber of the Mystic Brotherhood, No. 21, 
Free and Accepted Masons, whose lodge- 
room is at Red Bank ; Seaside Lodge, 
No. 47, Knights of Pythias of Sea 
Bright, and Red Bank Council, No. 984, 
Royal Arcanum. Mr. McMahon was 
married April 20, 1887, to Josephine 



Butterfass, a daughter of John H. But- 
terfass, a resident of Lambertville, New 
Jersey. 

r^ EORGE SCHENCK, the popular and 
^-^ well-known proprietor of the Ten 
Eyck House, the leading hotel in Somer- 
ville. New Jersey, is a son of Ashcr and 
Mary Howel Sclienck, and was born at 
Kingston, Somerset county. New Jersey, 
Jan. 11, 1852. 

The paternal grandfother engaged in 
farming in Somerset county, and made 
that his one life-long occupation. He 
was a democrat in political opinion, and 
a consistent christian in religious faith. 
To him and his estimable wife were born 
four sons : John, Henry, Asher, and Wil- 
liam. Grandfather and grandmother 
Sclienck are both buried at Somerville, 
New Jersey, having died respectively in 
1823 and 1825. 

Asher Schenck (father) was born and 
reared on his father's farm, in Somerset 
county. New Jersey, coming upon the 
stage of life in 1811. He was sent to the 
district schools near his home, and there 
received his sum of text knowledge. 
Young Schenck then turned his atten- 
tion to the milling business, and after 
learning the same managed a mill and 
also farmed at several places ; at Kings- 
ton a number of years, but in the latter 
part of his life was engaged exclusively 
in agriculturcal pursuits. He was a man 
of rare good j udgment and considered an 
excellent farmer. Mr. Schenck, Sr., was 
a democrat, but took no leading part in 
political work. Asher Schenck married 
Mrs. Mary Matilda Beldon, daughter of 
Timothy and Anna Howel, of Trenton, 
and they had one son, George. Both 
parents died in New Jersey, the father at 
Annandale, the mother at Flemmgton. 



Biographical Sketches. 



349 



George Schenck as a boy played along 
the old mill race that turned the great 
wheel of his father's busy mill, and 
roamed over the fields of the homestead 
farm. When at a proper age he attended 
the district school near his home, and 
finally completed his school days at the 
Trenton Business College, of Trenton, 
New Jersey, and from nineteen to twen- 
ty-one years of age was employed on the 
farm. He then engaged in the milling 
business, which two years later he re- 
linquished for a hotel business at Plucka- 
min, Somerset county, New Jersey, where 
he was located two years. Mr. Schenck 
has been in the same business at the fol- 
lowing places : Two years at Annandale, 
New Jersey ; Bloomsbury, New Jersey, 
six years; Raritan, New Jersey, one 
years ; was proprietor of the Commercial 
House at Somerville, New Jersey, for two 
year; and finally, in 1890, returned to 
Somerville, and has since had charge of 
the Ten Eyck House, the best hotel in 
the town and one of the leading establish- 
ments of that kind in this part of the 
state. In politics Mr. Schenck is a demo- 
crat, but does not find time to take an 
aggressive part in the active work of the 
party. He is an active member of the 
Somerville fire department, has held all 
of the lower offices, and is now chief of 
the department. Mr. Schenck' s record 
in this organization has been creditable, 
and much of the late progress made in 
the department has been due to his un- 
tiring efforts. He is a fine-looking and 
congenial man, and as a host is one of 
the most popular men in the state of New 
Jersey. He has evidently discovered the 
true art of his particular business, for it 
is a notorious fact that no man can ex- 
ceed his hospitality and ability to make 
his guests perfectly at home. The Ten 



Eyck House enjoys a heavy commercial 
trade and has a large circle of friends. 

Mr. Schenck married on March 13, 
1872, Miss Louisa Coe Van Dervoort, 
who in a great measure is responsible for 
whatever credit is due him as propiietor 
of the hotel. 



TTON. FRANK E. DE GRAW, ex-mayor 
-'— *- of South Amboy, ex-merchant, and 
at present the general shipping foreman of 
the Pennsylvania railroad at its wharves 
in that city, is a son of Peter Voorhees 
and Elizabeth (Thompson) De Graw, and 
was born Sept. 17, 1844, at Princeton, 
New Jersey. The generic name of the 
family was De Grasse, and is French. Col- 
lateral descendants from the present stock 
have altered this historic name from time 
to time until it has been nearly oblit- 
erated by the names of De Graw, De 
Grauw, De Gro, and De Grew. The De 
Graws trace one line of their ancestry to 
Francis Joseph Paul, Comte Grasse-Tilly, 
better known as Count De Grasse, who, 
with Lafayette and Rochambeau, loaned 
his sword to this country and witnessed 
the surrender of Cornwallis in 1781. The 
paternal ancestor of another branch was 
a Huguenot, who settled at St. Augus- 
tine, Fla., early in the year 1600. 

Mr. De Graw attended the public 
schools of South Amboy until he was 
seventeen years of age. In 1861 he en- 
tered the service of the Camden and 
Amboy Railroad Co. as a telegraph ope- 
rator. In 1864 he was promoted to the 
position of train-dispatcher for the same 
company at Bordentown. He shortly 
resigned and became an operator for the 
United States Telegraph Co. at New 
York. He returned to South Amboy in 
1867, and took charge of the telegraph 
and cable systems of the C. & A. rail- 



:3oO 



Biographical Sketches. 



road and the Western Union Telegraph 
Co. In 18G9 he resigned and accepted a 
position with E. A. Packer & Co., coal 
shippers, and remained with that firm 
three years. He became a wholesale and 
retail coal dealer in 1872, and in the 
same year formed a partnership with 
Leonard Fnrman, under the firm name 
of De GraAv & Furman, lumber dealers. 
These enterprises proved very successful, 
and Mr. De Graw at this period provided 
himself with the beautiful home on Main 
street, South Amboy, in which he still 
resides. He sold his business interests 
in 1875, and moved to Norfolk, Va., 
where he became a farmer and a trucker.- 
He remained there about a year, and 
then returned to South Ambo}^, where 
he resumed mercantile business by be- 
coming a wholesale and retail dealer in 
coal, hay, and brick. Since 1877 he has 
been general foreman at South Amboy of 
all shipping and shipping wharves of the 
Pennsylvania Railroad Co. Mr. De Graw 
is a republican and served as a member 
of council in 1888, the first council elected 
after the organization of South Amboy, 
and was elected mayor in the following 
year. He was a member of the Middle- 
sex county republican committee during 
the years 1880 to 1885, and has been a 
delegate to various conventions of his 
party. He has served as a member of 
the board of education of South Amboy 
ten con-secutive years and was made 
president of that body in 1895, still 
holding that position. He is treasurer 
and a warden of the Episcopal church at 
South Ambo\-, and has been one of its 
vestrymen for thirty 3'ears. He belongs 
to St. Stephen's Lodge, No. 63, F. and 
A. M. ; Goodwin Chapter, No. 36, R. A. 
M.. and Good Siimaritan Lodge, No. 52, 
Knights of Pythias, of South Amboy. 



He is vice-commodore and treasurer, also 
chairman of the regatta connnittee, of the 
South Amboy Yacht Club. He was pres- 
ident of the Independence Engine and 
Hose Co. of South Amboj- in 1893-94. 
His first wife, Katharine D. Stewart, a 
daughter of John and Jane Stewart, 
who he wedded Dec. 28, 1865, died in 
1867, leaving no issue. Li 18G9 he was 
married to Theodora H. Bostwick, daugh- 
ter of the Rev. S. B. Bostwick, S. T. D., 
and Harriet Wood Bostwick, of Sandy- 
Hill, New York. She died Aug. 15, 
1889, leaving him five children : Lillian, 
afterwards Mrs. Frank M. Parker, of 
Brooklyn, New York ; Annie H., Ruth 
F., Arthur, deceased, and Theodora. Mr. 
De Gi'aAV was married June 11, 1891, to 
his present wife, Eliza Watson, a daugh- 
ter of Hugh Watson, of South Amboy. 

Abram De Graw (grandfather) was a 
resident of New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
and was at one time connected with a 
line of packet-sloops carrying passengers 
and freight between New Brunswick and 
New York city, and for many years kept 
a public house in New Brunswick. He 
was a whig and a member of the Dutch 
Reformed church. He died in 1832. 
His wife, Elizabeth Voorhees, died in 
1856. They had five children : Peter 
Voorhees, Abram P., Jane, wife of Rev. 
William Van Doren, of Washington, D. 
C; Eliza, deceased, and Adelaide, who 
married Dr. John Baylis, of Princeton, 
New Jersey. 

Peter Voorhees De Graw (father) was 
born in New Brunswick, and received 
his educational training in that city. 
His first employment was with his father 
on the packet line ; and subsequent)}' he 
located in Princeton. He was collector 
on the Delaware & Raritan canal for the 
Camden & Amboy railroad for many 



Biographical Sketches. 



351 



years, and at the same time owned and 
operated a large farm near Kingston, 
New Jersey. Upon the completion of 
the Camden & South Amboy railroad he 
was placed in charge of its freight piers 
at South Amboy, New Jersey, from 1854 
to 1864. He was appointed in 1864 
weighmaster for the Camden & Amboy 
railroad and continued therein until his 
death, in 1870. He was a democrat, had 
been a presbyterian, but latterly became 
a member of the episcopal church. His 
widow died in 1877. They had eight 
children : Anna, Virginia, Charles S., 
deceased ; Antoinette, and Imogene, who 
both died at an early age ; Frank E., 
Peter V., Jr., and Elizabeth, who died in 
infancy. 

"p\R. WILLIAM P. KEASBEY, of the 
-^-^ firm of Keasbey & Barnekov, lead- 
ing druggists at Perth Amboy, Middle- 
sex county. New Jersey, is a son of Ed- 
ward and Louise Pothier Keasbey, and 
was born March 6, 1865, at Irvington, 
New Jersey. 

Dr. Keasbey received his education in 
the public schools of Perth Amboy and 
the Coleman Business College at New- 
ark, New Jersey. He then engaged 
with his father, who conducted the 
Raritan Hollow & Porous Brick Co., lo- 
cated on the Raritan river, about two 
miles from Perth Amboy. He was ap- 
pointed assistant superintendent of that 
company and remained in its employ for 
four years. At the end of that time he 
entered the medical department of the 
University of New York, from which he 
was graduated in 1888. He located for the 
practice of medicine at Perth Amboy, 
but discontinued his practice after about 
eighteen months. In the summer of 
1889 he estabUshed his present drug 



business, located at 203 State street, 
which he continued to manage alone until 
Feb. 27, 1892, when he admitted Charles 
W. Barnekov into partnership, under 
the firm name and style of Keasbey & 
Co. The name of the firm remained 
unchanged until April 1, 1896, when it 
was transformed to Keasbey & Barnekov, 
and by the latter name the firm is still 
known. The house carries a large stock 
of drugs, chemicals, oils, and paints, and 
Oct. 9, 1896, the firm opened a branch 
store at 242 Smith street, buying out the 
" Perth Amboy Pharmacy." 

Dr. Keasbey has been very successful, 
due to strict business principles and 
integrity. He enjoys a large measure , 
of popularity among the people of Perth 
Amboy. He is a republican in politics, 
but not an office-holder nor an office- 
seeker, and in religious affiiirs he is an 
attendant of the Baptist church. He 
was married March 14, 1885, to Alice 
Maude Hubbard, a daughter of Dr. W. 
W. Hubbard, of Perth Amboy. They 
have one son, Edward. 



T3EV. PERCY PERINCHIEF, the pop- 
-'-*^ ular and talented pastor of the 
Methodist Episcopal church, of Manas- 
quan, is a son of Josephus and Sarah 
(Yates) Perinchief, and was born on the 
Bermuda Islands, Oct. 27, 1860. The 
name Perinchief indicates Welsh ances- 
try, and the parents of Josephus Perin- 
chief (father) were natives of Wales. 
Early in the present century they emi- 
grated to the Bermuda Islands, where 
Josephus was born and reared. For many 
years he was engaged in the English 
shipping service, as captain of a vessel, 
sailing between London and the West In- 
dies. He then located in Bermuda, where 



352 



Biographical Sketches. 



he entered the service of the English 
goveniniont as superintendent of the 
weather bureau and lighthouse. Mr. 
Perinchief died November 5, 1892, after 
a residence of sixty-live years on these 
islands, and was succeeded in his position 
by his son, Walter S. Perinchief On 
November 22, 1855, Josephus Perinchief 
married Miss Sarah Yates Dickinson, 
daughter of Richard and Dorothy Dickin- 
son, of Bermuda. They reared a family 
of three children : Walter S., Percy, and 
Octavia (Mrs. James A. Williams). 

Percy Perinchief (subject) was early in 
life placed under the care of a private 
tutor in Bermuda, and in this manner 
received the preparation that fitted him 
for entering college. After a four years' 
course at Mount Allison University, Sack- 
ville, Canada, he entered Drew Seminary, 
at Madison, New Jersey, and three years 
later graduated vfith the class of 1895. 
He then received an appointment as pas- 
tor of the Methodist Episcopal church, at 
Falmouth, Mass., and his second charge 
was at Hamilton Square, New Jersey. 
He labored earnestly in this field, and 
then was called to Englishtown, New 
Jersey ; he served this congregation two 
years, and at Little Silver, New Jersey, 
three years. Dr. Perinchief now began to 
reap the fruits of conseci'ated work, and 
was called to become pastor of the Broad 
Street M. E. Church, of Trenton, where 
he remained until March, 1895, when he 
came to Manasquan. In this new field of 
pastoral duties. Dr. Perinchief has met 
with unqualified success, and his relations 
with liis people and fellow-citizens have 
been uniformly pleasant and congenial. , 
Being an energetic worker, and an en- { 
thusiastic and talented proclaimer of the 
great good will of the Great Father of 
mankind, Dr. Perinchief has gained a fast i 



hold upon the hearts and affections of 
his congregation, as well as the general 
public, and has greatly increased the 
membership of his church, which now 
numbers two hundred and forty com- 
municants, and has the great satisfaction 
of seeing in the midst of his spiritual 
family a flourishing chapter of the Ep- 
worth League, and a live and healthy 
Sunday-school. On Oct. 7, 1895, Percy 
Perinchief married Miss Laura B. Keeler, 
daughter of Morris H. Keeler, of Mount 
Holly, New Jersey, and to this marriage 
have been born a family of six children : 
Anna Lucille, Morris Keeler, Nita Van- 
sant, Percy J., William Taylor, and Mil- 
dred D., twins. Dr. Perinchief is a man 
of high chi-istian character, genial dispo- 
sition, with considerable literary talent, 
and is highly esteemed and popular with 
all who know him. 



DAVID HARVEY, JE., a leading mem- 
ber of the Monmouth county bar, 
with offices at Asbury Park, and an in- 
fluential citizen of that town, is a son of 
Samuel and Lydia E. (Van Note) Harvey, 
and was born July 6, 1853, at Oceanic, 
Shrewsbui-y township, in said county. 
The name is of Scotch origin, although 
Mr. Harvey's immediate ancestors have 
been prominent in eastern New Jersey 
for several generations. His grandfather, 
David Harvey, was a well-known fiarmer 
at Shark River, near Farmingdale, Howell 
township, for many j-ears. 

Samuel Harvey (father) was born at 
Shark River, and educated in the district 
schools there, but in after life he removed 
to Port Washington, now Oceanic, where 
he conducted a general store for twenty 
years. He .was an active and progres- 
sive citizen, and although a democrat in 



Biographical Sketches. 



353 



politics was appointed by President Grant 
as postmaster- at Port Washington, and 
served two terms. He was also commis- 
sioner of appeals, a member of the town- 
ship committee, and a school trustee for 
a number of years, taking an active 
interest in educational matters. He was 
a devout member of the Presbyterian 
church at Port Washington, of which he 
was a trustee and elder to the time of his 
death in 1879. His wife was Miss Lydia 
E. Van Note, a daughter of Cornelius 
Van Note, of Farmingdale, Monmouth 
county, by whom he had nine children : 
Thomas A., deceased ; Emma, wife of 
John C. Bull, of Oceanic ; David, Jr., 
Charles, an attorney-at-law at Atlantic 
Highlands ; Catherine A., wife of Prof. 
Charles S. Newhall, of Hot Springs, 
N. C. ; Harry P., of Sea Bright; and 
Jesse, Alexander C, and Cornelia, of 
Oceanic, where their mother is still living. 
David Harvey, Jr., received his pre- 
liminary education in the district schools 
of Red Bank, and subsequently attended 
a private school there until seventeen 
years of age. In 1870 he began to read 
law in the office of Hon. Wm. Q. Lewis, 
Jersey City, where he studied four years, 
and was admitted to the bar in Novem- 
ber, 1874. He then returned to Red 
Bank and spent three years in the office 
of Robert Allen, Jr., a well-known lawyer 
of that place. In the autumn of 1877 
Mr. Harvey removed to Asbury Park 
and began practice. His first office was 
in the Stein bach building, Lake avenue 
and Main street, then in the Cook build- 
ing, Cookman avenue and Main street, 
whence in 1890 he removed to the First 
National Bank building, his present loca- 
tion. He has a large and growing general 
practice, and makes a specialty of chan- 
cery suits and commercial law. He was 



admitted as counsellor in 1890, and was 
appointed special master in chancery of 
New Jersey. He was also a supreme 
court commissioner. Mr. Harvey is an 
active democrat in politics, and has fre- 
quently been honored by election to im- 
portant local offices. He was a member 
of the township committee, and president 
of that body in 1887, has been a member 
of the board of education since 1892, and 
of common council since 1893, serving 
as president of the board, and as chair- 
man of the street committee. He is also 
counsel for Neptune City and Bay Head. 
He is a member of the masonic order, be- 
ing one of the early members of Standard 
Chapter, R. A. M., and Carson Comman- 
dery, K. T. ; also Mecca Temple, Nobles 
of the Mystic Shrine, at New York. He 
is also identified with the Order of Hepta- 
sophs and the Royal Arcanum. He was 
married Sept. 3, 1879, to Miss Marie 
Des Anges, daughter of Henry S. Des 
Anges, of Asbury Park, and they have 
had four children : Louise Marie, who 
died at the age of eight years ; Elsie, 
David, and Charles B. 

Mr. Harvey resides with his wife and 
family in a handsome house at No. 516 
First avenue, Asbury Park He is well 
known and popular, and has always taken 
a foremost part in the progress of the 
town. He was chairman of the recep- 
tion committee which cared for the big 
national educational association meeting 
in the summer of 1894, and was a promi- 
nent participant in the twenty-fifth anni- 
versary celebration of Asbury Park on 
July 4, 1896. He is energetic and enter- 
prising, is a thoroughly read and capable 
lawyer, possesses elegant courtesy and 
ease of mar.ner, and is marked as one of 
the rising men in public affairs in this 
section of the state. 



354 



Biographical Sketches. 



TTENRY J. TICE, the leading florist of 
-*— ■- New Brunswick, and a liiglily 
respected citizen of that place, is a son 
of Matthias and Katharine (Brill) Tice, 
and was born in New York city July 
17, 1854;. His father was a cabinet- 
maker in New York, and followed that 
trade during all his life. He is still liv- 
ing in Hoboken and enjoys that universal 
esteem which an honest and upright life 
commands. His wife passed away in 
Oct., 1890, having born a family of nine 
children : Henry J., John, Amy and 
Kate, all of whom are living ; and Irena, 
Julia, Frederick, Lily and Lizzie, all de- 
ceased. 

Mr. Tice's education was acquired in 
the public schools of New York city. 
He then learned the butchering trade. 
He removed to New Brunswick in 1871, 
and was engaged in the Initchering busi- 
ness in that city for fifteen years. In 
1889 he estaljlished his present florist 
business, which has since develojaed into 
the largest of the kind in the city. His 
establishment is a handsome one on 
George street near the opera house, and 
is well-known not only to all the resi- 
dents of New Brunswick, but to the 
city's many visitors. 

Mr. Tice is a republican in politics, 
but finds tlie demands of his business 
too pressing to allow his taking more 
than the average citizen's part in politi- 
cal affairs. He was united in wedlock on 
April 17, 1874, to Miss Clementine J. Hall, 
daughter of Jacob Hall, of New Bruns- 
wick, by whom he has had three chil- 
dren : Henry W., deceased ; Alfred and 
Lilian. 

Mr. Tice is a man of marked energy 
and enterprise, and has built his business 
up to its present proportions from very 
small beginnings. He is loved in hi« 



domestic circle, respected among his fel- 
low-citizens, and ever regarded as one of 
New Brunswick's progressive residents. 
He has a mind well stocked with general 
inforniation, is liberal but decided in his 
convictions, and of an equable tempera^ 
ment. 



"OICHARD H. BROKAW, cashier and 
-L^ director of the First National Bank 
of Bound Brook, is the son of Henry C. 
and Phceobe M. Field Brokaw. He was 
born at Bound Brook, Somerset county, 
New Jersey, on Feb. 5, 1848. He is of 
French extraction, and his ancestors 
have been residents of Somerset county 
for two centuries and a half He received 
his elementary education in the public 
schools of New Brunswick and Rutgers 
College, and afterwards studied with a 
private tutor. Upon finishing his educa- 
tion, he went to St. Louis, Mo., and 
entered his uncle's employ in a whole- 
sale woolen-goods house. He remained 
in this business until July, 1873, when 
he removed to New York and engaged 
with his brother in the wholesale cigar 
business at No. 21 Piatt street. They 
sold out the business in 1876 and removed 
to Bound Brook, where they established 
a drug business which they conducted 
successfully up to April 1, 1888. In 
that 3'ear the First National Bank of 
Bound Brook was organized, and Mr. 
Brokaw was elected cashier and a direc- 
tor. He has filled these positions with 
fidelity ever since. The officers and 
directors of the bank with whom Mr. 
Brokaw is now associated, are George La 
Monte, 0. B. Reynolds, W. H. Alpaugh, 
Andrew Lane, Peter J. Staats, Taylor 
Jelliffe, who succeeded Isaac N. Brokaw 
upon his death ; John D. Vorhees, and 
J. W. Balantine. Mr. Brokaw is deeply 




{^S^H^t^H^uu^^/-^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



357 



interested in the advancement of Bound 
Brook, and devotes much of his time to 
public affairs. . He is president of the 
borough council, treasurer and director 
of the Bound Brook Electric Light, Heat 
and Power Co., secretary and treasurer 
of the Bound Brook Building and Loan 
Association, and treasurer of the board 
of trade, in which he is an enthusiastic 
worker. He was collector of Bridge- 
water township for four years, served as 
street commissioner of Bound Brook for 
a number of years, and was treasurer of 
the corporation for six years. Mr. Brokaw 
is well known in Masonic circles through- 
out New Jersey, New York and Penn- 
sylvania, and is a past master of Eastern 
Star Lodge, No. 105, F. and A. M., at 
Bound Brook. He is a member and offi- 
cer of Keystone Chapter, R. A. M., of 
Somernlle, and a knight templar, be- 
longing to Trinity Commandery, No. 17, 
of Plaiiifield, New Jersey ; a thirty-two 
degree Scottish Rite Mason, and also a 
" shriner," belonging to Mecca Temple at 
New York city. He is a member of the 
Berkley Club, an exclusive social organi- 
zation of Bound Brook, and of the 
Reform Club of New York. He is a 
democrat in politics, and is treasurer of 
the Democratic Club, of Bound Brook. 
He is a member of the Presbyterian 
church, and an elder at Bound Brook in 
that society. On Nov. 24, 1880, he 
married Estelle P. Shurtz, daughter of 
Jacob Shurtz, a miller and owner of boats 
at Bound Brook, where he deals in hay 
and grain, which he ships to New York, 
Philadelphia and the south. 

Mr. Brokaw's ancestral history is re- 
plete with romance and historic interest. 
Bourgon Bi-oucard and his wife Catherine 
were French Huguenots, who were driven 
from France by persecution in the year 



1674, and fled to Manheim in the Palati- 
nate of the Rhine, whence they emi- 
grated to Florida, and subsequently to 
New York, arriving there in 1676. In 
1684, Bourgon Broucard bought a farm 
in Brooklyn, N. Y., and their names are 
recorded in the Dutch Reformed church 
in Brooklyn. He lived on the farm until 
1688, when he moved to Trenton, L. I., 
and remained there for a number of 
years. He then removed to Flatbush, 
L. I., where their names are also recorded 
in the chui'ch records. Bourgon Brou- 
card Avas born in 1645, and was married 
to Catherine La Ferber in 1665. They 
had eight children — five sons and three 
daughters. Five were born in this coun- 
try. Isaac, the fourth son, was born in 
1676, and settled at Duckbill, L. I. He 
seems to have changed his name to 
Bozarts. The other sons were : John, 
born 1678; Jacob, born 1680; Peter, 
born 1682 ; and Abraham, born 1684. 
They all moved to Franklin township, 
Somerset county. New Jersey, about the 
year 1700. 

In 1702, John Brocaw, (according to 
the spelling) bought two thousand acres 
of land on the banks of the Raritan and 
Millstone rivers. In 1735, the records 
show John Brokaw (change of name 
again) owning three hundred and ninety 
acres of the land, and Pester Brokaw, 
the other brother, owning four hundred 
acres. 

The lineal descent of Richard H. 
Brokaw is traced from the branch of 
Abraham. Abraham had a son Isaac ; 
Isaac had four sons— Abraham, Caleb, 
Isaac and David. The third son, Isaac 
(great-grandfather), Avas born Nov., 1759, 
and died in 1838. He married Mary 
Van Nortwick, and they had eleven 
children : Isaac, Christine, Abraham, 



358 



Biographical Sketches. 



Henry, Claleb, Simeon, Maria, Samuel, 
Susan, John and Catherine. 

Isaac Brokaw, the 3rd, and eldest son 
of Abraham, the 1st (grandfather), was 
born in 1783. He married Mary Field, 
and they had eleven children, one of 
■whom was Henry C. (father of subject), 
born in 1809. 

Isaac, the 2nd, lived in Piscataway 
township, Middlesex county, New Jer- 
sey, where he owned and operated a 
large farm. He was a democrat and a 
member of the Presbyterian church, 
which he served as elder and trustee 
for many years. He died Feb. 19, 
1856, and Mary, his wife, died June 22, 
1832. 

Henry C. Brokaw (father) was born at 
Piscataway township, Middlesex county, 
in 1809, and received his education in the 
public schools of that township. He 
was a manufacturer of harness and sad- 
dlery prior to the Rebellion. He sup- 
plied tlie southern trade until incapaci- 
tated for business from ill-health, when 
he retired and removed to a farm near 
New Brunswick, New Jersey. In his 
early life he was one of the members of 
the militia and of the cavalry company. 
He was an enthusiastic horse-back rider. 
He was a democrat in politics, and a 
member of the Presbyterian church. He 
married Phoebe M. Field on June 13, 
1833, and they had six children, who 
were : Mary J., wife of Abram Smalley ; 
Elizabeth, wife of Geo. McDonald ; Cath- 
erine, wife of Alexander Manning; Ri> 
chael, wife of Rev. A. E. Baldwin ; Richard 
H. ; Isaac N., deceased, who was a direc- 
tor in the bank with subject. Henry C. 
(father) died Nov. 29, 1872, at the age of 
sixty-two years ; the mother, Phoebe, 
died March 8, 1889, at the age of seven- 
ty-eight years. 



ADOLPH STEENGRAFE, JR., a 
farmer of Piscataway township, 
near South Plainfield, New Jersey, is a 
son of Adolph and Johanna Wehman 
Steengrafe, of Brooklyn, N. Y., and was 
born in that city on May 14, 1865. He 
is of German descent, his grandfather, 
Herman Steengrafe, being a native of 
Bremen. 

He married Addie Bunje, daughter 
of F. Bunje, of Bremen, in 1820, and 
they had born to them the following 
children : Herman, who is now an in- 
spector in the city of Bremen ; Henry, 
since deceased ; Bernhard, also deceased ; 
and Adolph. The grandfather died in 
the fiftieth year of his age, greatly es- 
teemed for his sterling traits of character 
and worth as a man and a citizen. 

Adolph Steengrafe (father) was born at 
Bremen in 1838, and was educated in the 
common schools of his native country. He 
came to America shortly before the late 
civil war, and located in the city of 
Brooklyn, N. Y. He is by occupation a 
ship-carpenter, shipwright, and calker, 
and is engaged in business on South 
street, New York city. He has been 
highly successful, the business developing 
to large j)roportions. He has had for 
weeks as many as five hundred men in 
his employ. He is not an affiliant of 
either political party, but generally votes 
the republican ticket. He is a communi- 
cant and an active supporter of the 
Evangelical Luthei-an church of Brook- 
lyn. He was married to Miss Johanna 
Wehman, daughter of Captain H. Weh- 
man, of Bremen, on Sept. 17, 1862, and 
they have had born to them the follow- 
ing children : Lillie M. ; Gustave Oscar ; 
Bernhard, George, Elsa, and Adolph. 

Adolph Steengrafe received his educa- 
tion in the public schools of Brooklyn. 




(LtOA. 



/ «.•> L-ty 



Biographical Sketches. 



361 



At an early age he went west, following 
the advice of the late Horace Greeley, 
and engaged in farming. He traveled 
extensively and has visited nearly every 
section of the great west. In the spring 
of 1895 he came to South Plainfield and 
pnrchased the farm of one hundred and 
twenty-six acres, whereon he now resides. 
It is one of the finest farms in Piscataway 
township, is well improved and under 
excellent cultivation. He is a republican 
in politics, but does not manifest any ac- 
tive interest. He was married November 
25, 1895, to Miss Louise Foerster, daugh- 
ter of Mathilde Foerster, of Summit, New 
Jersey. 

JUDGE J. CLARENCE CONOVER, pre- 
^ siding judge of Monmouth county 
courts, residing at Freehold, New Jersey, 
is a son of William H., Sr., and Mary 
Otterson Conover, and was born August 
12,1850, at Marlboro, Monmouth county, 
J New Jersey. During the three centuries 
' and a half since the advent of the Con- 
over family in this country, few names 
have figured more conspicuously and be- 
come so interwoven into the political and 
civil histoiy of the state of New Jersey 
than theirs. The immigrant ancestor and 
original American progenitor was Wolfert 
Garrettson Van Covenhoven (according 
to the original orthography of the name), 
who came to this country from Amoors- 
fort, Holland, with his three sons. Garret, 
Peter and Jacob, in 1630. By direct 
line Judge Conover is a descendant of 
Garret, who was engaged in agricultural 
pursuits at Flatlands, Long Island, and 
married Aeltye Cool, now spelled "Cole." 
Of their children, three in number, Wil- 
liam was born 1636 at Flatlands, and 
married Meltie Brinkerhofi" in 1660, and 
they had four children. One of the sons 

19 



was Peter, born 1671, married Patience 
Daws, and one of their sons, Elias, born 
1700 and died 1751, was an ensign in the 
British army under George III. One of 
his sons was John, born 1734, married 
Eleanor Wycoff in 1753. One of their 
sons, Colonel Elias, served in Revolution- 
ary war as colonel, married Anna Fish, 
and one of their sons, John E., born 
1785, was the grandfather of Judge Con- 
over. John E. Conover married Mariana 
Haight in 1815 and died April 18, 1833. ^ 
He graduated from Princeton College in 
1806, studied law under John Wells, of 
New York, but owing to ill health never 
entered upon practice. He formerly re- 
sided in Middletown township, but sub- 
seqiiently purchased and retired to reside 
upon what became known as the " Ter- 
race Hill," or the old Conover homestead 
at Marlboro village, Monmouth county. 
Here he owned three hundred acres of 
land, but lived as one who is commonly 
referred to as a gentleman farmer. Being 
a man of considerable wealth and liter- 
ary tastes he spent much of his time in 
study and reading, and became possessed 
of a highly cultured and richly stored 
mind. Politically he was a federalist, 
and religiously an attendant of the Dutch 
Reformed church at Marlboro village. 

AVilliam H. Conover, Sr., son of Col. 
John E. Conover, was born in Marlboro, 
Oct. 19, 1816, at the old Conover home- 
stead, where he received his education in 
select schools and later under the train- 
ing of a private tutor from Princeton 
College. In his private relations to in- 
dustrial and business life he was an agri- 
culturist; a director in the Freehold 
Banking Co.; a director in the Freehold 
and Jamesburg Railroad Co.; and, as a 
prominent resident of Freehold during 
the period from 1851 to 1877, was iden- 



362 



Biographical Sketches. 



tified with various other industries. He 
was a trustee of the Freehold Institute, 
and an attendant and generous contribu- 
tor to tlie Presbyterian church at Free- 
hold. He was a democratic leader, and 
in public life served as countj^ collector 
of Monmouth county, and represented 
his district in the assembly two terms. 
His marriage^ October 10, 1838, to Mary 
Otterson, a daughter of Eev. James 
Otterson, resulted in the birth of five 
children : William H., Jr., who was state 
senator and prosecutor of the pleas of 
Monmouth county, and deceased in 1878; 
Henry, deceased when a child ; Judge J. 
Clarence, Julia, now residing in Phila- 
delphia, and Dr. Charles H., a prominent 
physician in Philadelphia. Both father 
and mother have deceased, the former in 
1877, aged sixty years, the latter in 1894 
after completing her seventy-fifth year. 

Judge Conover acquired his eleraentai'y 
education in the Freehold Institute, tak- 
ing a complete course in preparation for 
college. In September, 1870, he entered 
Princeton College, from which he gradu- 
ated in June, 1873, with the degree of 
A. B. This degree was supplemented in 
1876 by the more distinctive A. M. de- 
gree which Princeton conferred upon 
him. After leaving college his studies in 
law were continued for one year under 
Hon. Charles Haight, ex-member of con- 
gress, and for the succeeding two years 
with Hon. Chillion Bobbins, ex-judge of 
the common pleas court. During this 
period of professional preparation, he did 
considerable literary and reportorial work 
for the New York city and local county 
press, and in June, 1876, he was admitted 
to the bar. He at once opened an office 
in Freehold, where he continued in an 
active legal practice until 1890, in which 
year he was appointed by Governor Leon 



Abbett, presiding judge of the common 
pleas court of Monmouth county. In its 
acceptance he resigned from the office of 
counsel for the board of chosen free- 
holders of Monmouth county, which he 
had continuously occupied since 1881. 
Judge Conover served his full term of 
five years on the Monmouth bench, and 
in March, 1895, was re-appointed for a 
second term by Governor George T. 
Werts. In politics he is a democrat, and 
though always active in the service of 
his party he has never sought office nor 
held any public or political position up to 
the time of his elevation to the bench. 
In religion he is a member and one of the 
vestrymen of St. Peter's Episcopal church 
at Freehold. He is a member of the 
Holland Society of New York; the Sons 
of the American Bevolution ; Olive 
Branch Lodge, No. 16, F. and A. M., 
of Freehold, New Jersej* ; Keith Coun- 
cil, No. 1501, Royal Arcanum, and the 
New Jersey State Rifle Association. 
Judge Conover was united in marriage, 
February 7, 1877, to Josephine Bleakley, 
a" daughter of ex-Sheriff' William Bleak- 
ley of Westchester county, N. Y. To 
their union was born, Februaiy 5, 1879, 
Rosalie Bleakley, their only child. 

The apjjointment of Mr. Conover to a 
judgeship when but thirty-nine years of 
age is a notable instance of executive 
recognition of legal talent of a superior 
order. During his yeai's at school and in 
college the future Judge Conover was a 
diligent and painstaking student, and his 
three years of law study were marked by 
close and steady application. He gave 
early evidence of pronounced abilitj- to 
grapple with the manifold questions of 
jurisprudence, and his success was assured 
from the moment he first opened the 
doors of his law office. His career as a 



Biographical Sketches. 



363 



lawyer was an eminently successful one, 
and his judicial administration, wise, just 
and moderate, has won the admiration 
and unquestioning confidence of the peo- 
ple of his county, irrespective of party. 



DR. S. O. B. TAYLOR, an able and suc- 
cessful physician of Millstone, Som- 
erset county, New Jersey, is a son of 
John and Emily (James) Taylor, and was 
born Oct. 17, 1850, at Snow Hill, Wor- 
cester county, Md. The family is of 
English origin. 

Dr. S. 0. B. Taylor received his pre- 
liminary education in the common schools 
of Virginia, and subsequently entered 
Randolph College, in Mecklenburg county, 
Va. After a course of two years in the 
study of medicine, under the able direc- 
tion of Dr. Francis Wirt, of Accomack 
county, Va., Dr. Taylor entered the Uni- 
versity of Pennsylvania, from which he 
was graduated in 1872, and commenced 
the practice of his profession at Mapps- 
ville, Va. He removed to Somerset 
county, Md., at the end of two years, 
where he remained until 1876. From 
1876 to 1881 he was located at Mount 
Rose, Mercer county. New Jersey, and in 
the latter year he settled in Millstone. 
His fifteen years' practice in that town 
have been marked with success. 

Dr. Taylor is a respected member of 
the Somerset County Medical Society, 
which holds its quarterly sessions at Som- 
erville. He is also a member of Somer- 
set Lodge, No. 43, I. 0. 0. F., of Somer- 
ville. Politically he is an affiliant of the 
Democratic party. He was married, June 
8, 1873, to Harriet A. Winterson, a 
daughter of Gassaway Winterson, of Anne 
Arundel county, Md. There were born 
to this marriage two children : Margaret, 



married to Rev. Ferdinand S. Wilson, 
pastor of Pompton Reformed church ; 
and Marva, whose sad death occurred at 
the age of fifteen years. 



'yOBIAS GRACE, justice of the peace at 
-*- South Amboy, New Jersey, and for 
many years general agent of the New 
Brunswick, Amboy and New York Steam- 
boat Company, is a sou of Tobias, Sr., and 
Eleanor Belle (Carroll) Grace, and was 
born Jan. 4, 1848, at No. 1 St. Peter's 
place, now Church street, opposite St. 
Peter's Roman Catholic church. New 
York city. The family is of Irish origin. 

Tobias, Sr., was born at Castlecomer, 
Ireland, in 1800, came to this country in 
1830, and located at New York city, 
where he engaged in the wholesale liquor 
trade. He located on Cedar street, in the 
now-famed Wall street district, and for 
more than twenty years carried on an 
extensive and successful business. He 
died in 1852, his wife surviving until 
1862, leaving but one child, Tobias, the 
svibject of this sketch. 

Tobias Grace attended the primary 
and grammar departments of Columbia 
College in his native city until twelve 
years of age. He then traveled through 
Evirope in company with his uncle, John 
Just, of New York city, and upon his 
return home learned the morocco finish- 
ing trade. He subsequently became a 
morocco salesman. In 1872 he obtained 
a clerkship in the offices of the Pennsyl- 
vania railroad at South Amboy. In 
1878 he was appointed generaP agent of 
the New Brunswick, Amboy and New 
York Steamboat Company, a position 
which he very creditably filled for ten 
years. He has served as justice of the 
peace at South Amboy since 1888. He 



364 



Biographical Sketches. 



was appointed police justice in 1889 and 
served until 1895. He lias also acted as 
coroner wince 1888. In fire insurance 
cii'ck'sMr. Grace is very well known, and 
he represents a number of leading insu- 
rance companies of the United States and 
Europe. He has also been an active 
promoter of building and loan associa- 
tions, assisting in the organization of the 
South Amboj- Building and Loan Asso- 
ciation, and acting as its secretary until 
its stock matured in ISQJ. He organ- 
ized the Star Building and Loan Associa- 
tion of South Amboy, Jan. 28, 1889, and 
has Ijeen its secretary ever since. Politi- 
cally Mr. Grace is an active and enthusi- 
astic democrat, and in religion he is a 
member of the EjDJscopal church of South 
Amboy. He also served one year as as- 
sistant foreman and four years as fore- 
man of Protection Steam Fire Enaiine 
Coni2)any of South Amboy, New Jersey, 
and is a member of the South Amboy 
Firemen's Relief Association. 

He was a member of the board of trus- 
tees and district clerk of School District 
No. 39, of South Amboy, New Jersey, 
for three years ; is also a member of the 
following organizations : Genei'al Morgan 
Lodge, No. 96, I. 0. 0. F., of South 
Amboy, New Jersey; Ladv Grace (Re- 
bekah Degree) Lodge, No. 27j I. 0. 0. F., 
of South Amboy, New Jersey-; Mon- 
mouth Encampment, No. 51, I. O. 0. F., 
of Keyport, New Jersey ; Pottawattomie 
(Beneficial Degree) Council, No. 1, of 
Camden, New Jersey ; Seneca Tribe, No. 
23, I. 0. of R. M, of South Amboy, New 
Jer-sey ; lanthe Council, No. 6, D. of P., 
South Amboy, New Jersey; Sterling 
Castle, No. 50, K. G. E., South Amboy, 
New Jersey ; Banner Temple, No. 8, 
Ladies of the 0. G. E., of New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey ; Columbia Castle, No. 



242, K. G. R., of South Amboy, New 
Jersey, and a member-at-large of the 
Order of Chosen Friends. 

Mr. Grace was married Oct. 4, 187U, to 
Miss Jennie Kelly, at Fairview (formerly 
English Neigh)jorhood),in Bergen county. 
New Jersey (which place was settled and 
populated by her ancestors, the Engle 
family), and at the present time the}- 
have passed the twenty-fifth anniversary 
of their wedding day. Their happy union 
has been blessed by five children : Frank, 
a carpenter by trade ; Charles T., mar- 
ried and a clerk for the Pennsylvania 
Railroad ; Maggie Belle, Alonzo L., a 
western union telegraph operator, and 
Ruth. Mr. Grace enjoys the distinction 
of being a self-made man, and a man 
whose life has been marked by honorable 
traits of character. His successful career 
is due to a union in his person of great 
material ability and thorough honesty, as 
well as to the faithful and untiring assist- 
ance and counsel of a devoted and true 
Avife. 



r^ HOWARD PERRY, ex-mayor of 
^^* Bound Brook, genei-al manager of 
the large dry-goods house of Heath & 
Drake at Newark, member of several 
well-known business corporations, and 
one of the most progressive and respect- 
ed citizens of Bound Brook, is a son of 
William and Mar^^ (Creveling) Perry, 
and was born April 1, 1851, at Easton, 
Pa. His early education was received 
in the district schools of Warren county, 
New Jersejr. At the age of fourteen 
3^ears he entered a dry-goods store at 
Washington, New Jersey, as general 
utility boy, remaining there four years. 
He then went to New York city and was 
in the dry-goods store of H. B. Clapp for 
two years. He next bought an interest 



Biographical Sketches. 



367 



in the firm of Hilclebrand & Perry at 
Port Golden, but, after two years, sold 
out to his partner and returned to his 
former employer, Mr. Clapp. Subse- 
quently he became associated with B. 
Altman & Co., New York, being a sales- 
man in the dry-goods department for six 
years, and afterwards, buyer. His next 
connection was with Le Boutillier Bros., 
on Fourteenth street, where he remained 
for- twelve years as general buyer for the 
house. On May 1, 1895, he associated 
himself with Heath & Drake, of New- 
ark, New Jersey. Both members having 
died, the business was incorporated, a 
stock comj)any formed, and Mr. Perry 
engaged as general manager. This house 
was established in 1841, and is not only 
the oldest, but has the reputation of be- 
ing the finest dry-goods store in the state. 
It is known as the Arnold & Constable's 
of New Jersey, and employs one hun- 
dred and seventeen clerks during the 
dull season, and as many as one hundred 
and sixty-five during the holiday season. 
At the Waverly state fair this firm re- 
ceived first premiums on all of its eleven 
exhibits, and a silver medal for the best 
general exhibit. 

Mr. Perry was elected mayor of Bound 
Brook in 1892, on the Taxpayers' ticket, 
and served three successive terms. He 
gave the town a vigorous administration, 
and, although he met with bitter old- 
fogy opposition, he succeeded in carrying 
through a number of progressive meas- 
ures. Indeed it is to his wisdom that 
the town owes its present position in the 
van of well-lighted, well-paved and 
healthful communities of the state. 
During his term he united Bound Braok 
to East Bound Brook by opening up 
East Main street, which is the connect- 
ing link. He also built the bridge over 



Green Brook, which is the chief pride of 
his administration, and secured the con- 
struction of the Thompson bridge. While 
mayor, he organized the board of health, 
of which he was president for three 
years, and after a severe fight he suc- 
ceeded in having sewers built. He was 
one of the organizers, and is now one of 
the most active members of the board of 
trade of Bound Brook, and has held the 
chairmanship of the committees on rail- 
roads, telephones, telegraphs, etc. He is 
vice-president of the Washington Camp- 
ground Association, an organization for 
the preservation of the old camping- 
place of Washington's army on an emi- 
nence near Bound Brook, a spot of deep 
historical interest to the whole country. 
Among the various business positions 
which Mr. Perry occupies, are the fol- 
lowing : President of the Shaen Manu- 
facturing Co., with offices in New York, 
and a plant at Philadelphia, for the man- 
ufacture of plain and fancy dress-goods ; 
vice-president of the Elizabeth Nursery 
Co., which owns sixty acres at Elizabeth, 
New Jersey; and vice-president of the 
Republic Savings and Loan Association 
of Newark, New Jersey. He is a mem- 
ber of various organizations, including 
Eastern Star Lodge, P. and A. M. ; 
Mansfield Lodge, No. 36, I. 0. 0. F.; the 
Royal Arcanum, and Knights of Honor. 
Mr. Perry was married on Jan. 30, 
1873, to Miss Sarah McCloughan, daugh- 
ter of David McCloughan, a well-known 
farmer of Hampden,'Hunterdon county. 
New Jersey. They have one son, David 
M. Periy, who was educated at the Bor- 
dentown Military Academy, left school 
to study law, but abandoned it, and 
for four years past has been connected 
with 0. M. Farrand, No. 3 Maiden Lane, 
New York, as a diamond expert. 



368 



Biographical Sketches. 



Mr. Perry is one of the most popular 
men in Bound Brook in spite of the bit- 
terness with which liis progressive ideas 
were once fouglit by the conservative 
element. He has the courage of his con- 
victions, and his experience in dealing 
with people, combined with his courteous 
manner and affiible bearing, amply fit 
him for the responsible duties he has to 
perform. He resides at Oak Lawn, in 
one of the handsomest residences in 
Bound Brook. 

William Perry (father) was a native 
of Little Yoi'k, New Jersey. He was a 
miller and millwright by trade, but sj^ent 
the latter part of his life in the con- 
tracting and jjuilding business. He first 
lived in Little York, New Jersey, from 
which place he moved to Easton, Pa., 
and subsequently to New Brooklyn, New 
Jersey, where he operated Dunn's mill, 
and did an extensive business. He after- 
wards operated Stewart's mill in Warren 
county, and the mill at Brass Castle. 
Pie then retired from the milling busi- 
ness and removed to Washington, New 
Jersey, where he was a successful con- 
tractor and builder to the time of his 
death. He was a prominent whig, and 
was often tendered office, but refused 
the nominations. During the civil war 
he was sergeant of a company of emer- 
gency men, but was never mustered into 
service. His wife, Mary Creveling, was 
a resident of Washington. They had 
three children : C. Howard, Laura Petit 
and Martha, who died in infancy. 



TpDWARD W. BARNES, ex-mayor of 
^-^ Perth Amboy, and one of the most 
influential and respected men of affairs 
in that thriving city, is a son of J. 
Edward and Elizabeth G. (Woodbridge) 



Barnes. He was born February 2, 1848, 
at Summit Hill, Carbon county. Pa. ; but 
the earlj- portion of his life was spent in 
Tamaqua, Pa., where his father was 
superintendent of the Little Schuylkill 
railroad. Edward received the founda- 
tion of his education in the public schools 
of Tamaqua, but left school at the age 
of twelve years, and subsequently pur- 
sued more advanced studies under a 
private tutor. Coming from a family of 
industrious, persevering and self-made 
people he very early evinced a strong 
aptitude for business, and while still a 
boy entered a book-store in Tamaqua. 
During the alarms and anxieties of the 
Rebellion he was a newsboy, and aided 
in disseminating through the coal regions 
the earliest intelligence of the great 
battles of that national crisis. In Dec, 
1864, he accompanied his widowed 
mother and two brothers to Perth Am- 
boj', where he settled for life. He first 
entered a banking house in New York 
city, and during seven years worked hard 
and conscientiously in acquiring and cul- 
tivating that business acumen and saga- 
city which in after life stood him in such 
good stead. His clerkship in the bank 
was a valuable training, which excel- 
lently fitted him for the responsible posi- 
tion he next attained. He was private 
secretary and confidential clerk to Fred- 
erick H. Cossitt, of New York, with 
whom he remained up to the time of the 
latter's death in 1887. Since that time 
he has had the charge and management 
of Mr. Cossitt's estate, acting as trustee, 
cai-ing for a large portion of it that re- 
mains undivided, and bearing all the re- 
sponsibility of the endless details which 
such a charge involves. Mr. Barnes is a 
strong repul)lican, and was elected by 
that party mayor of Perth Amboy in 



Biographical Sketches. 



369 



1894. He has always evinced an active 
interest in public affairs, discharging his 
official duties with the same finesse and 
unswerving fidelity to high principle that 
have characterized his business relations. 
He has served three years as one of the 
school commissioners of Perth Amboy, 
being president of the board for one year. 
He is a member of the Presljyterian 
church, and is well-known as one of the 
most ardent workers and influential sup- 
porters of that denomination in New 
Jersey. He is an elder of the church, 
and has been for many years clerk of the 
session. He has been especially active 
in Sunday-school work, has successfully 
filled all the positions, and has been 
superintendent for about fifteen years. 

Mr. Barnes was married August 18, 
1880, to Miss Idelette L. Hall, daughter 
of Beach Hall, a well-known carpenter 
and builder of Metuchen. Their chil- 
dren, besides one who died in infancy, 
have been : Edward Harold, Bessie 
Louise, Walter Carl, Earnest Winfred, 
William Gerald and Frederick Homer. 

Mr. Barnes' family is of English origin, 
his great-grandfather having come to 
this country during the Revolution. He 
was a student at college at the outbreak 
of that war, but was taken away from 
his studies and forced into the British 
army. Being taken prisoner by the 
Continental troops, he refused to be ex- 
changed, left the British army, and set- 
tled in Connecticut. He subsequently 
removed to Saratoga county, N. Y., 
where he lived until his death. One of 
his sons, James Barnes, grandfather of 
Mr. Bai-nes, lived during most of his life 
in W3'oming county. Pa. He was a thor- 
oughly self-made man, dealt in real 
estate and coal lands, and became pos- 
sessed of considerable means. He was a 



member of the Society of the Orthodox 
Friends. He died at the age of eighty- 
seven years, and his wife, who had been 
Miss Eliza Woodbridge, at the age of 
about seventy years. Tlieir children 
were : James Woodbridge, R. Henry, Mal- 
vina P., Wheeler, and J. Edward. 

J. Edward Barnes (father) was born 
Oct. 2, 1818, at Kingston, Wyoming 
county. Pa. Early in life he was in the 
emj)loy of the Lehigh Canal Co., and 
afterwards in charge of transportation on 
the Switchback railroad. He resided in 
Summit Hill, Pa., for a number of years, 
during which he was interested in mer- 
cantile pursuits, but afterwards removed 
to Tamaqua, Pa., and was superintendent 
of the Little Schuylkill railroad. He 
was a whig, an enthusiastic party man, 
and one of the early supporters of the 
new Republican party in* that section. 
He was a member of the Presbyterian 
church, always greatly esteemed as a man 
of high standing, strong, honest convic- 
tions, and as an irreproachable citizen. 
He was also a prominent member of the 
J. 0. 0. F. He died at Tamaqua on 
Feb. 15, 1858, at the age of forty years. 
His wife died in 1885 at the age of 
sixty-seven. Their children were : Ed- 
ward W., Rev. Stej)hen G., a clergyman 
of the Congregational church at Long 
Meadow, Mass., and formerly professor 
of Anglo-Saxon and English literature in 
Iowa College, Grinnell, Iowa ; James W., 
who is in the insurance business at New- 
ark, New Jersey ; and one who died in 
infancy. 

T IVINGSTON DU BOIS, a retired far- 
-*— ^ mer of Freehold, New Jersey, comes 
from distinguished Holland-Dutch ances- 
try, founded upon Huguenot stock, his 
family being originally of French origin, 



370 



Biographical Sketches. 



having gone from France to Holland in 
the troublous times of Louis XIII. The 
nativity of the Du Bois family in Fi-ance 
was Wicres, near Lille, its records show- 
ing a complete genealogical account since 
the year 1600. Isaac Du Bois, a son of 
Louis and a grandson of Chretin Du Bois, 
Wicres, first settled in this country at 
Kingston, New Jersey, at the age of 
eighteen years, removing thence to New 
Paltz, Ulster county. New York, in 1677. 
Livingston Du Bois is a son of Tunis 
D. and Sarah (Smock) Du Bois, and was 
born A])Yi\ 18, 1827, in Freehold town- 
ship, Monmouth county, New Jersey. 
His mother was a daughter of Aaron 
Smock, of Middletown. His grandfather, 
the Rev. Benjamin Du Bois, was pastor 
of the Brick chui'ch at Marlboi'o (then 
Middletown) for sixty-three 3^efirs. His 
father, Tunis D. Du Bois, was born in 
Freehold township, where he was edu- 
cated in the common schools. He then 
learned the trade of a silversmith and 
became an expert artisan, his skill being 
silently attested by sundry pieces of his 
beautiful handiwork, still in the posses- 
sion of the family, and highly regarded 
by them as heirlooms. He afterward 
pursued the occupation of a farmer suc- 
cessfuU}^, and at the time of his death 
resided upon a fine farm which he had 
owned for a number of years. He was a 
member, elder, and deacon of the Dutch 
Reformed church, in whose affairs he 
always took the deepest interest, and in 
politics he was a democrat and a strict 
party man. He was first married to 
Sarah Vanderveer, to which marriage 
were born four children : Phoebe, Ellen, 
Catherine, and David, the latter of whom 
also followed the occupation of a farmer. 
The second wife of Tunis D. Du Bois was 
Sarah Smock, and to this union were 



born six children : Henry, Benjamin, 
Sarah, John, Tunis V., and Livingston. 

Mr. Livingston Du Bois received his 
education at the district schools in Marl- 
boro township, and then worked upon 
his father's farm for twenty-five years. 
He then purchased the Hunt homestead 
farm from his father-in-law, and ojjerated 
the same until April 1, 1894, when he 
moved to Freehold and retired from ac- 
tive life. The farm is now occupied by 
his son, Frank B. Mr. Du Bois had an 
exceptionally prosperous career as a far- 
mer, being a progressive man, thoroughly 
modern in his methods and alive to all 
improvements, and is an active member 
of the agricultural society. He is a mem- 
ber and the treasurer of the Freehold Bap- 
tist church and active in church work. 
He also takes great interest in school 
work, and was one of the pioneer trustees 
of the district schools in Manalapan dis- 
trict. 

Mr. Du Bois married Mary T. Hunt, 
a daughter of George Hunt, and to them 
have been born seven children : William, 
John Henry, George L., Joseph E., Wil- 
son G., deceased ; Anna Hunt, and 
Frank B. 



T3EV. BENJAMIN DU BOIS, a son of 
-■-^ the third Louis, and grandson of 
Jacob, was born in Pittsgrove, New Jer- 
sey, March 30, 17-39. When a youth he 
inclined to the ministry, and received 
his education at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 
He became pastor of the Reformed Dutch 
churches of Freehold and Middletown, 
Monmouth county. New Jersey, about 
the 3'ear 1764. He had his full share of 
ministerial difficulties. One arose from 
his desire ^to la}' aside the Dutch lan- 
guage in preaching, which was resisted ; 
another, from the tory influence during 



BioGRAPHicAiv Sketches. 



371 



the Kevolutionary war; another, from 
the opposition of his predecessor, who 
had been expelled for intemperance; 
and another, the climax of a bitter con- 
troversy that had been raging for nine- 
teen years in the congregation, and now 
shed its fruit. Yet such was the meek- 
ness and prudence of the good pastor, 
that he rose above all of these, retained 
the warm aifection of his people to the 
last, and closed amongst them his useful 
life in 1827, at the age of eighty-eight 
years. 

His ministry was faithful and success- 
ful ; his sermons sound, evangelical and 
practical; his zeal for the work so ardent 
that he kept on in very advanced life, 
although he sometimes would faint away 
in the pulpit, and his people often feared 
that he would die facing his congrega- 
tion. 

In the war of the Revolution he took 
part actively with the patriots, com- 
mended the cause in his sermons and his 
prayers, and sometimes shouldered his 
musket and knapsack, and took his place 
in the ranks, desj)ite the pleadings of some 
of his tory people and the indignation of 
the British soldiery. 

His wife was Phemertje (Phoebe) De- 
nise, a woman of intelligence and ac- 
tivity, sprightly, prudent and pious. 
She remained behind in this world until 
1839, when she was almost ninety-six 
years old. They were very careful in the 
moral and religious instruction of their 
children, and had the pleasure of seeing 
them all following their good example 
in the service of their Saviour, and trans- 
mitting even to the next generation the 
wholesome lessons of virtue, morality, 
and religion which they themselves had 
received. They realized that the full mea- 
sure of a good life had borne rich fruit. 



"ISTTELSON YOUNG DUNGAN, prosecu- 
-'-^ tor of the pleas of Somerset county, 
New Jersey, judge advocate and captain 
in the New Jersey National Guard, and 
a leading lawyer of Somerville, Somerset 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Edmund 
B. and Martha M. (Young) Dungan, and 
was born May 3, 1867, in Lambertville, 
New Jersey. His father was a native of 
Pennsylvania, and his mother was born 
in New Jersey, and they came from old 
families in their respective states. Ed- 
mund B. Dungan (father) was formerly 
employed in the construction department 
of the Pennsylvania Railroad Co., and 
subsequently became one of the com- 
pany's agents, serving from 1874 to 
1880. He resided in Montgomery town- 
ship, in which he held oflRce as its collec- 
tor for several years, and where he reared 
a family of five children with the excep- 
tion of Charles M., who died at the age 
of two years and six months. The others 
were : Nelson Young, Alice H., wife of 
Arthur S. Dixon; Jesse R., and Temper- 
ance A., all of whom, as well as their 
parents, were members of the Reformed 
Dutch church at Harlingen. 

Nelson Young Dungan, after attending 
the public schools at Harlingen, New 
Jersey, became a school-teacher at the 
age of sixteen years, following that pro- 
fession from 1883 to 1889 continuously, 
two years at Weston, Somerset county. 
New Jersey, and the latter four years at 
Somerville. On April 20, 1885, he took 
up the study of law in the offices of 
Bartine & Griggs, with whom he re- 
mained until the dissolution of that firm 
several months later, and continued his 
study with James L. Griggs, the junior 
member of the firm. He was admitted 
to the bar as an attorney Nov. 6, 1890, 
and as a counselor Nov. 9, 1898. He 



372 



Biographical Sketches. 



began active practice in 1891, which has 
stead il}' increased from year to year. He 
is the present prosecutor of the pleas of 
Somerset county, having been appointed 
Feb. 19, 1895,' by Governor George T. 
Werts. Among the important cases he 
has tried during liis terra of office are 
those of Commonwealth vs. Jacob S. 
Johnson, a colored preacher, for strang- 
ling to death a young colored woman, 
Annie Kogers, and Commonwealth vs. 
Elmer Claw;<on, for shooting Harry Hod- 
getts, his former employer, in both of 
which cases the juries rendered verdicts 
of guilty of murder in the first degree, 
and both were sentenced to be hanged. 
Mr. Dungan was counsel for the advo- 
cates of good roads in their suits to com- 
pel the board of chosen freeholders of 
Somerset county to macadamize certain 
public roads, in which suits writs of 
mandamus were ordered by the supreme 
court, requiring their improvement ; and 
when completed these will be the first 
roads constructed b}- the county. He is 
also counsel for the Citizens' Building 
and Loan Association of Somerville, the 
local branches of the New Jersey State 
Mutual Building and Loan, the National 
Building and Loan, and the Provident 
associations. In secret societies he is 
quite prominent, and is connected by 
membership as follows : Solomon's Lodge, 
No. 46, F. & A. M.; Keystone Chap- 
ter, No. 25, R. A. M. ; Trinity Com- 
mandery. No. 17, K. T. ; Jersey City 
Lodge of Perfection ; Jersey Cit}- Coun- 
cil, Princes of Jerusalem ; Jersey City 
Chapter of Rose-Croi.x, and New Jerse}' 
Sovereign Consistory, 32°, at Jersey 
City, Ancient Scottish Rite ; Mecca Tem- 
ple, A. A. 0. Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, 
at New York city ; and Castle No. 82, K. 
of P. lie has always taken a great 



interest in musical affairs, and for several 
years served as director of the choir in 
the Reformed Dutch church at Harlin- 
gen. In military matters he is very 
enthusiastic. He joined the New Jersey 
National Guard, July 26, 1888, as a 
private, and was very soon warranted 
corporal. He was made a sergeant of 
CompanyH.,Third regiment, July 5, 1889, 
and promoted to first sergeant Oct. 6, 
189.3. On Feb. 21, 1894, he was war- 
ranted battalion sergeant-major of his 
regiment, and was commissioned captain 
and judge advocate, Dec. 25, 1894. Cap- 
tain Dungan is also a member of the New 
Jersey State Rifle Association, and takes 
a lively interest in rifle practice. He 
enjojs a large measure of popularity, 
and has many friends throughout his 
count}" and state, not only on account 
of his record as a successful lawyer and 
his masonic, militarj* and other affilia- 
tions, but due as well to his genial per- 
sonality. 



JOSHUA DOUGHTY, JR., for many 
^ years town surveyor of Somersnlle, 
Somerset count}^, New Jersej', is a son of 
Joshua, Sr., and Susan M. (Southard) 
Doughty, and was born Feb. 28, 1844, in 
that town. 

He received his primary education in 
the public schools of Somerville, and sul> 
sequently entered Rutgers College, taking 
a scientific cour-se and graduating in 
1869. Since then he has devoted him- 
self to his chosen profession of a civil en- 
gineer and surveyor. His experience in 
this line has been long and varied. He 
has occupied the position of town sur- 
veyor for more than twenty-five years, 
and all public improvements in his town 
during that time have been made under 
his direction. 




^-eA5t-*»-<X.*4- -O /^-t,<-</^^/iM J&r/ 



Biographical Sketches. 



375 



As county engineer plans for the erec- 
tion of all bridges in the county and the 
construction of all county roads are pre- 
pared by him, and the work carried on 
under his supervision. The large amount 
of work done by him in Somerset and 
neighboring counties for private indi- 
viduals has made him more widely 
known than any other of his profession 
in this section of the state. 

Mr. Doughty's reputation for relia- 
bility and accuracy in his work is not 
limited to this locality. He is frequently 
employed by the large insurance com- 
panies of New York city to do their sur- 
veying in the state of New Jersey, and 
is retained in all the principal suits 
brought against corporations in his part 
of the state. 

Mr. Doughty is a democrat, and in his 
younger days was a very active and en- 
thusiastic worker for the success of that 
party. In masonry he has taken several 
degrees : Blue Lodge, Chapter and Com- 
mandery. He is a member of Solomon's 
Lodge, No. 46 ; Keystone Chapter, No. 
25, of Somerville, and Trinity Command- 
ery. No. 17, of Plainfield, New Jersey. 
He is also a member of Naraticong Tribe, 
No. 41, Improved Order of Red Men, of 
Somerville. He was married Nov. 22, 
1878, to Lillian M. Teel, a daughter of 
L. Marshall Teel, of Phillipsburg, War- 
ren county. New Jersey. She deceased 
April 17, 1892. 

The family originally came from Eng- 
land, about 1670, and settled in New 
Jersey. 

Maj. Gen. Solomon Doughty, grand- 
father of Joshua Doughty, Jr., was 
brigade inspector during the war of 1812, 
and was subsequently promoted to the 
rank of major-general in the state militia. 
He was born Sept. 26, 1772, at Doughty's 



Mills, three miles from Basking Ridge, 
in Somerset county, where for many 
years he operated a grist and saw mill. 
This property he exchanged for a farm 
in New Providence, New Jersey, upon 
which he resided up to his death, Dec. 
20, 1827. He was a civil engineer and 
surveyor, and for many years did most of 
that work in Morris and Essex counties. 
General Doughty, on March 9, 1796, mar- 
ried Mary, a daughter of Jonathan Pier- 
son, and grand-daughter on her mother's 
side of Col. Benjamin Ludlow, of Long 
Hill. She was born April 3, 1775, and 
died July 6, 1856. They had the fol- 
lowing children : Agnes, Joshua, Eliza- 
beth Pierson, Sineus Pierson, Eugene 
Solomon, and Sarah Maria. 

Joshua Doughty, Sr. (father) was born 
February 25, 1799, in Morris county, 
New Jersey. At the age of eighteen 
years he went to New York, and for 
three years was employed in a wholesale 
dry-goods house. At the age of twenty- 
one he went to Mobile, Ala., where he 
remained one year, when he located at 
Apalachicola, Fla., where he launched 
his first mercantile venture on his own 
account, and sold the first goods offered 
in that town. He continued in success- 
ful business at that place for three years, 
when he became engaged in a general 
mercantile business at Franklin, Ala., 
where he remained until 1836, when he 
closed out his interests in the south and 
returned to his native county and state. 
He located at Somerville, where he con- 
ducted a general store from 1838 to 1866. 
He was extensively interested in real 
estate, and his old mansion, built in 1751 
with briclcs imported from Holland, is 
still standing. He was for twenty-five 
years president of the Somei'set County 
Bank, and secured the charter for its 



376 



Biographical Sketches. 



organization in 1848. He was for many 
years jjresidont of the Raritan Water- 
power Company, and a stockholder in the 
New Jersey Central Raili'oad. He was 
one of the founders and for many years a 
vestryman ot the Episcopal church at 
Somerville, and a libei'al contributor to 
all its financial needs. He was a demo- 
crat, and in 1860 was one of the dele- 
gates to the National Democratic conven- 
tion which convened at Charleston. In 
1863 he was elected by an overwhelming 
majority to the state senate, and served 
as chairman of the committee on treas- 
urer's accounts. 

]\Ir. Doughty in his private life and as 
a citizen was highly esteemed for his 
many noble traits of mind and heart. A 
man of rare business ability and good 
judgment; while as a banker and finan- 
cier he was conservative, careful and of 
the utmost reliability. He was popular 
even among his political opponents, and 
stood deservedly high as a publicist and 
as a citizen. He married in 1835 Susan 
M., a daughter of Col. Isaac Southard 
and a niece of the late Senator Samuel 
L. Southard. Their children are : Louisa, 
who was the wife of Walter Cammann, de- 
ceased ; Sarah Elizabeth, Mary Pierson, 
wife of A. C. Dunham, of Jersey City, 
New Jerse}^ ; John R., Joshua, Susan, 
wife of Frederick Van Liew ; Agnes 
Jackson, wife of C. Van Derbeek, and 
Laura R. 



TTT A. McMURTRY, ex-sheriff of Som- 
' ^ • erset county, a well-known shoe- 
dealer at Somerville, and a highly re- 
spected citizen of that town, is a son of 
Samuel and Margaret (Anderson) Mc- 
Mnrtry, and was born July 23, 1824, 
near Bcriuirdsville, Somerset county. His 
education was obtained in the public 



schools, near Bei'nardsville. He studied 
surveying for a short time after leaving 
school, and then worked on a farm in 
Bernards township until he was twenty- 
eight years old ; subsequently operating 
the same farm on shares until he was 
able to purchase it, in 1859. After work- 
ing it successfully for ten years he sold 
out, and established a general store at 
Bernardsville, which he conducted for 
twelve years, subsequently spending a 
short time in traveling in California. 

In 1887 he was elected sheriff of Som- 
erset county on the democratic ticket, 
and served for three years. He was also 
collector of Bernards township for two 
years, and assessor of the same township 
for fifteen j^ears. Upon retiring from 
office he established his present shoe bus- 
iness at Somerville. He is a member and 
was an elder in the Presbyterian church, 
at Mendham, for six years, at Dusking 
Ridge for five years, and for five years in 
the second Reformed church of Somer- 
ville. On November 3, 1850, he was 
married to Miss Elizabeth Daj-, daughter 
of Calvin aud Mary Day, of Bernards, and 
they have four childi-en : Logan, a resi- 
dent of New York city : Ida, wife of 
George H. Ta3dor, of Gladstone ; Calvin 
and Anna, who reside with their parents 
at Somerville. 

Mr. McMurtry has the enviable repu- 
tation of having been the best sheriff 
Somerset county ever had, and his ad- 
ministration was noted for its active vigor 
and fidelity to public interests. He is an 
enterprising business man, and an earnest 
worker in his church. 

Thomas McMurtry, his great-grand- 
father, was a well-known farmer in Pea^ 
pack, New Jersey. Robert McMurtiy, 
his son, and grandfather of Mr. McMur- 
try, was born in Somerset county, was a 



Biographical Sketches. 



377 



farmer all his life, and a staunch Jack- 
sonian democrat. He died in 1820, hav- 
ing been the father of nine children : 
Elizabeth, wife of Peter Gardbrent, of 
Bernards; Josejah, John, Robert, William, 
Mary, wife of John Geran, of Bernards ; 
James, Samuel, and Daniel. 

Samuel McMurtry, father of Mr. Mc- 
Murtrj, was born in 1798, at Peapack. 
He was a surveyor by occupation, but 
during the active portion of his life oper- 
ated a blacksmith shop and saw-mill at 
Franklin, Bernards township, and specu- 
lated successfully in timber tracts and 
lumber. He was a democrat, influential 
in local politics, and a trustee and elder 
in the Presbyterian church at Basking 
Eidge. His wife was Miss Margaret An- 
derson, daughter of George Anderson, of 
Bernards, by whom he was the father of 
seven children : W. A., Adnah, Mary 
Ann, wife of Isaac Nutt, of Somerset 
county; George, John, Elizabeth, wife 
of Samuel S. Voorhees, of Bernards ; and 
Oscar. Samuel McMurtry died in 1866. 



"pvR. THOMAS H. FLYNN, a promi- 
-^-^ nent physician of Somerville, New 
Jersey, was born July 22, 1859, at 
Albany, N. Y., and is a son of Cornelius 
A. and Mary Donohue Flynn. His pa- 
ternal grandfather was for many years a 
surveyor and draughtsman of exceptional 
ability and celebrity, and resided in New 
York city. His father has also followed 
surveying all his life, a,nd now resides at 
Albany. He is a quiet, unassuming man 
of most exemplary character, and is a 
member of St. Mary's Catholic church of 
Albany. To his married life were born 
six children, as follows : Kate, married 
to John A.Tracey,of Albany; James, who 
entered the Union army while but a boy. 



as a member of the Thirteenth regiment 
New York cavalry, was captured by 
Mosby's guerrillas and sent to Anderson- 
ville prison, where he died ; Michael, 
Cornelius, Thomas H. and Jane. 

Dr. Flynn first attended the public 
schools of Albany and the Christian 
Brothers Academy. He subsequently 
entered Rutgers College, and took a 
special course in chemistry. He then 
read medicine for five years with Dr. 
Frank M. Donohue, of New Brunswick, 
and subsequently entered the Albany 
Medical College, from which he gradu- 
ated with honors in the class of 1890, re- 
ceiving the degree of M. D. At the latter 
college his record for scholarship was ex- 
ceptionally creditable, and he won several 
prizes, as well as the hospital appoint- 
ment, but declined the latter, and located 
at New Brunswick in the practice of his 
profession immediately after his gradua- 
tion. He remained in New Brunswick 
but a short time, however, when he re- 
moved to Somerville, where he has built 
up an extensive practice. 

Dr. Flynn is a member of both the 
State and Somerset County Medical 
Societies, and of the IndejDcndent Order 
of Forresters, Lodge No. 988, of Somerset 
county, of which order he is also exam- 
ining physician. He is also medical ex- 
aminer for the Fidelity Life Insurance 
Co. of Philadelphia. He is a member of 
the Catholic church, and a stockholder in 
the second National Bank of Somerville. 
Dr. Flynn was married April 27, 1892, 
to Magdalene R., a daughter of William 
and Cecelia Dooley, of New Brunswick, 
and their union has been blessed with 
three children : Cornelius, Dorothy and 
Agnes. Dr. Flynn enjoys an extensive 
practice, and is greatly esteemed for his 
rare professional skill. 



378 



Biographical Sketches. 



TAMP:S J. MEEHAN, a brilliant young 
^ member of the Somerset county bar, 
and a prominent citizen of Somerville, is 
a son of John and Isabel Meelian, and 
was born Oct. 12, 1865, at Somerville. 
The name is of Irish origin. John Mee- 
han, the paternal grandfather, was a 
prosperous farmer in Ireland, and a well- 
known man. He raised a family of six 
children : James, Thomas, Kose, John, 
Katherine, and Patrick. 

John Meehan (father) became widely 
known throughout Somerset county as 
a successful dealer in real-estate. He 
was an active and staunch democrat in 
jjolitics and prominent in local public 
affairs. He died in 1880. His children, 
five in number, Avere: Katherine, Emma, 
wife of John K. Smith, of Texas ; James 
J., Agnes, and William J. 

James J. Meehan acquired his early 
education in the common schools of Som- 
erville. At the age of fifteen years he 
left his studies, and taught school for 
one 3-ear at Peapack. He began the study 
of law with Gaston & Bergen, at Soraei'- 
ville, and subsequently completed his 
studies in the office of A. A. Clark, at 
that jjlace. In July, 1889, he Avas ad- 
mitted to the bar, and immediately en- 
tered upon the pi'actice of his profession 
in copartnership with Wm. V. Steele, 
under the firui name of Steele & Meehan. 
Mr. Meehan was elected prosecuting at- 
torney of Somerset county in 1894, but 
resigned the office in the Ibllowing year 
in order to devote his entire time to his 
rapidly growing private practice. He 
has made himself particularl\- con.spicu- 
ous by his brilliant handling of a number 
of criminal cases, and has attained a 
wide reputation in that line of practice. 
In politics he is a democrat, and has 
always displayed an active interest in 



county- afl'airs, being a recognized leader. 
His religious affiliations are with the Ro- 
man Catholic church. Mr. Meehan is 
bright, aggressive, and clear-headed ; is a 
ready speaker, decided in his opinions 
and convincing in his arguments, cour- 
teous in tone and bearing, and of keen, 
ready wit. He is popular and much re- 
spected among his fellow-citizens, and is 
regarded as one of Somer.set county's 
most promising lawyers. 



WILLIAM H. PEARSALL, for many 
years a contractor and builder, and 
since 1892 a member of the extensive 
firm of Pearsall & Bogle, of Oceanic, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey, is the 
son of William and Marian M. Pearsall, 
and was born Aug. 23, 1849, in New 
York city. 

William Pearsall (father) was a native 
of Pearsall's Corner, Long Island. He 
was born in 1818, and deceased on March 
23, 1893, at Brooklyn, New York. He 
was a wheelwright, and continued in the 
successful pursuit of that calling all his 
life at New York city. He was the in- 
ventor of the " fifth wheel " to a wagon. 
He also built and exploited the first two- 
wheeled cart ever drawn in California. 
He was a deeply religious man, and for 
upwards of forty years was a member of 
the First Methodist Episcopal church of 
East Brooklyn, N. Y., and was president 
of the official board and superintendent 
of the Sunday school. He was a constant 
Bible reader and a well-versed man in 
the great book of books. He was a strong 
abolitionist in principle. His father dying 
from cholera in 1832, he was deprived of 
school advantages ; hence is a self-taught 
man. He was married Oct. 4, 1844, to 
Marian Mitchell Jagger, his very esti- 




'MMu^J^c^c^oJ^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



S81 



mable and intelligent wife, by whom he 
reared g£ family, growing to maturity, of 
four sons and two daughters : Emily A., 
Latham D., William H., Alonzo, Lillie 
J., and George W. 

William H. Pearsall acquired his edu- 
cation in the public schools of New York 
city. At the age of thirteen years he 
became an errand boy in the law offices 
of Barnly, Butler & Parson, at New 
York, where he remained three years. 
He was subsequently employed in the 
gold room of the New York stock ex- 
change as a messenger, where he was a 
witness of the thrilling scenes on that 
memorable " Black Friday," which cul- 
minated in a flood-tide of commercial dis- 
trust and panic, reaching to centre and 
circumference of the civilized world. In 
this position he remained until the stock 
indicator was introduced, when his ser- 
vices were no longer in requisition. He 
then for a period of two years was engaged 
learning the carpenter's trade. In 1869, 
when twenty years old, he engaged with 
Robert Ferguson, of Brooklyn, New 
York, to finish his trade, after a thor- 
ough acquirement of which he was made 
foreman of his employer's shops, and 
thus remained until the memorable Chi- 
cago holocaust, in 1871, calling skilled 
labor from all the country to aid in 
rebuilding the stricken city. After five 
years spent in working at his trade at 
Chicago and other points in Illinois, in 
Ohio, Indiana, California, and the south, 
he returned to his home, from which he 
shortly thereafter, in 1876, removed to 
Oceanic, New Jersey, where he con- 
tinued his vocation as a carpenter until 
1885, when he entered into business for 
himself as a contractor and builder. In 
1892 he formed a partnership with James 
E. Bogle, operating under the name of 



Pearsall & Bogle. Their plant is a large 
one, emplojdng sixty hands ; their bi- 
weekly pay-rolls range from six hundred 
to eighteen hundred dollars, and their 
ledger shows annual transactions from a 
minimum of fifty thousand dollars to a 
maximum of one hundred and fifty thou- 
sand dollars. The offices are handsomely 
furnished and conveniently arranged for 
the facile dispatch of their business. 
They have recently purchased a tract of 
land which they are improving. They 
have some of the handsomest cottages in 
Monmouth county, and their business is 
rapidly extending. In religion Mr. Pear- 
sall is a member and a liberal supporter 
of the Presbyterian church at Oceanic, 
New Jersey, and in educational matters 
he takes the liveliest interest. His creed 
is that schools and churches are the na- 
tion's strongest bulwarks. He is an 
interested member of several secret so- 
cieties : Lafayette Council, No. 49,* Sr. 
0. U. A. M., of Brooklyn; Navesink 
Tribe, No. 148, I. 0. R. M.; Haymakers' 
Association, No 14 8 J, and Degree of 
Pocahontas, No. 23, all of Oceanic, New 
Jersey.; 

Mr. Pearsall was united in marriage 
Dec. 23, 1879, to Susan J. Jeffery, a 
daughter of John Jeffery, of Long Branch, 
New Jersey. To their maiTiage have 
been born three children : Emily, vale- 
dictorian of her class in the public schools 
at Oceanic in 1896, and now at the state 
normal school in Trenton, New Jersey, 
was born Aug. 27, 1880; Elmer, born 
May 10, 1885, and Latham, born Dec. 
12, 1886. He is the possessor of sterling 
business qualities that have elevated him 
from the position of errand boy to the 
joint and highly successful proprietorship 
of a large industrial establishment. He 
is a cultivated gentleman, of obliging. 



382 



Biographical Sketches. 



refined, and approachable manners. Suc- 
cess has rendered to him an unusual con- 
sideration for the personality of his kind, 
and it is this quality that especially en- 
dears him to the employees of the firm. 



A. 



HUMMER, a representative busi- 
ness man and a dej)uty collector 
of internal revenue, has resided at Mill- 
town, New Jersey, since his return from 
active duty as a soldier during the civil 
war. He is a sou of Philip and Eleanor 
(Gulick) Hummer, and was born at Pea- 
pack, New Jersey, Nov. 11, 1842. Adam 
Hummer, his grandfather, followed the 
pursuit of agriculture all his life, as did 
likewise his father. Of his father little 
can be told beyond the fact that he en- 
joyed the advantages of a common school 
education, was a farmer, a democrat, a 
member of the Baptist church, and an 
active christian. He died January, 1888. 
To "him were born five children, three 
sons and two daughters ; Henry G., A. 
(subject) ; James, deceased ; Sarah, mar- 
ried to Warren Smalley ; and Ida, who 
is now successfully engaged in the occu- 
pation of teaching. 

Mr. Hummer enjo3'ed all the educa- 
tional advantages which the public schools 
of his native town could afford, graduat- 
ing therefrom at the age of fifteen, and 
taking emplojment with his father on 
the farm. Upon the breaking out of the 
civil war, shortly afterwards, ho showed 
the manliness and patriotism of his char- 
acter by entering as a private and going 
to the Iront, where he remained with his 
regiment during its entire term of ser- 
vice, a period of nine months. Eeturn- 
ing home he immediately engaged in the 
hay business, in which he has been suc- 
cessful ; his business Ijeing an extensive 
and profitable one. 



Mr. Hummer is an active democrat, 
has served as postmaster at Milltown 
under the first administration of Presi- 
dent Cleveland, and is now the deputy 
collector of internal I'evenue for his dis- 
trict. He is a member of the S. A. R. 
and I. 0. U. A. M. In addition to his 
other offices he has also held that of 
township assessor. Mr. Hummer mar- 
ried Kate Hoagland, a daughter of Judge 
Hoagland, residing at East Millstone. 



"DETER B. CAMPBELL, a farmer re- 
-L siding at Shrewslmry, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is a sou of William 
and Hannah Bowue Campbell, and was 
born Jan. 20, 1830, at Freehold in said 
county. As the name implies Mr. Camp- 
bell is of Scotch origin. His forefiithers 
for generations back owned land along 
the banks of "Bonnie Doon" in Ayr- 
shire, Scotland. 

John Campbell, paternal great-grand- 
sire, was one of seven brothers who came 
to this country before the Revolutionarj^ 
war and fought on the side of the colon- 
ists for American independence. Their 
names were Duncan, John, William, 
Benjamin, Henry, Geoi'ge and Thomas. 
When the war closed the Campbell broth- 
ers settled as follows : Duncan, at Vernon, 
Sussex county ; Benjamin, near Perth 
Ambo}^, Middlesex county ; Henry, at 
Metuchen, Middlesex county ; William, 
John, and Thomas, at Freehold ; and 
George, second, from whom ex-Governor 
James E. Campbell of Ohio is descended, 
settled in Cleveland, 0. 

William Campbell, son of John, was 
born at Freehold, and served, while but 
a lad, as a drummer in the Revolutionary 
war and wae wounded at the battle of 
Monmouth, a musket ball carrying off 



Biographical Sketches. 



383 



his shoulder cap. In politics lie was a 
strong whig and an enthusiastic admirer 
of Henry Clay, speaker of the house of 
representatives during the Xllth, Xlllth, 
XlVth, XVIth and XVIIIth congresses 
and a thrice-defeated candidate for the 
presidency of the United States. He 
was a member of the Protestant Episco- 
pal church at Freehold, for the estab- 
lishment of which his father with others 
secured a charter from the English 
crown. He died in 1850 in Middle town 
township, aged eighty-two years. His 
marriage to Margaret, a daughter of 
Thomas Cook, resulted in the birth of 
eight children : John, George, Nancy, 
William, Maria, Thomas, Caroline and 
Rue. 

William Campbell, son of William and 
father of Peter B., was born at Freehold, 
Monmouth county. New Jersey, and died 
Feb , 1869, at Freehold, in his seventy- 
second year. He woi'ked at a compensa- 
tion of eight dollars a month at the time 
of his marriage, but by frugality and 
thrift he was possessed of several farms 
before he died and successfully reared 
and educated a family of nine children. 
He was not a member of any church, 
but was one of the supporters of the 
Presbyterian church at Freehold which 
he and his family regularly attended. 
He was frequently called in to arbitrate 
differences between his neighbors. For 
this reason he received the good-natured- 
ly bestowed cognomen of ■' Boss Camp- 
bell." In disposition he was generous 
and liberal and cheerfully gave of his 
substance to aid the indigent. Like Lo- 
gan the Indian warrior, he was never ap- 
pealed to in vain for food or shelter. In 
political matters he took but little inter- 
est although he voted the whig ticket so 
long as there was one in the field, and 

20 



afterwards the republican. He was mar- 
ried to Hannah Bowne, who survived 
his death about thirteen years. The 
children of this marriage were named as 
follows : Margaret A., married Edward 
Conover of Freehold township ; Jane 
T., married William T. Denise, of Free- 
hold; Henry, a successful agriculturist 
and fruit grower near Freehold ; Peter 
B., the subject ; Amelia, who married 
Jacob W. Buck, of Ocean Beach ; John 
T., of Marlboro, a farmer ; William, pro- 
prietor of a hotel at Paterson, New Jer- 
sey ; Maria, wife of John Buck, a farmer 
at Freehold; and Caroline, married to 
James Buck, residing in Jersey City. 

Mr. Campbell was educated in sub- 
scription schools at Freehold, and for 
some time subsequent to leaving school 
he was engaged in farming for his father. 
In Oct., 1857, he removed to Shrews- 
bury, where he has since resided. He is 
a great lover of horses, a ruling passion 
with him, and probably has no superior 
as a judge of their merits, fine points 
and breeding. He has owned and han- 
dled many hundreds of them in his time. 
His farm at Shrewsbury is a model one 
and has been made one of the most pro- 
ductive in that section. He is a demo- 
crat, and during his earlier life took an 
active interest in party affairs. 

Mr. Campbell was united in marriage 
June 15, 1852, to Mary Schureman, a 
daughter of James Schureman of Shrewsr 
bury, and to their union were born four 
children : James W. S., cashier of the 
First National Bank of Freehold; Han- 
nah M., who died at the age of five 
years ; William Denise, deceased in 1891, 
a rising young lawyer, a graduate of 
Columbia Law School, New York city, 
corporation counsel at Long Branch, 
where he practiced eight years, and a 



384 



Biographical Sketches. 



member of the New Jersey legislature at 
the time of his death. His other surviv- 
ing son. Harry, is a resident of Eaton- 
town, and is teller of the First National 
Bank of Red Bank. 

Mrs. Campbell is a grand-daughter of 
Hon. James Schureman, long since de- 
ceased, one of the first members of the 
American congress and a senator of the 
United States, representing New Jersey, 
and residing at New Brunswick. He it 
was who l)uilt the first steamboat run- 
ning out of that town. James Schure- 
man, a deceased frother of Mrs. Camp- 
bell, was graduated from the West Point 
military academy, served in the Mexican 
war under General Taylor, and died in 
1850 at San Francisco, Cal. Their 
mother was a sister of Hon. Garrett D. 
Wall, United States senator from New 
Jersey, and who enjoyed the exceedingly 
rare distinction of declining to serve 
after being elected governor of New 
Jersey. 



"pvR. S. V. D. CLARK, ex-city physician 
-*-^ of New Brunswick, and a widely- 
known practitioner of that city, is a son 
of Ira C. and Joanna Van Deursen 
Clark, and was born in New Brunswick. 
He was educated in the public schools of 
New Brunswick, and at the Peekskill 
Military Academy, Peekskill, N. Y., 
where lie graduated with honors in 1865. 
Subsequently he took a course at Strat- 
ton's lousiness College in New York city. 
In 1807 he took up the study of medi- 
cine with Dr. Henry B. Baldwin, of New 
Brunswick, but subsequently entered the 
College of Physicians and Surgeons in 
New York city, where he obtained his 
degree of M. D. in 1870. He immedi- 
ately began the practice of his profession 
at Perth Amboy, where he remained 



until 1875, when he removed to New 
Brunswick. In 1878, he was elected 
city plij'sician of New Brunswick, in 
which position he served seven years 
continuously. At the present time he 
is attending physician at the Wells 
Memorial Hospital, New Brunswick, hav- 
ing served in that cajiacity most credi- 
tably since the organization of the insti- 
tution. 

Dr. Clark is a staunch republican, and 
was a member of the board of free- 
holders for several years. On June 14, 
1870, he was married to Miss Anna 
Morgan Tanner, daughter of Frederick 
C. and Almira Tanner, of South River, 
New Jersey, hy whom he has two sons : 
Arthur Morgan, born Nov. 11, 1873, and 
William Parker, born Oct. 24, 1876. Dr. 
Clark enjoys a large and lucrative prac- 
tice, and is both pojjular and respected. 
He is thoroughly read in every branch of 
his profession, keeps fully abreast with 
the times, and is always ready to adopt 
new and progressive ideas. 

George Clark (paternal grandfather) 
was a successful iron merchant of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, and a well- 
known citizen of that place. He was 
the father of six children : George, John, 
David, Ira C, James and Staats. Ira C. 
Clark (father) was born Nov. 17, 1797, 
at New Brunswick, where he was edu- 
cated and resided up to his death. He 
was a lumber dealer all his life, and a 
prominent republican in politics. He 
was married to Miss Joanna Van Deur- 
sen, daughter of Staats Van Deursen, of 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, and they 
had three children : Ellen S., wife of 
James H. Van Cleef, of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey ; S. V. D., who is the sub- 
ject of this sketch; and Ira C, Jr., de- 
ceased. 



Biographical Sketches. 



385 



TAMES E. BERRY, a prominent manu- 
^ facturer of Woodbridge, New Jersey, 
was born in that town Sept. 4, 1845, and 
is a son of William Henry and Margaret 
(Coddington) Berry. He comes from a 
distinguished ancestry, his great-grand- 
father having been Captain Nathaniel 
Berry, who served with distinction in 
the Revolutionary war, as a member of 
General Washington's famous life guard, 
and was with him during the terrible 
winter at Valley Forge. He was born 
Dec. 22, 1755, at Bath, Me., and died 
Aug. 20, 1850. John Berry, his grand- 
father, was born at Gardiner, Me., Feb. 
17, 1783, and was a farmer; he married 
Elizabeth Robinson, who was born Oct. 
26, 1784. They had seven children : 
William Henry, born Sept. 18, 1805, be- 
ing the oldest. William Henry Berry 
(father) was born in Litchfield, Me., and 
obtained his education at the public 
schools of Gardiner, in the same state. 
At the age of nineteen he shipped as a 
sailor, and followed the sea for six years, 
eventually becoming first officer of the 
vessel. In 1830 he settled in Jersey City, 
and became a dealer in hay, removing 
two years later to Woodbridge and con- 
tinuing in the same business. In 1845 
he began the manufacture of fire-brick in 
that town in partnership with Park H. 
Lane, of New York. Mr. W. H. Berry 
was connected for more than forty- five 
years with the business he established, 
and was associated with Messrs. Brown 
and Valentine for thirty-eight years, and 
with Mr. Jacques Viend for forty years. 
At the time of his death, March 5, 1891, 
he was without doubt the oldest fire- 
brick manufacturer in this county, as 
well as the senior clay miner, having 
been directly interested in the latter 
industry since 1845. He was an ener- 



getic and public-spirited citizen. Origin- 
ally a democrat in politics he eventually 
joined the Republican party, and held 
several important local offices. For many 
years he was a leading member and trus- 
tee of the Methodist EpiscojDal church. 
He was married to Margaret Coddington, 
April 28, 1835, and to their marriage 
were born eleven children; those who 
lived beyond childhood being : William 
C, James E., Albion R., and Elizabeth, 
married to Lewis F. Browning, of Wood- 
bridge, and Arthur E. The oldest son. 
Lieutenant William C, was killed at the 
battle of Williamsburg, Va., in 1862, and 
the G. A. R. Post at Woodbridge has 
been named after him. Margaret Cod- 
dington, wife of Wm. H. Berry, and 
mother of James E. Berry, was born in 
Woodbridge, New Jersey, and died Jan. 
5, 1893. She was a member of £he 
Methodist church, a devout christian 
and a true woman in all the relations of 
life. Her father, Wm. Inslie Codding- 
ton, married Christiana Crowell, a de- 
scendant of Edward Crowell, who came 
to this country on the ship " Caledonia." 
Wm. I. Coddington was a farmer and 
a mariner. He carried supplies to the 
American troops at Sandy Hook during 
the war of 1812. Robert Coddington, 
the grandfather of Mrs. Wm. H. Berry, 
was in the Revolutionary army with 
Washington for seven years. He was 
wounded twice, and was a cripple for 
the remainder of his life. He was con- 
nected with many important events of 
the Revolutionary war. In 1777, then 
being sixteen years old, he acted as 
guide for the American troops at the 
battle of Ash Swamp, then within the 
limits of Woodbridge township. 

The name of Coddington appears in 
the records of Woodbridge in the year 



386 



Biographical Sketches. 



1687, but there is no question that it 
antedates that period. Robert Codding- 
ton married Mary In^ilie (formerlj^ Ilslaj). 
The first mentioned of tlie Inslie family 
in local records is 1G69. There is a tra- 
dition that the family came from Scotr 
land on the ship " Caledonia." The 
descendants of Edward Crowell and the 
Inslie famil}- took an active part in the 
war of 1776, on the patriots' side. Capt. 
Randolph Coddington, a brother of Mrs. 
W. H. Berry, is now living ; being in his 
eighty-six year, and is in good health. 
He was a memljer of the Ijoard of free- 
holders of Middlesex for several years. 

James E. Berry attended the public 
school and also Elm Tree Institute at 
Woodbridge, and afterwards attended 
the Fort Edward Collegiate Institute at 
Fort Edward, N. Y. He then returned 
to Woodbridge, and for a time assisted 
his father on a farm owned by him. He 
then became a journalist, and for two 
years conducted the Woodbridge Gazette. 
In 1870 he joined his father in his manu- 
facturing business, and was closely identi- 
fied with that interest until the death of 
the latter. Since then, as senior partner, 
he has conducted the business of W. H. 
Berry & Co. They manufacture fire- 
brick only, and their plant covers about 
two acres of ground. Mr. Berry is a 
member of the Republican party, and 
takes special interest in local politics. 
He held the office of township collector 
and treasurer from 1872 to 1876; was a 
school trustee from 1889 to 1894, and 
president of the board for two terms, as 
well as its clerk. He was married Feb. 
13, 1868, to Virginia Hancock, and four 
children have been born to their union : 
Jennie ; Mabel, deceased ; William, and 
George II. Mr. Berr\- was also one of 
the commissioners appointed by Chief 



Justice Beasley to appraise lands for the 
right of way of the Port Reading railroad. 
Ex-Governor (now justice of the supreme 
court) George C. Ludlow was president 
of the commission. 



"piCHARD SERVISS, the present pop- 
-*-*' ular and efficient sherift' of Mid- 
dlesex county. New Jersey, and a promi- 
nent citizen of South River, New Jersey, 
is a son of Richard and Ann (Norman) 
Serviss, and was born Oct. 22, 1825, near 
that place. His grandfather, John Ser- 
viss, was a farmer during his life, an old- 
line whig, an attendant of the Baptist 
church, and resided near South River all 
his life. To his marriage were born five 
children : David, Ann, married to Cap- 
tain Norton ; Mary, married to John 
Throckmorton ; Jane, married to John 
Rider; and Margaret. Richard Serviss 
(father) received a common-school educa- 
tion, and, like his fiither, followed the 
occupation of a farmer all his life, at 
South River, New Jersey. He possessed 
exceptionally good land, and made a 
practical and substantial success as a 
farmer. Politically he was an old-line 
whig. He died in 1 852. His offspring 
were : Benjamin, deceased ; John, de- 
ceased ; James, who died in infancy ; 
William, David, deceased ; Mary, mar- 
ried to William Roller, and since de- 
ceased ; Hannah, deceased ; Susan, de- 
ceased ; Julia, deceased ; Richard, James, 
and Henry. 

Richard Serviss remained at the public 
school until the age of thirteen years, 
when he found employment on a farm 
and also speculated in wood. He is an 
active politician of the Democratic party, 
very popular with his political friends, 
and has held a number of political offices. 




lKxxJA^i..-iJi7l 




Biographical Sketches. 



387 



He was assessor of East Brunswick town- 
ship for a number of years, and also tax 
collector for some time. In 1883 he 
was elected county collector of Middle- 
sex county, and served until 1893. For 
eighteen j^ears he was overseer of the 
poor, and in 1893 was elected sheriff of 
Middlesex county for three years. For 
a number of years he was also a school 
trustee of Dunham's Corner school dis- 
trict. He married Esther Messier, 
daughter of Abraham Messier, March 1, 
1849, and to their union have been born : 
David, Martha, married to George B. 
Henderson ; Albert, James E., Eliza, 
Abraham, and Jennie,' deceased. 

Sheriff Serviss, as the chief executive 
of Middlesex county, is uncompromising 
in the execution of the demands of the 
office, and steadfast at all times to a 
faithful and impartial prosecution of the 
same. Personally he is affable and con- 
genial, though dignified, and is highly 
esteeriied by the community in which he 
resides, as well as by his many political 
friends in both parties. 



TAMES D. CARTON, a rising young 
^ legal practitioner at Asbury Park, 
Monmouth county, Ncav Jersey, is a son 
of John and Mary Carton, and was born 
May 12, 1870, at Red Bank, in the above- 
named county. He is of Irish extraction. 
John Carton was born in June, 1838, 
at Wexford county, Ireland, came to this 
country when an infant, and after re- 
ceiving a common school education turned 
his attention to agricultural pursuits, 
which he is yet successfully following in 
Holmdel township. New Jersey. He is 
a man of domestic habits ; takes no 
public interest in politics, and is com- 
pletely absorbed in his business as pro- 
ducer and shipper. He was married in 



1862 to Mary Carton, and became the 
father of six children : Andrew B.,Kate, 
deceased; James D., the subject; John 
F., deceased ; Lawrence A. and Joseph P. 
James D. Carton acquired his earlier 
education in the district schools of Holm- 
del township, and in 1888 was placed 
under the private tutorship of Professor 
Longsdorf, at Asbury Park. In 1890 
Mr. Carton entered the law office of 
Messrs. Hawkins and Durand, with whom 
he remained two years in active prep- 
aration for the bar. In 1892 he was 
admitted to the law department of Union 
University, in Albany, N. Y., and was 
graduated in the class of 1894 with 
the degree of LL.B. He thereupon re- 
sumed his studies with attorneys Haw- 
kins and Durand, and in June, 1895, 
was admitted to practice, after passing an 
extremely creditable examination before 
the supreme court. Mr. Carton is now 
engaged in general practice of the law at 
Asbury Park, and has met with moi-e 
than the usual success accorded to young 
practitioners. He is well read in his 
profession, and is a ready, eloquent and 
forceful speaker. These qualifications 
have already Avon for Mr. Carton high 
standing at the bar, and greater promi- 
nence is but a matter of time. Mr. 
Carton in jaolitics is a republican of liberal 
views. He is a member and ex-secretary 
of the A. R. Cook Hose Co. and a private 
of Company A, Third regiment. New Jer- 
sey National Guard, both of which compa- 
nies were organized at Asbury Park. He 
is also a member of the Asbury Park 
Wheelmen. 



TTINCENT T. MILLER, a prominent 

^ grocer and enterprising citizen of 

Manasquan, is the youngest son of David 

P. and Mary M. Miller, and was born 



388 



Biographical Sketches. 



September 24, 1846, near Cranbury, Mid- 
dlesex county. New Jersey. The name 
is of Scotch origin. His father was a 
well-known farmer near Colt's Neck, in 
Freehold township, and an attendant of 
the Presbyterian church at that place. 
His children were : John H., a farmer, 
between Colt's Neck and Freehold ; Wil- 
liam A., retired ; D. Perrine, a farmer, 
near Freehold ; Louisa, wife of L. P. 
Dey, residing near Cranbury; Mary E., 
deceased ; and James E., deceased. Vin- 
cent T. Miller was educated in the dis- 
trict schools at Old Tennent church, and 
worked on his father's farm until twenty- 
five years of age. In 1870 he became 
manager for his father-in-law, Charles 
Henry, a merchant at Henrysville, Pa., 
and after two years entered into partner- 
ship with his father-in-law, in the store 
at Henrysville, now Parkside, Pa. In 
1882 he removed to Manasquan, and es- 
tablished his present business in copart- 
nership with his brother Perrine, who, 
however, withdrew after two years. In 
1889 he purchased ground on Broad 
street, and ei'ected the handsome three- 
story brick building which he now oc- 
cupies. He has a very extensive grocery 
trade, both retail and wholesale, his par 
tronage being largely drawn from the 
coast resorts. Mr. Miller is also inter- 
ested in the firm of Miller & Tunis, retail 
boot and shoe dealers, occupying a build- 
ing adjoining the grocery. 

In politics Mr. Miller is a republican, 
but is not a seeker for office, although he 
carries a great deal of influence in local 
affairs. He is a member of the First 
Presbyterian church of Manasquan, a 
member of the board of trustees and its 
treasurer. He has always been foremost 
in promoting the welfare of the town, and 
was one of the organizers of the board of 



trade. He was president of the Mana- 
squan hook and ladder company from 
1888 to 1895, and is at present president 
of the Firemen's Relief Association, and 
a life-member of the New Jerse}^ State 
Firemen's Association. He was inter- 
ested in organizing the Manasquan shirt 
factory and the Manasquan canning fac- 
tory companies. On Nov. 24, 1870, he 
was married to Miss Susan Ann Henry ,- 
daughter of Charles Henry, of Strouds- 
burg, Monroe county, Pa., and they have 
one daughter, Mar}^ France^. 

Mr. Miller is public-spirited and pro- 
gressive, and has worked energetically 
and tirelessly for the advancement of 
Manasquan. 

ROBERT D. CUDDY was born of 
sturdy Irish stock, his parents hav- 
ing been Robert and Elizabeth (Haggerty) 
Cuddy. His father came to this country 
at an early age from Ireland with his 
father, and made New York his home for 
a time, but removed to New Brunswick, 
New Jersej^, in 1847. He learned the 
wall-paper printing trade, which he fol- 
lowed all his life. Robert D. Cudd}- was 
the seventh in a family of eleven children, 
and after leaving the public school en- 
tered the pharmacy of E. D. Palmer, at 
New Brunswick. So thoroughly did he 
learn 'the business that on February 25, 
1892, he purchased the entire business 
from his employer, and formed the firm 
of R. D. Cuddy & Co. He has been suc- 
cessful in business, and in addition to the 
ownership of his original place of business 
he is the proprietor of College Pharmacy, 
on Somerset street, opposite Rutgers Col- 
lege. Notwithstanding the exigencies of 
his business, Mr. Cuddy finds time to de- 
vote himself actively to the interests of 
the Democratic party, but has never 



Biographical Sketches. 



389 



sought or held office. A valued member 
of the Roman Catholic church, in which 
he is interested in all that partakes of 
progress and philanthropy; as also a mem- 
ber of the Catholic Benevolent Legion, 
and the Catholic Club, a literary and 
social organization. 

Mr. Cuddy is rightfully esteemed as 
one of the most successful and progres- 
sive young men of New Brunswick. 



A A. PATTERSON, one of the leading 
-^--*-* store-keepers of Red Bank, Mon- 
mouth county, and a well-known citizen 
of that town, is a son of Stillwell and 
Janetta Louisa Patterson, and was born 
July 4, 1846, at New York city. The 
name is of Scotch origin on the father's 
side, and Dutch on the mother's side. 

Stillwell Patterson (father) was born 
at Middletown, and was a carpenter all 
his life ; part of the time in New York 
city, and after 1840 at Middletown and 
Shrewsbury. He was a republican in 
politics, and a devout member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church at Red Bank. 
He died in 1893, his wife having deceased 
in 1891. Their children were : Amelia, 
widow of B. W. Spinning, of Red Bank; 
Charles, George S., who was killed dur- 
ing the war in the Ninety-ninth New 
York regiment; A. A., William J., 
Frank W., Harris B., Clarence, deceased, 
and Mary Etta, deceased. 

A. A. Patterson was educated in the 
public schools of Red Bank. When 
fourteen years of age he became a clerk 
in John B. Hammond's grocery store, 
Red Bank, where he remained for four 
years. He was then successively clerk 
for Charles G. Allen, Jr., lumber dealer. 
Red Bank, J. T. & G. K. Allen, dry- 
goods merchants of Red Bank, and A. 



Reckless & Co., publishers of the New 
Jersey Standard, of Red Bank, New Jer- 
sey, and Morford & Spinning, general 
store-keepers at Red Bank. After being 
in the employ of the latter firm for three 
years, he bought out Mr. Morford's interest 
in 1872, and the firm became Spinning & 
Patterson. In 1896, Mr. Spinning, who 
was brother-in-law of Mr. Patterson, died, 
and his widow, who is Mr. Patterson's 
sister, holds his interest, though the firm 
name has been changed to Patterson & 
Spinning. The store is one of the largest 
and best known in Red Bank, the stock 
comprising dry goods, groceries and no- 
tions, and the trade is an extensive one. 
Mr. Patterson is a republican in politics, 
and is actively interested in public affairs. 
He is an influential member of the First 
Methodist Episcopal church of Red Bank, 
and is j)resident of the board of trustees. 
He is a member of Red Bank Council, 
No. 984, Royal Arcanum, of Loyal Addi- 
tion, No. 27, and of Shrewsbury Lodge, 
No. 40, A. 0. U. W. 



TOSEPH H. MARCH, a veteran of the 
^ late civil war, and a survivor of 
thirty battles, is a son of Joseph C. and 
Maria Mudford March, and was born in 
Philadelphia, Dec. 25, 1844 Joseph C. 
March (grandfather), of English birth and 
parentage, was born 1774, and died 1840. 
His grandmother emigrated to the United 
States in 1841, and embarked in manu- 
facturing at Philadelphia. She was born 
in 1779, and died in 1872 at the remark- 
able age of ninety-three years. They were 
the parents of two children : Joseph C. 
and Elizabeth. Joseph C. March (father) 
was also a native of England, born in 
1810, and came to this country in 1841. 
He adopted manufacturing, and continued 



390 



Biographical Sketches. 



that all his life, djang in 1875 at the age 
of sixty-five years. Mr. March was laid 
to rest in the old church-yard at New 
Britain, and all that was mortal of him 
now mingles in quiet repose with the 
dust near the scone of his earthly labors. 
His marriage in 1829 with Mai'ia Mud- 
ford, who was born in 1812 and who 
passed away in 1887, at the advanced 
age of seventy-five years, resulted in an 
issue of three children : Alfred, Isabella, 
and Joseph H. 

Joseph H. March obtained an elemen- 
tary education in the public schools of 
New Britain, Conn., and afterwards en- 
tered the Center Academy, at Manchester, 
Conn. Here, however, he remained until 
the breaking out of the civil war. Al- 
though but sixteen years of age, he had 
early developed patriotic sentiments, 
which now impelled him to bare his 
breast in support of those sentiments; 
and accordingly gave up the tender em- 
ploj'ments of the school-room for the 
graver and terrible occupation of the sol- 
dier. He enlisted April 23, 1861, in Com- 
pany G., First Connecticut volunteers, 
for a period of three months. At the ex- 
piration of this time he re-enlisted, Sept. 
4, 1861, in Company G, Sixth Connec- 
ticut volunteers, and was transferred to 
light battery B, First U. S. Artillery, 
Nov. 14, 1862, and received a commission 
as lieutenant of Battery E, C. N. G., 
August 31, 1865. He was a brave and 
valiant soldier, participated in thirtj' 
regular engagements, joined General 
Grant at Cold Harbor, and was after- 
wards taken prisoner at Reams station, 
Virginia, June 29, 1864, on Wilson's raid. 
Immediately after his capture he was i 
taken to Andersonville prison, Avhere he ' 
was detained for six months, and suffered 
the untold miseries of a prisoner. He j 



was honorably discharged from the ser- 
vice Jan. 27, 1865, at Washington, D. C, 
and soon afterwards entered Bryant and 
Stratton's Business College, Hartfoi'd, 
Conn. Leaving there, he engaged in 
manufiicturing for one year, and then 
engaged in contracting for the New 
Brunswick Hosiery Co. He remained 
with them until 1893, when he embarked 
in the retail boot and shoe business in 
New Brunswick, where he has continued 
ever since. His store is located on 
Church street, and is a model of neai> 
ness ; filled with a well-selected stock of 
first-class goods. Politically he is a re- 
publican, and was a member of the board 
of education four years. Religiously he 
subscribes to the dogmas of the Presby- 
terian church. He is prominently iden- 
tified with many secret and fraternal 
organizations, among which are Palestine 
Lodge, No. Ill, F. and A. M., of which 
he is a past master ; Scott Chapter, No. 
4, R. A. M ; Temple Commandery, No. 
18, Knights Templar; Owaga Tribe, No. 
88, I. 0. R. M. ; Raritan Lodge, No. 6, 
A. 0. U. W.; Relief Council, No. 40, Sr. 
0. U. A. M., and Kearney Post, No. 15, 
G. A. R., of which he is a past com- 
mander. He is also president of the 
Masonic Mutual Benefit Association, and 
past patron of Ruth Chapter, No. 12, 
Eastern Star. 

In 1866 Lieutenant March and Jose- 
phine Stanley were united in marriage, 
and to them have been l^orn six children : 
Harry J., of Buffalo, N. Y., Grace E., 
Nettie B., Alfred S., and Frederick and 
Josephine, who are deceased. The former 
died in 1870, the latter in 1883. 



r^ EORGE B. RULE, a leading contrac- 
^-^ tor and builder of New Brunswick, 
was born in that city March 26, 1861, 



Biographical Sketches. 



393 



and is a son of George and Rachael A. 
(Smith) Rule. His father was a native 
of Kingston, New Jersey, and while still 
a boy removed from that city to New 
York, where he remained but a short 
time; removing from there to Monmouth 
Junction, New Jersey. Here he entered 
the employ of John Stout, with whom he 
continued until eighteen years of age. 
Upon the termination of his connection 
with Mr. Stout he accepted employment 
with Jacob Steadman, of Princeton, 
under whom he learned the carpenter 
trade. From thence he removed to New 
Brunswick, and accepted employment 
with his brother, Jeremiah. He subse- 
quently formed a partnership with his 
cousin, John Rule, and they purchased 
the business from his brother and re- 
moved it to its present location on South 
street, where he carried on the business 
of a contractor and builder up to the time 
of his death, which occurred in October, 
1892. 

Mr. Rule was an energetic business 
man. As monuments to his trade and 
skill are notably the Masonic Hall, the 
buildings of John N. Carpenter, Janeway 
& Co., Janeway & Carpenter, and the 
Consolidated Fruit Jar Company. As a 
matter of fact all of the large factory 
buildings in the city and many of the 
private residences of the best class were 
erected by him. 

Mr. Rule was a republican in politics, 
a member of the masonic order and of the 
Pitman Methodist Episcopal church. At 
the time of his death the following chil- 
dren survived him : George B., Howard 
C, now assistant secretary of the New 
Brunswick Savings Institution, and Sarah 
Jeannette. 

George B. Rule received his education 
in the public schools of New Brunswick, 



and after leaving the high school he 
served an apprenticeship at the carpenter 
trade. After his apprenticeship expired 
he remained in the employ of his father, 
and so continued until the death of the 
latter, when he became his business suc- 
cessor. His career since then has been 
a successful one, and the best evidence of 
his capacity to administer the affairs of 
the extensive business to which he suc- 
ceeded lies in the fact that since he has 
been its proprietor nearly all the con- 
tracts for building the new edifices now 
being erected in the city of New Bruns- 
wick have been secured by him. Al- 
though not a politician Mr. Rule takes a 
deep interest in the success of the Re- 
publican party. He is a member of the 
Good Will Council, No. 32, Jr. 0. U. A. 
M., and a director of the Homestead 
Building and Loan Association. 



TpEANK W. SOMERS, county clerk of 
-*- Somerset county, ex-member of the 
New Jersey assembly, and manager of 
the hardware store of C. E. Dunham, at 
Bound Brook, is a son of Daniel J. and 
Ann R. (Creed) Somers, and was born 
Jan. 22, 1863, at Bound Brook. The 
family is an old and well-known one in 
this part of the state. James Somers 
(grandfather) was a shij)-builder of wide 
reputation, with yards at Long Island. 
His children were : Matthew, James, 
Daniel, John, Eliza, and Mary. 

Daniel J. Somers (father), was for 
many years a carpenter and builder at 
Bound Brook, where he also conducted a 
successful lumber business for ten years, 
and was proprietor of a thriving general 
store. He was active in politics on the 
democratic side, and was a justice of the 
peace at Bound Brook for ten years. He 



394 



Biographical Sketches. 



was one of the charter members of East- 
ern Star Lodge, No. 105, F. and A. M., 
at Bound Brook. He died Dec. 5, 1887, 
having been the father of six children : 
John E., Frank T., deceased ; Frank W., 
George C, Sarah C, wife of T. H. Apgar 
of Bound Brook ; and Charles L. 

Frank W. Somers acquired his early 
education in the common schools of 
Bound Brook. He early became a news- 
boy on trains, after which he was suc- 
cessively clerk in a bakery and a grocery 
store at Bound Brook for a short while. 
In 1888 he entered the hardware store of 
C. E. Dunham, and has remained with 
that house up to the time he assumed his 
present official duties, rising through vari- 
ous degrees of service until he had at- 
tained the position of head clerk and 
manager. Mr. Somers has always been 
active and prominent iu local republican 
politics, and he has never been defeated 
upon any occasion when he ran for office. 
In 1894 he was elected a member of the 
general assembly from Somerset county, 
and served two years. In Nov., 1895, 
be was elected county clerk of Somerset 
county, which position he now holds. 
He is a member of Eastern Star Lodge, 
No. 105, F. and A. M.; Lodge No. 1305, 
Roj^al Arcanum, and Lodge No. 58, Jr. 
0. U. A. M. He is a devout supporter 
of the Bound Brook Reformed church, 
where he has been leader of the choir for 
a number of years. On March 5, 1894, 
he was married to Mrs. Ella R. Cawley, 
widow of James S. Cawley, of Bound 
Brook, and daughter of Mrs. Rachel A. 
Anderson, of Pennsjlvania. Mr. Somers 
is a popular and progressive citizen, un- 
tiring in both his business and political 
work, and enjoys a wide oircle of friends. 



/CHARLES L. VOORHEES is the enter- 
^^ prising proprietor of a thriving 
bottling establishment in Somerville, New 
Jersey. He is a son of Andrew J. and 
Esther Eliza Voorhees, and was born at 
Lamington, Somerset county, New Jer- 
sey, Nov. 9, 1852. Mr. Voorhees comes 
of the substantial Holland-Dutch stock. 

Jeremiah Voorhees (grandfather) fol- 
lowed farming as an occupation all his 
life, and was a sturdy and solid democrat 
in politics. His family consisted of one 
son, Andrew J., and a daughter, Ruth, 
who married Peter Apgar. 

Andrew J. Voorhees (father) was edu- 
cated in the public schools of his native 
place, and for some years followed agri- 
cultural pursuits, and bought and sold 
horses. Some years later he discon- 
tinued both of the above occupations, and 
removed to North Branch, New Jersey, 
where he took the management of a 
hotel. Mr. Voorhees was a firm believer 
in the doctrines of the Democratic party, 
and worked earnestly for the success of 
the same. Three children — Andrew E., 
Charles L., and Maggie, deceased 186.3 — 
were born to Mr. Voorhees and his de- 
voted wife. 

If the assertion that " circumstances 
make the man," is true, surely has it 
been verified iu the case of Mr. Voor- 
hees, who, after receiving but a common- 
school education, and but two years' 
business training in a general stoi'e, at 
the age of nineteen j'ears, assumed the 
responsibility of managing his father's 
business, after the latter's decease, and 
continued satisfactorily in the same capa- 
city for ten years. After the experience 
of a decade in managing for his mother 
at North Branch, Mr. Voorhees assumed 
charge of the Ten Eyck House, a famous 
hostelry of Somerville, New Jersey. 



Biographical Sketches. 



395 



Here he remained for nine years, after 
which he went to Bound Brook to be- 
come "mine host" of the Berkley House 
for a period of eight months. Desiring 
to engage in purely mercantile business, 
Mr. Voorhees returned to Somerville in 
1893, and purchased the bottling estab- 
lishment of William Cawley. Under 
the present ownership and management 
this plant is doing a very large business. 
Beside this extensive concern, Mr. Voor- 
hees is also a partner in the Dover bottling 
works, doing business under the caption 
of W. H. Cawley & Co. Besides these 
interests, Mr. Voorhees owns a snug 
block of bank stock in one of the leading 
banks of his community, and is a stock- 
holder of the Citizens' and People's Build- 
ing and Loan Associations of Somerville. 
He is also actively engaged in the affairs 
of the People's County Pair, of Somerset 
county, of which association he is at the 
present time treasurer. A democrat in 
politics, Mr. Voorhees is «ne of the hard 
workers of his party in his town, and, as 
part recognition for his services, he has 
been elected to the office of assessor and 
overseer of the poor. Mr. Voorhees' fra- 
ternal and social relations are numerous. 
He is a member of the order of the K. 
of P., No. 82, of Somerville ; Royal Ar- 
canum, No. 1375, Bridgewater Council ; 
Somerville Engine Co., No. 1 ; honorary 
member of the N. G., N. J. ; member of 
the Union Social Club; the Germania 
Club, and the Berkley Club, of Bound 
Brook, New Jersey. 

Charles L. Voorhees married Anna M., 
daughter of John C. and Kate Post, June 
16, 1876. Mr. Voorhees, as a host, was 
always affable and congenial, and made 
it a point to have his guests feel at home. 
The same rare tact and courtesy has en- 
abled him to enlarge the growing trade 



of his present business ; and being thor- 
oughly alive to the interests of his bor- 
ough, he is always found in the front 
rank in support of enterprise ajid progress. 



TOHN W. KEOUGH, a substantial gro- 
^ cer of Keyport, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, and president of the Key- 
port Banking Co., is a son of Christopher 
and Leah (Pulleli) Keough, and was born 
May 15, 1851, at Hightstown, New Jer- 
sey. His paternal ancestors, extending 
to a remote period, have been natives of 
County Kildare, Ireland. His maternal 
ancestors were natives of historic New 
Jersey. 

His father was born in County Kil- 
dare, Ireland, in the year 1819. He 
never attended school, and his educa- 
tional attainments consisted solely in 
learning to read and write. His avoca- 
tion in Ireland was that of a farmer, 
which he continued successfully up to 
the year of his emigration to this coun- 
trj^ He settled at Hightstown about 
1846, where he resumed farming. He 
was the owner of good farms in Middle- 
sex county. New Jersey, when he re- 
tired from business in 1890. He is a 
democrat in politics, but he has never 
been at all active in the work or in the 
councils of his party. He and his wife 
are now living in Keyport. They are 
the parents of five children : John W., 
the subject; Maggie, married to Frank 
Perrine, of Jamesburg; Mary James, 
wife of William H. Martin, of James- 
burg ; Emerson, deceased ; and William 
Moore Smith. 

John W. Keough received a contraon 
education in the district schools and 
Brainard Institute of Middlesex county. 
These he attended during the winter, 



396 



Biographical Sketches. 



and in the summer months helped his 
father on the form. At tlie age of seven- 
teen he went to New Brunswick, where 
he hecame a clerk in a store owned by 
J. B. Buckalew. He remained seven | 
years with that gentleman. In 1875 he ' 
came to Ke3'port and established himself 
in the grocery business. Under his care- 
ful management the business steadily 
grew and prospered, until now he is re- 
garded as one of Kej-port's best and most 
substantial business men. Mr. Keough 
is a democrat in politics, but does not 
favor the free-silver plank in the plat- 
form adopted hy his party, assembled at 
Chicago in July, 1896. He served seven 
years on the township committee of Key- 
port, and has been township collector in 
Raritan, and chairman of the board of 
commissioners. Mr. Keough occupies a 
prominent position in financial circles. 
He is president of the KeyjDort Banking 
Co., first elected in 1893 ; and a director 
in the Kej'port Building and Loan Asso- 
ciation. In secret societies he is a mem- 
ber of Bayside Lodge, No. 193, I. 0. 0. 
F. ; Cfesarea Lodge, No. 64, F. and A. 
M.; Delta Chapter, No. 14, R. A. M. ; 
all of Keyport ; and of St. John's Com- 
mandery, No. 9, Knights Templar, of 
Elizabeth, New Jersey. He is treasurer 
of the masonic societies in Keyport. 

Mr. Keough was married, Nov. 25, 
1875, to Eliza Barr, a daughter of James 
and Jane Barr, of New Brunswick, New 
Jersey. They have three children; 
Maggie M., Bessie H., and John C. For- 
tune holds man}^ gifts in her hand for 
those who know how to coax them from 
her. Mr. Keough, though not yet fifty 
years of age, has secured several of those 
gifts : a paying business, a competency '' 
of means, a place in finance, and the es 
teem of his fellow-townsmen. 



TpRANK P. PHILBRICK, Ph. G., a 
-'- prominent retired druggist, of Bel- 
mar, New Jersey, is a son of Horace R. 
and Rebecca Hogg Philbrick, and was 
born at Manchester, N. H., Nov. 8, 1852. 
His mother was a daughter of Abner 
Hogg, of New Boston, N. H. Mr. Phil- 
brick's ancestry is English, his first 
American progenitor having been Thomas 
Philbrick, or Philbrook, as the name was 
then .spelled, a sea captain by profession, 
who came from Linwhisshire, in Eng- 
land, in 1630, and settled in Watertown, 
Mass. A near relative of Mr. Philbrick 
was the late Hon. John D. Philbrick, the 
well-known newspaper editor and lec- 
turer, at one time the superintendent of 
schools for the state of Massachusetts and 
commissioner from that state to the 
Vienna Exposition. 

Horace Philbrick (father), was born 
Aug. 31, 1810, at Derry, N. H., and was 
a vevy prominent surveyor and lumber 
dealer, as well as an owner and manager 
of lumber mills. He died in Sept., 1854. 
He was prominently identified with the 
Democratic party, was a member of the 
New Hampshire legislature, and filled 
various local offices from time to time. 
He took an especial interest in educa- 
tional matters, and in his early life was 
prominent as a teacher in the district 
school of his native town. 

Mr. Philbi'ick was educated at the pub- 
lic schools, and at the age of fourteen re- 
moved from Manchester, N. H., to Law- 
rence, Mass., and obtained employment 
in a pharmacy for four years. Having 
thoroughly qualified himself as a phar- 
macist he left this employ, and passed the 
next four years in the employ of different 
druggists in various cities. In the spring 
of 1876 he removed to Belmar, New Jer- 
sey, then called Ocean Beach, and be- 



Biographical Sketches. 



397 



came one of its pioneer settlers. He 
opened a small drug store on the corner 
of Eighth avenue and F street, which 
was destroyed with all its contents thirty 
days afterwards. He then established 
himself in a store on the corner of Tenth 
avenue and F street. In 1885 he erected 
the building on the corner of Ninth ave- 
nue and F street, now known as Jack- 
son's store, and which he sold to William 
S. Jackson in 1895. He now resides in 
the upper part of the building and has 
retired from active business. In politics 
Mr. Philbrick is a democrat, and takes an 
active interest in all matters which affect 
the town. Li 1885 he was elected bor- 
ough collector and retained that office 
until 1895. He was township commit- 
teeman of Wall township for three years^ 
and at present holds the office of coun- 
cilman. In educational matters he has 
always proved himself intelligent and 
progressive. He is a member of Asbury 
Park Masonic Lodge, of Goodwin Chap- 
ter, Corson Commandery, and Mecca 
Temple. 

Mr. Philbrick married Mary Mower, of 
Philadelphia, and their union has been 
blessed with two children; William F., 
and Sarah Rebecca. 



T3EV. WILLIAM I. GILL, a retired 
-•-*' minister of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church and an author of philosophi- 
cal and theological works residing at 
Asbury Park, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, is a son of John and Hannah 
Rhodes Gill, and was born March 10, 
1836, in Bradford, Yorkshire, England. 
He descends from a numerous family of 
that name whose members for many 
years have owned large landed estates in 
various parts of England. His earlier 



education was acquired in the common 
schools of Yorkshire which he quitted 
at the age of twelve years and emigrated 
with an elder brother to America, locat- 
ing at Sing Sing, Westchester county, 
New York, where he became apprenticed 
to learn the trade of file manufacturer. 
After a few years Mr. Gill had saved 
sufficient money wherewith to realize his 
cherished dreams of a collegiate educa- 
tion. He attended Madison University, 
state of New York, for two years, and 
in 1853 he entered the University of 
Rochester, N. Y.,fromwhichhe was gradu- 
ated in 1858. In the same year Mr. 
Gill was regularly ordained to the min- 
istry of the Baptist church, and was as- 
signed to a charge at Rhinebeck, on the 
Hudson, where he remained one year. 
He subsequently occupied other pastor- 
ates, namely : in St. Joseph, Mo., one 
year; in Morrisania, N. Y., two years; 
in Port Jervis, same state, three years ; 
and in Essex, Conn., three years. At 
the expiration of his term of service in 
Essex, Rev. Gill visited Eui'ope, his tour 
occupying four months ; and after his 
return he left the Baptist church and 
entered mto ministerial relations with the 
Methodist Episcopal church. After fill- 
ing various pulpits in New York city, 
Newark, Jersey City, Dover and Matti- 
son, iif New Jersey, as well as Lawrence, 
Mass., he started an independent church 
in the last-named city, whence he sub- 
sequently removed to Boston, preaching 
to an independent society in that city. 
In 1872 Mr. Gill purchased property at 
Asbury Park, where during sixteen years 
he spent his summers, engaged in literary 
work. In 1878 he made that town his 
permanent residence and organized and 
built a Methodist church in West Park, 
whose pulpit he occupied during a period 



398 



Biographical Sketches. 



of four years, at the end of wliich time 
he resigned his charge, retired from the 
ministry and ever since has been en- 
gaged in authorship. He has written 
and publislied, '''Analytical Processes," 
" Philosophical Realism," " Evolution and 
Progress," "Christian Pneumatopathy," 
and " Christian Conception and Experi- 
ence," besides having a number of other 
works in course of preparation. Mr. 
Gill is also a pleasing platform lecturer 
and political speaker, and is at pi-esent 
emjjloying his talent as a logical, forceful 
orator, in behalf of the candidacy of 
Bryan and Sewall for President and Vice- 
President of the United States, and of 
the free-silver platform on which they 
stand. Rev. Gill was united in marriage 
Sept. 22, 1858, to Catharine A. Banker, 
a daughter of Mr. John Banker of Sing 
Sing, N. Y. 

TOHN ELY HUNT, a wealthy retired 
^ farmer of Manalapan township, Mon- 
mouth county, ex-postmaster at English- 
town, and an active participant in county 
politics, is a son of George and Ann Ely 
Hunt, and was born Aug. 25, 1826, in 
Manalapan township. His paternal an- 
cestors came from Hopewell, Hunterdon 
county, where they were pioneer settlers. 
His father George Hunt, received his 
education at Hopewell and spent his 
early life on his father's farm near that 
place. He then removed to Manalapan 
township, Monmouth county, and oper- 
ated the Scudder form of six hundred 
acres for fifty years, during which time 
he became wealthy, and was known all 
over the county as a most prosperous 
farmer. He retired to Freehold, since 
which time the farm has been operated 
by his son-in-law, Lorenzo Du Bois. Mr. 
Hunt was an active old-line whig in pol- 



itics, and was for many years a school 
trustee in Manalapan township. He 
died at Freehold. His wife was Miss 
Ann Ely, daughter of ex-SherifF John J. 
El}^, of Freehold. By her he had seven 
children : Wilson, deceased ; John E., 
the subject; Elijah, deceased in infancy ; 
Mary T., wife of Lorenzo Du Bois ; Wil- 
liam E., deceased ; Ellen D., residing in 
New York city ; and Georgianna, wife 
of D. August Vanderveer, of Freehold. 

John Ely Hunt received a common- 
school education in Manalapan township, 
and at the age of seventeen went to New 
York city, where he was engaged in mer- 
cantile business, and subsequently in a 
clothing house for four years. In 1847 
he returned to his father's farm, but soon 
afterwards established a general store at 
Manalapan village, which he conducted 
successfully for six years. He then pur- 
chased a portion of his father's farm, and 
was a tiller of the soil until 1872, when 
he removed to Englishtown and estab- 
lished a coal and lime business, which he 
conducted for several years and up to 
1882, when he retired. He rapidlj- be- 
came one of the leading men in that 
town, and entered actively into local 
politics; his affiliations being with the 
republican party. In 1888 he was ap- 
pointed postmaster at Englishtown by 
President Harrison, and served in that 
capacity until 1892. He was a member 
of the board of freeholders from 1894 to 
1896. He was a member of the Repub- 
lican County Executive Committee for 
thirty-five years, but has now resigned; 
and has been a delegate to numerous 
state, county, and congressional conven- 
tions. He is a member and past-chancel- 
lor of Columbia Lodge, No. 88, K. of P. ; 
and a member of Fidelity Lodge, No. 
141, I. 0. 0. F., of Jamesburg. Mr. 





CP (/u-cc-i^x^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



401 



Hunt built up a profitable business, and 
through an uncle, Wilson G. Hunt, he 
received a very handsome bequest, which 
has made him very comfortably well off. 
He has lived in retirement at English- 
town since 1892, and is one of the town's 
most progressive citizens. 



/^APT. LEWIS KAINEAR, a veteran 
^-^ of '61 and the valued superintend- 
ent of the Ocean Grove Association, Ocean 
Grove, Monmouth county. New Jersey, is 
a son of Isaac and Mary A. (Malsbury) 
Rainear, and was born Oct. 12, 1842, 
near Bordentown, Burlington county, 
New Jersey. 

Isaac Rainear, son of Samuel Rainear, 
who was of French lineage, was born 
Oct. 10, 1809, near Fieldsboro, Burling- 
ton county. New Jersey, and resided in 
that vicinit}^ all his life. He was an 
extensive farmer and fruit-grower, and 
shipped his produce to Philadelphia, via 
the Delaware river, on his own vessels. 
His business career was a successful one, 
and he became an influential member of 
his community. He deceased in 1849, 
leaving three children : Samuel, Capt. 
Lewis, and Annie, as the result of his 
union with Mary A. Malsbury, a native 
of Burlington county. New Jersey, born 
at Three Tons, Burlington county. New 
Jersey, 1820 ; married 1838, and de- 
ceased Oct. 12, 1885. 

Lewis Rainear spent his early life 
upon his father's farm, in Burlington 
county. He was educated at the public 
schools, after which he was engaged as a 
farmer boy up to the age of eighteen 
years. In 1861 young Rainear enlisted 
for the three months' service in company 
A, Fourth regiment. New Jersey in- 
fantry, wherein he served his term as a 



private ; was mustered out and returned 
to his home. Thirty days later he re- 
enlisted by joining Company F, First 
New Jersey cavalry, with the rank of 
first sergeant. He was on active duty 
during the entire campaign in Virginia 
under the command of Colonel Halstead, 
whose regiment was attached to the 
Army of the Potomac until after the 
battle of Gettysburg. At this battle 
Sergeant Rainear served conspicuously 
and with distinction as the sergeant-ma- 
jor of his regiment. He was subse- 
quently detached from his old regiment 
and was invested with the rank of first- 
lieutenant of Company E, Second New 
Jersey cavalry. He went through the 
southwestern campaign in a gallant man- 
ner, and was under General Sherman at 
the time of his famous forced march to 
the sea. Lieutenant Rainear was cap- 
tured June 12, 1864, by the confederate 
forces while serving in General Stui'gis' 
command at the battle of Brice's Cross 
Roads, Mississippi, guarding the rear and 
holding the bridge spanning Tishininga 
creek, in order to allow the Union army 
to escape under cover of the darkness. 
He was held a prisoner of war during 
nine months, and was finally paroled 
March 3, 1865, from Charlotte, N. C. 
At the siege of Morris Island, which oc- 
curred during his captivity, he was one 
of six hundred Union officers whom the 
confederates used in front of their lines 
as a shield from further bombardment. 
In recognition of his dauntless courage 
and meritorious services he was raised to 
the rank of captain at the close of the 
war. Upon his return Captain Rainear 
came to Monmouth county, and for three 
years was engaged on a farm in Howell 
township, owned by his stepfather, Geo. 
Franklin, and during three winters was 



402 



Biographical Sketches. 



superintendent of cranberry bogs in Ocean 
county. In tlie summer of 1869 he re- 
moved to Ocean Grove and received the 
appointment of assistant superintendent 
of the Ocean Grove Association, from 
which position he was promoted to be 
superintendent on Dec. 22, 1871. For 
twenty-five years he has thus been em- 
ployed, and it may ahnost be said is 
founder of the town. He graded the 
first streets there and had charge of con- 
struction of its sewage system and water- 
worlvs. His office is not a sinecure, for 
his duties are numerous and cover a wide 
range, inasmuch as he supervises the 
drainage, grading, lighting, water-works, 
and ice-supply of the place ; has charge 
of all outside work, as well as of the 
tents and summer encampments. Not- 
withstanding this busy life Captain Rai- 
near finds time for other business, as 
well as public affairs. He is a director 
in the Ocean Grove and Asbury Park 
Bank, serving since 1893, and has been 
director in the Asbury Park Building 
and Loan Association for the last twenty- 
three yeai's. 

In politics he is an ardent republican, 
prominent in the local affairs of his part}-, 
and rarely fails to attend as a delegate 
the various county and state conventions. 
He has served several years on the town- 
ship executive committee, and has held 
various offices in Neptune township. He 
has been a member of the school board 
for fourteen years, serving four years as 
president, and has always taken the 
keenest interest in educational matters. 
In fraternal matters Captain Rainear is 
affiliated as follows : C. K. Hall Post, No. 
41, G. A. R. ; member and ex-treasurer 
of Monmouth Lodge, No. 107, K. of P. ; 
Masonic Lodge, No. 142, F. and A. M. ; 
Standard Chapter, R. A. M.; Carson Com- 



mandery, No. 15, Knights Templar; and 
Mecca Temple No. 1, Ancient Arabic 
Order of Nobles of the M3^stic Shrine, at 
New York city. In the several masonic 
bodies we have named. Captain Rainear 
has filled the various chairs. 

Captain Lewis Rainear was married 
Jan. 28, 1869, to Ehza Barton, a native 
of Burlington county. New Jersey. She 
deceased May 11, 1876, after bearing two 
children : George and Henrietta. He 
was subsequently married, Dec. 25, 1877, 
to Mary A. Hulshart, of Ocean county, 
New Jersey. To this marriage have been 
born Lyda, Lulu, and Joseph. The vet- 
eran of 1861 and the pioneer of Ocean 
Grove resides with his family in a com- 
fortable home at No. 118 Main avenue, 
Ocean Grove. 



O TEWART A. KENNEY, of the firm of 
^ Terriberry & Kenney, extensive dry- 
goods dealers at Somerville, New Jer-sey, 
is a son of William J. and Eleanor Ken- 
ne}', and was born at Asbury, Warren 
county, Mav 10, 1861. Michael Kenney 
(grandfather) was a highly respected 
farmer, living near Budd's Lake, Morris 
county. New Jersey, and was in his 
day and time a man of considerable 
prominence in that section of the state. 
He was an active democrat in politics, 
and a methodist in religious convictions. 
He married Elsie Frace, daughter of 
Isaac Frace, of Morris county, and they 
had five children : William J., John, 
Andrew, Theodore, and Isaac F. He died 
at Branford, Canada. William J. Ken- 
ney (father) was educated in the common 
schools of Morris county. New Jersey, 
and at an early age was apprenticed to 
the tailoring trade. He followed the 
business of a tailor all his life, with the 
exception of one year, which he devoted 



Biographical Sketches. 



403 



to farming. He was a strong democrat 
in politics, and manifested an active in- 
terest in his party at all times. He was 
also an earnest member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church at Flanders, and a con- 
sistent and faithful chi'istian. He mar- 
ried Miss Eleanor Queen, a daughter of 
Allen Queen, Esq., of Mount Pleasant, 
Hunterdon county, New Jersey, on Oct. 
5, 1853, and they had two children : 
Mary, married to Andrew M. Terriberry, 
and Stewart A. His death occurred at 
German Valley, on July 21, 1873, in his 
forty-eighth year. 

Stewart A. Kenney was educated in 
the common schools of Hunterdon county, 
and at the age of sixteen he entered the 
store of Ml'. Joseph Gai'dner, at Glen 
Gardner, as clerk, Avhei'e he spent two 
years. Subsequently he became a clerk 
in Bush & Bull's dry goods house in 
Easton, Pa., where he spent the following 
four years, at the expiration of which 
time he went to Asbury, New Jersey, 
where he opened a general merchandise 
store with his brother-in-law, A. M. Terri- 
berry, and continued in successful busi- 
ness the next four years ; at the end of 
which time they sold out, and he went to 
Jersey City and entered a dry goods 
house there as a salesman. After re- 
maining one year he came to Somerville 
in 1877, and, in partnership with Andrew 
M. Terriberry, under the firm name of 
Terriberry & Kenney, established the 
present extensive dry-goods business, now 
so successfully conducted by these gen- 
tlemen. The business was launched on 
a strictly cash basis, and it has steadily 
grown with each year since, until now its 
proportions demand the erection of an 
additional building for increased facili- 
ties, which is contemplated during the 
present summer. They have one of the 

21 



handsomest and best-fitted establishments 
in Somerville, and occupy a most accept- 
able and convenient locality in the busi- 
ness centre of the town. 

Mr. Kenney is an active and energetic 
business man, in industry and ability, 
and x'anks among the more successful and 
popular young business men of Somer- 
ville. 



TOSEPH BRUCK, an enterprising grocer 
^ at Perth Amboy, Middlesex county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Morris S. and 
Mary Veineberger Bruck, and was born, 
Jan. 1, 1863, at Ungwar, in the Kingdom 
of Hungary, Austria. He comes from a 
very old family of Hungarian Jews, 
which for many generations carried on 
the trade of goldsmiths. 

Aaron Biuck (grandfather) resided in 
Hungary all his life, where he was a 
successful jeweler, an accomplished artist 
in portraiture and sketching, and a manu- 
facturer of crosses and other symbolic 
designs for churches. He was a promi- 
nent member of the Jeweler's Union, 
later, the master of that organization 
in his section, and for purposes of re- 
ligious worship he attended the Jewish 
synagogue. He died in 1866, and his 
wife in 1873. They were the parents of 
five children : Adolph ; Morris S., Sarah, 
who married Herzel Benedek ; Rachael, 
subsequently the wife of Simon Rosen, 
and Lena, who was wedded to Lazarus 
Weiss. 

Morris S. Bruck (father) acquired a 
thoi'ough education in the schools at 
Ungwar, Hungary, where he was born 
in 1821, and under the father's super- 
vision he learned the trade of a gold- 
smith. This business he carried on for 
himself at a later period in a very pros- 
perous manner. He also became a build- 



404 



Biographical Sketches. 



ing contractor, in the prosecution of which 
line of work he planned and erected sub- 
stantial public and private edifices. For 
the transaction of the business of a 
government salt dealer, in which he 
also became engaged, he was required, 
according to Austrian form and custom, 
to obtain a special permit. At another 
period of his life he was appointed ap- 
pi'aiser of all the banking institutions 
in his district, and he w^as an extensive 
speculator in grain. From these various 
undertakings he derived an abundant 
revenue, and he was regarded as an im- 
portant and a prosperous personage in 
his community and in the Jewish syna- 
gogue. The fruits of his marriage to 
Mary Veineberger, who was born in 
1820, married in 1844, and died in 1892, 
surviving her husband sixteen years, 
were ten children : Johanna, Sigmund, 
Gilbert, Rosalie, Antonio, Cecilia, Theo- 
dore, Joseph, the subject; Lewns and 
Samuel. 

Josepli Bruck attended the Latin gym- 
nasium at Ungwar until his seventeenth 
year. In 1880 he emigrated to America, 
and settled in New York city, where he 
acquired an English education in the 
public schools, and subsequently, for a 
period of five years, w^orked for various 
establishments as a pocket maker. In 
1885 he engaged for himself in the busi- 
ness of decorating, which he conducted 
for seven years, and thereafter until 1893 
he was a retail merchant in merchandi.se. 
In that year Mr. Bruck removed to Perth 
Amboy, where he embarked in a good 
and constantly increasing grocery trade 
at 239 State street. In religious faith 
he is a member of the Jewish church. 
He was married March 7, 1893, to Stella 
Eisner, a daughter of Emanuel and Bar- 
bara Eisner, and they have two children. 



"TAMES J. BERGEN, w^as born in Som- 
^ erville. New Jersej^, Oct. 1, 1847. 
He was educated in the public schools 
and at the private academy of Mr. But- 
ler, at Somerville. He was admitted to 
the bar as an attorney in 1868, and as a 
counsellor in the year 1871. On the 
Lst day of January, 1870, he entered into 
a partnership with Mr. H. M. Gaston, 
with -whom he had studied ; this partner- 
ship lasted until 1890, since which time 
he has continued the practice of law 
alone in Somerville. 

He was elected and served as a mem- 
ber of the general assembly of the state 
of New Jersey, during the j'ears 1876 
and 1877 ; and during the last year was 
appointed by Governor Bedle as prose- 
cutor of the pleas of the county of Som- 
erset, w^hich position he filled for six 
years. He held no other political office 
until 1891, having been elected to the 
general assembly of the state of New 
Jer.sey in the fall of 1890. At the meet- 
ing of the legislature in January, 1891, 
he was elected sjjeaker of the house of 
assembly, and, being returned to the legis- 
lature for the year 1892, he was again 
selected as its presiding officer. 

Notwithstanding his attention to his 
business and to state politics, he finds 
time to devote considerable of his energy 
to local matters. The town of Somer- 
ville has been governed since 1863 b}' a 
board of commissioners ; of this board 
Mr. Bergen has been a member, and its 
president, for the past six years. He is 
also a dii-ector of the First National 
Bank, having served in that capacity 
since 1878, and since 1893 has served as 
president of the Somerville Dime Sav- 
ings Bank. 

Fraternally he is a member of the 
Royal Arch Masons, Odd Fellows, and 



Biographical Sketches. 



407 



the Knights of Pjthias ; all of which as- 
sociations have lodges in Somerville. 



JOSEPH RAWSON PALMER, at one 
^ time jaresident of the board of educa- 
tion of New Brunswick and a well-known 
and influential citizen there, has a long 
and interesting record as a newspajjer 
man and publisher in New England and 
in the south during ante-bellum days. 
He is a son of George and Catherine Raw- 
son Palmer, and was born Jan. 11, 1814, 
at East Haddam, Conn. He is a de- 
scendant in the eighth generation on his 
father's side from Walter Palmer, of 
Stonington, Conn., and the eighth genera- 
tion on his maternal side from Edward 
Rawson, at one time secretary of the 
colony of Massachusetts. 

George Palmer (father) was a promi- 
nent citizen of East Haddam, Conn., and 
a vigorous whig in politics. He was mar- 
ried three times. By his first wife, Rox- 
ana Brainard, he had three children : 
George, Edmund and Ann ; by his sec- 
ond wife, Catherine Rawson, he had two 
sons : Joseph R., the subject, and Henry 
H. ; by his third wife, Louisa C. Brooks, 
he had two daughters : Jane and Ellen. 
He died in 1844, aged sixty-three years. 

Joseph Rawson Palmer was educated 
in the grammar schools of Plainfield, 
Conn., and subsequently fitted himself 
for college by an academic course at that 
place. He, however, learned printing at 
Middlesex, Conn., and published the Mid- 
dlesex Gazette, at Middletown, Conn., in 
1833. He then removed to Boston, where 
from 1834 to 1839 he was engaged in a 
prosperous business as a dealer in type 
and stereotyping materials. In 1839 he 
removed to New Orleans and published 
the Evening Post in that city for three 



or four years. He subsequently removed 
to Corpus Christi, Tex., which was at 
that time under Mexican domination, 
and founded The American Flag, the first 
newspaper published in Matamoras, Mex- 
ico. Mr. Palmer accompanied the Ameri- 
can army into the Mexican domains, and 
was correspondent for several Louisiana 
papers, during which time he participated 
in many stirring scenes. At the conclu- 
sion of the Mexican war in 1848 he re- 
mained in Texas, and was publisher of a 
newspaper at Brownsville at the out- 
break of the civil war in 1860. As Mr. 
Palmer was an ardent Union man he ran 
his paper under great difiiculties, and at 
one time his press was stolen. In 1865 
when the Union army captured Browns- 
ville Mr. Palmer seized the opportunity 
of sending his family to the north, and 
they settled at New Brunswick, New 
Jersey. Shortly afterwards the con- 
federates again occupied the place and 
Mr. Palmer's office was thoroughly ran- 
sacked, everything being destroyed or 
taken from him. He then decided to 
follow his family northward. During his 
residence in Texas Mr. Palmer was an 
exceedingly active man in public afi^airs, 
and successively held the offices of county 
treasurer, city treasurer, justice of the 
peace and United States commissioner in 
Cameron county, that state. 

At the close of the civil war he re- 
joined his famil}^ at New Brunswick, 
New Jersey, and has resided in that city 
ever since. He made extensive invest- 
ments in a number of business enter- 
prises. He has been treasurer and direc- 
tor of the New Brunswick Gas Companj^, 
and has been president of the board of 
education and of the Fredonian Associa- 
tion. He is also a large stockholder in 
the Monmouth MilUng Company and in 



408 



Biographical Sketches. 



several land companies. He is a repub- 
lican in politics and a member of the 
Masonic and the Knights Templar fra- 
ternities. 

In 1854 Mr. Palmer was married to 
Miss Emily Godfrey, daughter of Capt. 
Benjamin Godfrey, of Godfrej', 111., by 
whom he has nine children : Joseph G., 
Julia, Edmund, deceased ; Harriet Coop- 
er, Henr}^ Holmes, a lawyer in San 
Diego, Cal. ; Oliver Munsell, a banker in 
New York city, and George, Emily, and 
Theron Baldwin, deceased in infancy. 

Mr. Palmer is a shrewd, calculating 
and successful bu,siness man. His wide 
and varied experience has endowed him 
with the rare faculty of sound judgment 
in estimating men and affairs. 



T3ENJAMIN F. S. BROWN was born 
-*-^ in Ke3port, New Jersey, Nov. 2, 
185G. He is the eldest son of Cornelius 
H. Brown, a contractor and builder of 
that place. His mother was Emeline 
Frances, the eldest daughter of the late 
Charles D. Strong, who in early life was 
a noted Boston Ijook publisher, and later 
at the head of the largest whole.sale hard- 
ware concern in the northwest, at St. 
Paul, Minn. The paternal ancestry of 
Mr. Brown has been traced back to John 
and Susanna Brown, whose marriage oc- 
curred in 1763. They were I'esidents of 
Browntown, a small settlement in Mid- 
dlesex county, this state, named for 
them, as they owned all the property in 
that locality. John and Susanna had 
twelve children, two of whom were 
Daniel and Benjamin. The grandfather 
of the subject of this sketch was de- 
scended from the former, and the grand- 
mother Irom the latter. 

]\Ir. Brown attended the Key port 



academy, and later finished his school 
days at Glenwood Institute, at Matawan, 
New Jersey. Upon completing his 
studies Mr. Brown learned the printing 
trade in the Keyport Weekli/ office, and 
then undertook the study of law with 
Dayton & Taylor, at Matawan. This 
not being altogether to his liking he re- 
turned to the " case," securing a position 
in New York city, where he remained 
for several years. In 1884 Mr. Brown 
was married to Miss Jennie S. Silleck, of 
Keyport, New Jersey, and five children 
have blessed that union, three sons and 
two? daughters. Mr. Brown continued 
to reside in New^ York and Brooklyn 
until Feb., 1890, when he came to Mata- 
wan and bought the Journal from David 
A. Bell, and has been its editor and pub- 
lisher ever since. Mr. Brown changed 
the political character of the paper, 
which now sujjports the republican cau.se. 
The Journal in 1890 had a circulation 
of a few less than seven hundred copies 
weekly, but for the last six months in 
1895 the average weekly edition was one 
thousand two hundred and forty copies. 
Mr. Brown's establishment contains four 
and one c^dinder i:)ress. 

Mr. Brown was largely instruu\ental 
in securing the graded school at Mata- 
wan in 1894, and was one of the first 
members of the new board of education. 
He is connected with several secret soci- 
eties, being a past-grand of Knicker- 
bocker Lodge, No. 52, I. 0. 0. F. ; past- 
regent of Glenwood Council. No. 1497, 
Ro3al Arcanum ; past-councillor of Col- 
umbia Council, No. 77, Jr. 0. U. A. M. ; 
past-councillor of Pride Columbia Coun- 
cil, No. 37, Daughters of Liberty ; master 
of exchequer of Matawan Lodge, No. 
142, Knights of Pythias, of MataAvan ; a 
member of the Loval Additional Benefit 



Biographical Sketches. 



409 



Association, a branch of the Arcanum ; 
and a member of the Raritan Grand Vet- 
eran Association, of Keyport. 



nV/TYRON J. WHITFORD, M. D., of New 
-'-'-*- Marltet, Middlesex county, New 
Jersey, is a son of Asa M. and Catharine 
Coon Whitford, who lived at the time of 
his birth in the town of Adams, Jefferson 
county, N. Y. He was born Aug. 31, 
1858. The immigrant ancestor of the 
family came from Wales, and his descend- 
ants are numerous. The branch from 
which Dr. Whitford descends located on 
the shores of New England, and later 
moved to New York. The paternal 
grandfather, Edward Whitfoi-d, was a 
prominent and much-respected farmer of 
Rensselaer county, N. Y., and dai-ing the 
war of 1812 with Great Britain, served 
as a major. He was a democrat in poli- 
tics, and in religion was an adherent of 
the Seventh Day Baptist society. He 
married Polly Maxson and they had the 
following children born to them : Ed- 
ward, Albert, Lois, Asa M., Prudence, 
Polly, Phoebe, Margaret and Betsy. The 
grandfather died on Sept. 2, 1862, at the 
age of eighty-four years, four months, 
and the grandmother on July 27, 1862, 
in the eighty-second year of her age. 

Asa M. Whitford (father) received his 
education in the village of Berlin. In 
1868 he removed to Farina, Fayette 
county. 111., and there resided on a farm 
until his death, Aug. 28, 1886. He was a 
demo(;rat and was township supervisor 
for eight years. He was a member of 
the Seventh Day Baptist church, and an 
active spirit in all church work. He 
was married to Miss Catharine Coon, 
daughter of Asa Coon, of Berlin, N. Y., 
on Jan. 17, 1836, and soon after re- 



moved to Adams, Jefferson county, N. Y., 
where he lived for thirty years or until 
he removed to Illinois, and they had the 
following children born to them : Ann 
Maria, Edward, Adelbert, Stillman, 
Clarence, and Myron J. The father 
was seventy-four years of age when he 
died, and the mother sixty-four at her 
death in 1877. 

Dr. Whitford attended the common 
schools in Adams, N. Y., and Fax"ina, 
111. In 1876 he entered the preparatory 
department of Milton College, Wis., from 
which institution he graduated, after 
taking a full classical course, in 1881, 
with the honors and degree of A. B. 
He then studied medicine with Dr. J. S. 
Maxon at Walworth, Wis., and attended 
the Homoeopathic Medical College of Chi- 
cago, from which he graduated in 1883, 
receiving valuable prizes in anatomy, 
practice of medicine, and pathology. Af- 
terwards he practiced his profession for 
four years at Walworth and Milton, Wis. 
In 1884 the degree of A. M., was con- 
ferred on him by his alma mater. In 1887 
he came east and located at New Market, 
New Jersey, where he has won a large 
and widely extended practice. He has 
also an ofl&ce at Dunellen. The doctor 
is a staunch republican, and is a member 
of the board of education of Piscataway 
township and the secretary of the board. 
He has frequently been chosen as repre- 
sentative of his party to various conven- 
tions, county, state, etc., and will un- 
doubtedly receive other and higher polit- 
ical honors in the near future. He is a 
member of the Seventh Day Baptist 
church of New Market, and has been a 
trustee for eight years. He is a member 
of the Friendship Lodge, No. 81, of the 
Junior Order United American Mechan- 
ics ; of the auxiliary order. Daughters of 



410 



Biographical Sketches. 



Liberty; of Central Lodge, No. 48, A. 
O. U. W., of Plaiiifield, New Jersey; 
and is treasurer of Friendship Council, 
No. 81, Jr. 0. U. A. M. He was the 
first councillor of the council of this 
order, organized at New Market. 

Dr. Wliitford Avas married to Miss 
Myrta Lai'kin, of Milton Junction, Wis., 
on July 1-4, 1883, by whom he had one 
child, Clarence. His first wife died in 
Jan., 1888. He was married the second 
time to Miss Minnie Drake, of New 
Market, on April 10, 1889, and to them 
have been born the following children : 
Eayraond, Mabel, Paul and Dorothy. 



JOHN WHITEHEAD, a man of marked 
^ ability, and who, from a very modest 
beainninu:, has won his wav to the front 
rank in the business life of the state of 
New Jersey, and especially of the town 
of South River, is a son of Samuel and ; 
Charlotte Whitehead, and was born near \ 
South Eiver, July 10, 1830. He came 
from a prominent and highly reputable 
famil\', whose history will be found in 
the biography of Charles Whitehead, 
which appears elsewhere in this volume. 
John Whitehead's scholastic training 
was limited to but a few months in the 
district schools. At an early age he was 
employed with his father, who was en- 
gaged extensively in the mining of sand 
clay. On Feb. 13, 1873, his father died, 
and the business descended to Whitehead 
Brotliers, of which firm Mr. John White- 
head was manager of one of the import- 
ant departments until 1888, when he 
retired from the active management of 
tlie l)U8iiiess. Simultaneously with his re- 
tirement, he purchased a clay bed of 
eiglity-five acres, upon which he erected 
a magnificent brick plant. The business 



employs one hundred men, has an annual 
output of 9,000,000 bricks, which find a 
ready marliet in New York city and 
Newark, New Jersey, and requires four 
schooners in their transportation. In 
addition to this, Mr. Whitehead is an 
extensive dealer in real estate, farms, 
town lots and clay beds. He has always 
been identified with the Republican 
party. Active and influential in the 
councils of his party, he contributes liber- 
ally, both of his time and means, to its 
success. Not associated with any church 
organization, but broad and liberal in his 
religious views, he contributes liljerally 
to all denominations, regardless of sect 
or creed. 

Mr. Whitehead has been twice mar- 
ried. His first marital union, with Le- 
nora Yates, Avas celebrated in 1852. 
They became the parents of seven chil- 
dren, three of whom died in infancy. 
Those living are : Alvin, Vevener, Jane 
Maria, the consort of James Ogden, of 
Elizabeth, New Jersey; and Stella, the 
wife of Silas Butter, of Meriden, Conn. 
Mrs. Whitehead died in Sept., 1886, and 
Mr. Whitehead wedded for his second 
and present consort, Sarali E. Yates, a 
sister of his first wife. 



r\ ARRETT HENNESSEY, a successful 
^-^ contractor and builder, and exten- 
sive dealer in pound fishing at Long 
Branch, Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
is a sou of John and Elizabeth (White) 
Hennes.sey, and w^as born, July 1, 1841, 
on a farm about three miles west of Ocean 
Grove, New Jersey. The family origi- 
nated in France, from which country the 
ancestors of Mr. Hennessey went to Ire- 
land about 1690; the paternal grand- 
lather, James Hennessey, was a native 



Biographical Sketches. 



413 



of Erin, where he lived to a good old 
age and died on his own land. He had 
three sons : John, Hugh, and Michael ; 
and two daughters : Puiny and Mary. 
They all lived with their father, and at- 
tended pay schools until they were eigh- 
teen years of age, except John, who 
left home at sixteen years of age and 
went to England, and found employment 
boating on the River Thames. After one 
year he took passage on a vessel for the 
United States. Upon arriving in New 
York he found employment on Long 
Island, superintending a farm for a year 
or more. He then came to Monmouth 
county, where he married Elizabeth 
White. There he purchased about eigh- 
teen acres of land and built a house, 
where he lived with his family for twelve 
years. He then sold out and bought a 
few acres of land, at Long Branch, of 
Gordon Woolley, and there built another 
house, whei'e he lived and died in his 
seventy-sixth year. In politics he was a 
democrat ; he was elected yearly for nine 
years as ovei'seer of the public highways 
in the district that he lived in. In relig- 
ion he was a methodist, and joined the 
church in 1842, and died in the same 
faith. His wife, Elizabeth White, daugh- 
ter of Garrett White and Charlotte Yoe- 
mans, is still living, and is in her seventy- 
first year. She bore unto him eleven" ; 
children: Garrett, James, John, Annie, ' 
Michael, Elizabeth, Edward, George 
Washington, Walter, and Maggie. 

Garrett Hennessey, after the acquisi- 
tion of a common-school education, con- 
tinued with his father until sixteen years 
of age, and then entered into the net- 
fishing business for about four years ; at 
this time he decided to learn the carpen- 
ter trade, upon completing which he 
found employment at his trade in New 



York city; at the same time applying 
himself to the study of architecture and 
mechanical draughting and pi-eparing 
himself for contracting and building, and 
began business for himself in Brooklyn. 
After continuing for several years he I'e- 
turned to Long Branch and continued 
the same business; also for the last three 
years has been engaged in pound fishing. 



A P. SUTPHEN is one of the most 
-'--*-• active business men of Somer- 
ville, and has pressed his way upward to 
position and success most worthily. He 
is a son of Peter and Sarah Smith Sut- 
phen, and was born in Bedminster town- 
ship, Somerset county. New Jersey, Oct. 
3, 1841. One of the oldest and most re- 
spectable families in New Jersey is that 
whose surname is recorded at the head of 
this sketch. The record of its emigra- 
tion is that of D. Sutphen, who, imbued 
with a hope for greater liberty than was 
enjoyed in continental Europe, crossed 
the Atlantic in 1651 and settled at Flat- 
bush, on Long Island, where he purchased 
and tilled a good farm until his death, in 
the year 1707. He married Elizabeth 
Jacobson, of New York, and their chil- 
di'en were : Jacob, Jan, Dirk, Guysbert, 
Abner, Isaac, Elsie, Hendrick and Eliza- 
beth. 

The fourth son, Guysbert, was born 
Oct. 16, 1693, and in his youth removed 
to Monmouth county, where he married 
and resided up to his death. His third 
child, Guysbert, Jr., was born August 
28, 1720, and died Nov. 16, 1796. This 
Guysbert, the younger, although a trades- 
man and unpretentious farmer, was yet a 
man of parts and judgment, and held the 
commission of justice of the peace under 
his Britannic Majesty, George III. He 



■414 



Biographical Sketches. 



aided largely in building Bedminster 
church, in whose gravejard his remains 
still rest. He married, and reared a fam- 
ily of eight children : Gertie, Catherine, 
Elizabeth, John, Nellie, Peggy, Guysbert 
and Captain Peter. The youngest child, 
Captain Peter, was the grandfather of the 
subject of this sketch. 

Captain Peter Sutphen was born August 
17, 1 762, at Bedminster, Somerset county, 
and lived to reach his seventy-sixth j'ear, 
dying Feb. 4, 1839. He was a fiirmer 
by occupation, a democrat in politics, 
and served as justice of tlie j)eace for ten 
years. He was also active in religious 
affairs, and held the office of deacon and 
elder in the Bedminster church. He 
served for some time as town clerk, com- 
manded a militia company, and ranked 
high as a man in every walk of life which 
he pursued. Captain Sutphen married ! 
Catherine Hunt, a daughter of Colonel 
Stephen Hunt, an active Revolutionary 
soldier, and the children born to them 
were : Margaret, Stephen, Arthur V. P., 
Gilbert, Peter and William J. Of these ; 
children, Peter, the father of Mr. Sut- 
phen, was born Dec. 5, 1800. His occu- 
pation Avas farming, except ten years 
spent in the general mercantile business ; 
and while active as a Avhig in political 
affairs would not accept any office, and 
when at one time elected as justice of the 
peace immediately resigned. He was an 
active member of the Bedminster church, 
a very fine historian, and departed this 
life Jan. 30, 1875. 

He was twice married, and by his first 
wife, Mary Melick Sutphen, who died in 
1833, he had two children : Theodore, 
deceased, and William P. He afterwards 
wedded Mary Smith, Avho was a daugh- 
ter of Captain William Smith, a revolu- 
tionary soldier, and also enlisted in 1812, i 



who died in 1838, aged seventy-six years. 
By his second marriage he had five chil- 
dren : Mary, Joseph S., A. P., David M. 
and Sarah. Of these children, only 
Joseph S. and A. P. are living. 

A. P. Sutphen was reared on the pa- 
ternal acres, and received a common- 
school education, which he has largely 
supplemented by reading and observation 
until he is a man of extensive informal 
tion, and ranks as authority on matters 
of ancient history. Leaving the farm in 
1868, he came to Somerville as a clerk in 
the county clerk's office. Five years later 
he was elected as justice of the peace, 
and since the close of his term of office 
has served actively and continuously in 
various positions of honor, trust and re- 
sponsibility. He has served as commis- 
sioner of deeds, notai-y public, township 
clerk, assistant clerk of the board of 
commissioners and coroner. He is secre- 
tary of the Somerset County Fair Asso- 
ciation, director of the People's Building 
and Loan Association and secretaiy and 
treasurer of the Citizens' Building and 
Loan Association of Somerville. He is 
also secretary of the Somerset County 
Bible, Historical and A"ricultural socie- 
tics, the Somerville board of trade, and 
has served as clerk of the Somerset 
county board of freeholders for twenty 
years. He was formerly secretary and 
superintendent- of Larger Cross Roads 
Sunday School and president of the Re- 
formed Club. He is still pension agent, 
represents several leading fire insurance 
companies and serves as justice of the 
peace. On Dec. 5, 1865, Mr. Sutphen 
married Hannah V. Potts, a daughter of 
Samuel Potts, of Bedminster. To their 
union were born six children : Gertrude 
and Mary, who are deceased ; William 
R., assisting his father ; Jennie P., Sadie 



Biographical Sketches. 



415 



L. and Samuel P. In politics Mr. Sut- 
phen is independent, and in religion he 
has served as a trustee, elder and deacon 
of the First Reformed church of Somer- 
ville. He is a member of the Sons of 
Temperance, has held all the state chairs 
in his division, and is an honored mem- 
ber of the National Grand Body of the 
order. He has been a member of the 
Holland Society since 189-3, and since be- 
came a member of the Sons of the Revolu- 
tion, and recently joined the Revolution- 
ary Memorial Society. Strictly a business 
man, yet public-spirited, and ever earnest, 
zealous and active in any movement for 
good, Mr. Sutjjhen is one who fills up a 
large space in the civil, material and re- 
ligious life of Somerville and Somerset 
county. 



"TAMES DUNN, JR., a prominent busi- 
^ ness man of West Long Branch, 
and one of the largest retail fish mer- 
chants in the state, is of Irish descent, 
and was born to James and Mary (Woods) 
Dunn, at Brooklyn, N. Y., April 29, 1855. 

Andrew Dunn (grandfather) was a 
resident of the city of Dublin, Ireland, 
where he was given a common school 
education, and subsequently learned the 
plastering and slating business. He was 
an active member of the Roman Catholic 
church, in which he held many offices. 
His wife's maiden name was Miss Mary 
Woods, and they reared a family of four 
children : James, Catharine, Elizabeth, 
and Mary. Grandfather and grand- 
mother Dunn died in New York city, 
and were buried at Holy Cross cemeter}', 
Brooklyn, the former on Feb. 16, 1890, 
and the latter on March 13, 1888. Grand- 
father later was buried in Glassoren 
cemetery, Dublin, Ireland. 

James Dunn (father) was also a native 



of Dublin, and was born May 27, 1835. 
He spent some time in the common 
schools, and while yet a boy decided to 
come to America. So, without money 
enough to pay for his passage, he em- 
barked for this country and earned his 
transportation by working on board the 
vessel. Young Dunn, full of that rare 
courage and perseverance, for which the 
Irish are famous, finally landed at New 
York and located in Brooklyn, where he 
afterwards learned the trade of a mason, 
and in 1857 removed to Cornwall, N. Y., 
where he became a successful business 
man, and was engaged in masonry and 
building all the rest of his days. Politi- 
cally he was an upholder of democratic 
jjrinciples, and for fifteen years was a 
member of the board of education at 
Cornwall, and was actively engaged in 
party affairs. By industry and good 
judgment Mr. Dunn realized the dreams 
of his boyhood and became a man of 
property, and was a trustee of the Corn- 
wall Savings bank. He was a member 
and an attendant of the Catholic church 
at Cornwall, and later at Long Branch, 
and by his marriage with Miss Mary 
Woods, daughter of John Woods, of 
County Monaghan, Ireland, became the 
father of nine children : Elizabeth, de- 
ceased; James, Mary (Mrs. T. J. Sulli- 
van); Margaret (Mrs. Edward McGinnis) ; 
Andrew, Catharine, deceased ; John, Isa- 
bella, deceased ; and Letitia. James 
Dunn. Sr., died Jan. 3, 1890, and Mary, 
his wife, passed away in Nov., 1889 ; both 
sleep in the cemetery at Cornwall, N. Y. 
James Dunn, Jr., was given the advan- 
tages of the New York city schools until 
he became twenty years of age, and is a 
man of liberal education and of broad 
and comprehensive ideas. Leaving school 
he engaged in masonry and building with 



416 



Biographical Sketches. 



his father for ten jears, and in 1889 
established a retail fish market at West 
End, Long Branch, which has grown to 
large proportions. Mr. Dunn is a liublic- 
spirited member of his communit}', an 
active democrat, and has been a mem- 
ber of the fire department for ten years. 
He is also a communicant of St. Michael's 
Catholic church, and is one of the official 
members ; at present filling the position of 
tiustee. On Jan. 6, 1879, James Dunn 
was united in marriage to Miss Mary C. 
Ferus, daughter of Daniel and Margaret 
Ferus. They have had one child, a 
daughter, Margaret, who has since died. 
Mr. Dunn has taken a most active 
interest in the affairs of the Catholic 
Benevolent Legion ever since he became 
one of its members, having filled all the 
chairs in Legion No. 303, and for three 
years Avas one of the state trustees of the 
order. 



creasing trade 



TTENRY M. OLESEN, a well-known 
-*— ^ business man and proprietor of an 
extensive meat market at Perth Amboy, 
New Jersey, is a son of Peter and Ro.s- 
mena (Matusen) Olesen, and was born 
at Aalborg, Denmark, April 26, 1864. 
When yet only a boy he made two trips 
to this country, and finall}^, on a third, 
resolved to make it his future home, and 
located at Perth Amboy, where he resided 
with his uncle, Christian Crough. He 
attended the public schools of that city, 
and afterwards learned the butcher trade 
under his uncle, for whom he worked 
seven years. For the ensuing few 3'ears 
he followed various industrial pursuits, 
but finally located in the meat business 
on his own account at Perth Amboy, in- 
augurating a cash basis system. He has 
been successful in business, and at jiresent 
is enjoying a large and constantly in- 



Politically he is a demo- 
ci'at, and religiously a mem^ber of the 
Presbyterian church. He is a member 
in good standing of Raritan Lodge, No. 
61, F. and A. M., and Washington Hose 
company. No. 2, of Perth Amboy. His 
marriage with Maria Thresa Farroat, a 
daughter of Thomas G. Farroat, of Perth 
Amboy, on November 29, 1886, has re- 
sulted in the following children : Susie 
B. ; Iva, deceased ; Harry B., deceased ; 
Ada R. ; Willie, deceased ; and Gu}^ E. 

Mr. Olesen has enjoyed uninterrupted 
prosperity in his business, and by fair 
dealing and uprightness of character 
lias won a substantial standing as a citi- 
zen of the community in which he re- 
sides. 

Peter Olesen (father) was born at Aal- 
borg, Denmark, December 3, 1840. His 
father was a sea captain, and was lost at 
sea. Peter Olesen, Sr., was the elder of 
two children ; his brother Ludwig was 
engaged in the butchering and meat bus- 
iness at Aalborg, Denmark, where he 
continued until failing health forced his 
retirement. He was a veteran of the 
war of 1864, against Germany, and mar- 
ried Miss Rosmena Matusen of Aalborg, 
who bore him two children, Matilda and 
Henry M. 

/^ EORGE D. RUNYON, a prosperous 
^^ merchant and member of the Far- 
rington & Runyon Co., lumber dealers, at 
Perth Amboy, Middlesex countv, New 
Jersey, is the son of John and Amelia 
(Oram) Runyon, and was born Feb. 7, 
1854, at New Brunswick, in said county 
and state. The famil}^ name, Runyon, is 
derived from the French Rognion, accoi'd- 
ing to which orthography it was borne by 
Vincent Rognion, the founder of the line 
in this country, who quitted France in 



Biographical Sketches. 



417 



1665, and settled at Elizabethtown, Union 
county, New Jersey. 

The grandfather, Vincent Runyon, 
was a native of New Brunswick, born in 
1794, married to Aseneth Burlew in 
1819, and deceased June 13, 1872. By 
occuj)ation he was a ship-carpenter and a 
farmer, but he abandoned the former 
avocation after prosecuting it very suc- 
cessfully for twenty years, and accumu- 
lating considerable estate in lands and 
houses. In politics he was a democrat of 
the good old Jeffersonian type. He held 
offices at various times under the munici- 
pal government of New Brunswick, and 
was widely known throughout Middlesex 
and adjoining counties. His wife, who 
was born in 1798, and who deceased in 
1879, boi'e him nine children : Catharine, 
married to David Marsh ; Reuben, and 
John, both deceased ; Mary, married to 
Isaac Suydam ; Elizabeth, wife of Samuel 
L. Dunham ; Sarah, deceased, wife of 
J. Caswell Voorhees, Amanda, Theodore, 
and Lucy, married to John H. Phillips. 

John Runyon (father) attended a pri- 
vate school in New Brunswick until he 
was fourteen years of age, after which he 
learned the ship-carpenter's trade with 
Johnson Oram, whose daughter Amelia 
he subsequently married. Shortly after 
his marriage he entered into partnership 
with Vincent, his father, and Reuben, 
his brother, under the firm name and 
style of Vincent Runyon & Sons, ship- 
wrights. They transacted an extensive 
business during many years, which was 
continued by the sons after the father's 
death. John Runyon remained with the 
establishment until he reached the age of 
fifty yeai's, when he retired after having ac- 
quired a handsome competence in money, 
houses, and cleared and wooded lands. 
In politics he was an influential leader in 



local party affairs, and served on the 
board of aldermen as well as on ' the 
board of water commissioners for several 
years. In religion he was a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church at New 
Brunswick, and was a member of the 
syndicate of Methodists that purchased 
for camp-meeting purposes the property 
devoted to those uses at Ocean Gi'ove, 
New Jersey. He was born March 20, 
1824, and was married Dec. 6, 1848, to 
Amelia A. Oram, who deceased in 1854, 
after bearing him three children : Cor- 
nelia and John, both deceased, and Geo. 
D., the subject. He was subsequently 
married April 29, 1857, to Anna Beck, 
who survives him, his death occurring 
July 13, 1891. To their marriage were 
born six children : Amelia, married to 
George W. Outcalt; W. Parker, Frank 
K., John B., Mary F., and Theodore V. 

George D. Runyon acquired his educa- 
tion at the public schools of New Bruns- 
wick, which he attended until he arrived 
at the age of eighteen j^ears. In 1873 he 
entered Bryant's Business College, New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, where he took 
a year's course in practical business lines, 
and was graduated in 1874. Succeeding 
to his father's interest in the ship-yard, 
after the retirement of the latter, he con- 
tinued in the business at New Brunswick 
until 1880, when he removed to Perth Am- 
boy and incorporated the Perth Amboy 
Dry-dock Co., with ample capital for the 
successful prosecution of ship-building. 
After remaining in the management of 
the company for ten years Mr. Runyon 
purchased the one-half interest in the 
lumber business of D. B. Farrington & 
Co., at Nos. 126 and 128 Fayette street, 
Perth Amboy, changing the firm's name 
to Farrington & Runyon Co., and to its 
affairs he devotes his entire time and at- 



418 



Biographical .Sketches. 



toiitioii. Till' Farriiigtoii & Riinyon Co. is 
a complete success. Their transactions are 
vei'y large, and the volume of their busi- 
ness swells to many figures during the 
course of a year. 

Mr. Runyon is a careful, shrewd, and 
far-seeing man of business, and along with 
other interests he has accumulated con- 
siderable real estate. The talent he has 
inherited and the talent and experience 
he has acquired have combined to lead 
him on to a degree of success not usually 
attained in so short a time. In politics 
he is a democrat, and has rendered ex- 
cellent sei'vice to his town as a member 
of the board of education. In religious 
matters he honors the memory of his 
christian father by an active membership 
in the Methodist Episcopal church at 
Perth Amboy, of which he is treasurer 
and trustee. He is a member of Good- 
will Council, No. 32, Jr. 0. U. A. M., of 
New Brunswick, and a member of Mid- 
dlesex Council, No. 1100, Royal Arca- 
num. 

Mr. Runyon was united in marriage 
April 29, 1879, to Melvina Lewis, a 
daughter of William W. Lewis. To this 
union have been born five children : L. 
Parker, born March 3, 1880; Cornelia, 
born May 11, 1881, died Nov. 29, 1886; 
Harry H., born March 2, 1885; Helen 
M.,born June 22, 1893, and Anna Ruth, 
born Aug. 13, 1895. 



/CLARENCE MULFORD SLACK, M.D., 
^-^ one of the leading physicians of 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Peter Baird and Abigail Schenck (Appli- 
get) Slack, and Avas born Jan. 23, 18-11, 
in Mercer county. New Jersey. He is 
descended from William Slack, who came 
from England to Massachusetts in the 



opening years of the seventeenth century, 
and was a prominent baptist — a de- 
nominational connection which the fam- 
ily, in large majoritj', have always main- 
tained. Dr. Slack's great-grandfather 
came to New Jersey in the last century, 
and there his grandfather, Thomas Slack, 
was born and lived a farmer within the 
limits of what is now Middlesex county, 
having married Rachael Swaim, the 
daughter of a prominent New Jersey 
famil^^ 

Dr. Slack's father, Peter Baird Slack, 

was also born in the same locality, and 

was married in the year 1828 to Abigail 

Schenck Appliget, a daughter of Thomas 

Appliget and Sarah Baird. She was a 

j descendant of Anthony Appliget, who 

w.as a large landed proprietor in East 

Jersey, and of Sir John Baird, one of 

I Cromwell's " Ironsides." The father, a 

] farmer, died at the age of thirty-seven, 

[ leaving his widow and six children, of 

whom Dr. Slack was the youngest and 

is now the only survivor. 

The doctor spent his boyhood and 
Aouth in Ilio'litstown, New Jersev, and 
received the education afforded by the 
public schools at that time. In the 
course of a few years he Avas prej^ared 
for and entered the Jeflerson Medical Col- 
lege, of Philadelphia, from which institu- 
tion he was graduated with the class of 
18G4. Having passed a very rigid ex- 
amination for the navy he was appointed 
surgeon to the United States Steamship 
'' Pembina," and served until the close of 
the war in the Gulf and at New Orleans 
and Galvesttm. He declined a reappoint- 
ment to the naval staff" on the cessation 
of hostilities, and began the practice of 
his profession at Dayton, Middlesex 
county, New Jersey. Here by faithful 
work he soon secured a large practice for 



Biographical Sketches. 



419 



one pursuing his profession in the coun- 
try ; and becoming prominent as well in 
the Democratic party he was elected to 
the office of freeholder from the town- 
ship of South Brunswick. 

In 1880 he removed to the city of New 
Brunswick, the capital of the county in 
which he had been living ; and his repu- 
tation as a physician and surgeon having 
preceded him he readily secured the 
place he has maintained ever since among 
the leaders in his profession. During 
these years Dr. Slack has been more than 
the physician. He has interested him- 
self as a citizen in the welfare and pro- 
gress of the city, county and state of his 
residence, contributing time and talent to 
all feasible progressive enterprises. On 
the death of C. S. Hill he was appointed 
by the governor to fill out that gentle- 
man's unexpired term as count}^ clerk, 
and at the ensuing election he was chosen 
to that office for five years by the popular 
vote. 

Dr. Slack is interested in the more ex- 
tended circles of his profession, as shown 
by his membership in the Middlesex 
county and New Jersey state medical 
societies, and in the Order of Military 
Surgeons of New Jersey. His social and 
fraternal characteristics find place as a 
member of the blue lodge as well as of the 
chapter, commandery and shrine in 
masonry, and in Friendship Lodge, K. of 
P., of New Brunswick. He is a past- 
commander of Robert Boggs Post, No. 57, 
G. A. R., and he has for several j^-ears 
served as surgeon of the Third regi- 
ment, New Jersey National Guard, a 
position he still holds. In 1868 he 
was married to Mary Elizabeth Con- 
over, a daughter of Henry H. Cono- 
ver, of Red Bank, and two daughters 
have been born to them : Hetty, the wife 



of Dr. W. M. Moore, of Metuchen, born 
in 1874, and Mary, born in 1880. Dr. 
Slack is a tireless worker, is ever ready 
to respond in kindly sympathy to the 
call of distress, and being still in the 
prime of life there is even yet more dis- 
tinction in store for his unquestioned 
ability. / ''>i- " 

T GUIS T. REED, M.D.— The name of 
-*-^ Reed has become one of wide- 
spread and national distinction. There 
is scarcely a school-boy or girl in the 
well-nigh boundless domain of the great 
American republic, to whom it is not 
familiar. To some families, seem to 
come, in the course of human events, the 
honor of producing men and women, 
whose talents and achievements shed an 
enduring lustre upon the names they 
bear. The name Reed is linked insepar- 
ably with the history of the American 
nation, because individuals of this great 
family have helped to make it. Colonial 
history is full of the valuable services of 
Col. Jacob Reed, who participated in the 
battles of Trenton, German town, Brandy- 
wine and lesser skirmishes, during which 
he rendered valuable service to General 
Washington by his knowledge of this 
territory and its people. 

Dr. Louis T. Reed, a successful physi- 
cian and surgeon of Somerville, New 
Jersey, is the son of Col. Hugh B. and 
Annie E. (Thompson) Reed, and was born 
at Fort Wayne, Ind., Sept. 4, 1859. His 
early education was acquired at the Rut- 
gers grammar school. New Brunswick, 
and he entered the class of 1880 at Rut- i„ 
gers College as a sophomore. At the 
close of this year, he withdrew from col- 
lege and taught school at Millstone, New 
Jersey, in the meantime beginning to 
read medicine with a view of fitting him- 



420 



Biographical Sketches. 



self for the profession, having for his 
2)ieceptors, Drs. J. B. Cornell and J. P. 
Hecht, of Somerville. A year and a 
half later, Dr. Reed entered the College 
of Physicians and Surgeons of New 
York, where he remained one year, and 
finished his medical course at the Jeffer- 
son Medical College of Philadelphia, 
graduating in the class of 1884. The 
same year Dr. Reed began the practice of 
his profession in Washington, D. C, and 
remained there in active practice until 
1890, when he went to Georgia on a 
business trip, and on his return, in 1891, 
removed to Somerville, and has been in 
constant practice there up to the present 
time. Dr. Reed is recording secretarj' of 
the district medical societj^, of Somerset 
county, and is also a member of the 
New Jersey State Medical Association. 
He was county physician for three years 
from 1892 to 1895, and "is a member of 
the Somerville board of health. In fra- 
ternal circles. Dr. Reed is a well-known 
Mason, and is past captain of the Sons 
of Veterans, Camp No. 40, Somerville, 
New Jersey. He is also a member of 
the Episcopal church. 

Col. Hugh B. Reed (father) was a 
native of Ohio, and after passing through 
the common schools, in the course of time 
became engaged in the wholesale drug 
business at Fort Wayne, prior to the 
war. After the attack upon Fort Sum- 
ter, he closed out his business and raised 
two regiments of infixntiy at Fort Wajne, 
and was commissioned colonel of tlie 
Forty-fourth I'egiment, Indiana infantry, 
which he commanded under General 
Grant, and with his regiment participated 
in the gallant attack on Fort Donelson, 
in the battles of Shiloh, Perryville, and 
all the campaigns of Grant up to '63; 
when, owing to broken health, he was 



forced to i-esign. Col. Reed was a brave 
soldier, and at the battle of Shiloh, 
where he was slightly wounded, had two 
horses shot under him. The regimental 
flag, now in possession of Dr. Reed, is an 
eloquent memento of Colonel Reed's hard 
service, being rent to tatters by the balls 
of the enemy. After the war. Colonel 
Reed moved to New Jersey, and soon 
after bought a farm near Somerville, 
where he resided up to the time of his 
death in 1890. For many years he had 
been a member of the Episcopal church, 
and while in the west, was active as an 
official member of the congregation to 
which he belonged. He left four daugh- 
ters and three sons, the eldest being the 
Hon. Charles A. Reed, of Plainfield. 



TDENJAMIN HOLDICH YARD, one of 
-'—^ the most prominent hotel keepers 
in NeAV Jersey, and a leading real-estate 
and insurance jjroker at Spring Lake 
Beach, Monmouth county, is a son of 
Captain Joseph Ashton and Mary Wood- 
ward Sterling Yard, and was born, Jan. 1, 
1843, at a spot in Warren street, which 
in revolutionary times formed a part of 
the Trenton battle ground, New Jersey. 
His mother was a native of Burlington, 
New Jersey, and was of Irish descent. 
Her grandfather was Major James Ster- 
ling, major of the First New Jersej- regi- 
ment, who rendered memorable service 
durins; the Revolutionary war. 

John Wesley Sterling, son of the major, 
and maternal grandfather of Mr. Yard, 
was a native of Burlington county, born 
Oct. 11, 1782, and married, Feb. 29, 1804, 

, to Ann Woodward, of Cream Ridge, 
Monmouth count}-. He carried on the 

j occupation of a farmer at We.sley farm, 
near Burlington, New Jersey, and de- 

^ ceased August 10, 1862. 




C\l^.^yr» 




Biographical Sketches. 



423 



Benjamin H. Yard was educated in the 
public schools, as well as the " Model 
School " of Trenton Normal. He also 
attended private schools in Jersey City 
and the Freehold Institute of Freehold, 
New Jersey. In 1857 he became a drug 
clerk in the employ of his brother in 
New York city. He subsequently en- 
tered the U. S. navy as an apothecarj', 
and afterwards acted as assistant-pay- 
master's clerk. At the time of the in- 
vasion of Pennsylvania, by General 
Robert E. Lee, Mr. Yard enlisted in 
Company I, New Jersey militia, Penn- 
sylvania Emergency corps, July 3, 1863, 
and was made second sergeant under his 
father, who was captain of the company. 
The regiments proceeded to the scene of 
action, and after their discharge was 
voted approbation by the commonwealth 
of Pennsylvania, through Governor Cur- 
tin. During the prevalence of cholera 
in the south in 1866 he was engaged in 
service as a volunteer nurse in Southern 
Mississippi. Prior to 1870 he was en- 
gaged for a time as a broker on Wall 
street. New York city, commencing as a 
clerk and subsequently operating on his 
own account. He was one of the first 
men to engage in wood-pulp fibi-e manu- 
facture, and in 1871 he associated him- 
self with certain capitalists operating 
mills, under the Woodbury patent, at 
Chatham village, near Albany, N. Y. 
The enterprise was successfully handled 
until 1873, when the memorable panic 
of that year closed its doors. Since then 
Mr. Yard has been variously employed. 
He has served four years as bond clerk 
in the office of the sheriff of New York 
city. In 1875 he turned his attention to 
the development of Sea Girt and Spring 
Lake Beach, New Jersey, where he es- 
tablished a real-estate and general insur- 



ance agency. In 1882 he became asso- 
ciated with James H. Buchanan in the 
same business, and also in the fancy gro- 
cer}^ and genei'al merchandising business. 
During the past twenty years Mr. Yard 
has been variously engaged in developing 
shore properties in New Jersey, and, at 
the same time, has been the successful 
manager of a number of hotels. He con- 
ducted the Beach House, at Sea Girt, for 
eight years; opened, in 1884, and man- 
aged Avon Inn, at Avon, formerly Key 
East Beach ; and represented L. U. 
Maltby, during the seasons of 1886 and 
1887, in the management of the Mon- 
mouth House, at Spring Lake Beach. 
He was the lessee and successful proprie- 
tor of Indian Harbor Hotel, Greenwich, 
Conn., for seven years. In the spring of 

1895 Mr. Yard ^eased and operated the 
Hotel Arverne, on Long Island; and in 

1896 became proprietor of the Monmouth 
House, at Spring Lake Beach. He has 
just completed his term of service as the 
seventeenth president of the Hotel Men's 
Mutual Benefit Association of the United 
States and Canada. He served from 
1877 to 1884 as postmaster of Spring 
Lake Beach, and has held other local 
offices in the town. In religious affairs 
he is a trustee of the S^jring Lake Beach 
Methodist Episcopal church, which he 
helped to organize, and to which he has 
always been a liberal contributor. He 
is a freemason and a member of Mercer 
Lodge, No. 50, F. and A. M., at Trenton, 
and has been a Scottish Rite Mason since 
1864. He is a member of the Society of 
the Sons of the American Revolution, 
and is a member of Larchmont Yacht 
Club, at Larchmont, N. Y. He was 
married, November 7, 1883, to Mrs. 
Mary E. Murphj-, widow of the late 
Charles F. Murphy, formerly a Philadel- 



424 



Biographical Sketches. 



2)liia manufacturer, and a daughter of ' 
Roger F. and Eliza A. Ilorton. of the 
same place. Mr. Yard at one time re- 
sided at Farmingdale, Monmouth county, 
but during the past sixteen years he has 
resided at Spring Lake Beach. He owns 
considerable real-estate in and around 
the town ; a portion of Avhich is the build- 
ing and ground occupied by the post- 
office. He has been unifoi'mly successful 
in his real-estate transactions, and has | 
contributed in the highest measure to 
the progress and development of Mon- 
mouth county, and his reputation as a 
" Boniface " is unexcelled. His warm 
hospitality and his genial, whole-souled 
disposition have endeared him to thou- 
sands. 



TirriLLIAM V. STEP:LE, of Somer- 
' ' ville. New Jersey, ex-prosecuting 
attorney, and a prominent member of the 
bar of Somerset county, is a son of the 
late ex-congressman William G. and 
Mary E. Steele {nee Henrj'), and was 
born Feb. 14, 1854, at Somerville, Ncav 
Jersey'. He comes fi-om good ancestrj-. 
He is a grandson on the maternal side ! 
of Major General Peter I. Stryker, a j 
gallant officer of the United States army ' 
during the Revolutionary war. His pa- 
ternal grandfather, Nehemiah V. Steele, 
was a farmer, and resided at Somerville 
during his entire life. He was a democrat 
in politics and represented Somerset ; 
county in the legislature of New Jersey 
for several sessions. He was a member i 
and an elder of the First Reformed 
church, of Somerville, for man}^ years, I 
and was an active and earnest christian. 
He was the father of five children : Wil- 
liam G., Eliza J., John, Mary A., and 
Garrett G. | 

William G. Steele (father) after reach- ^ 



ing manhood became a banker. He sub- 
sequently, in 1867, engaged in the life 
insurance business, and was appointed 
general agent of the Equitable Life, and 
conducted a successful business in that 
line for a number of years. He was a 
democrat in politics, and was always an 
active worker for the success of that 
party. In 1860, the memorable year of 
the quadrilateral political struggle be- 
tween Lincoln, Douglas, Breckinridge, 
and Bell, he received the democratic nom- 
ination for congi'ess in the then Fourth 
New Jersey district, and was triumph- 
antly elected. He served two terms in 
the national House of Representatives 
during that troublous period, 1861-65. 
He was an ardent supporter of his fellow- 
countr3'man. Gen. George B. McClellan, 
during his candidacy in 1864 for the of- 
fice of President of the United States. 
He died April 22, 1892, and is yet sur- 
vived by his widow, a daughter of John 
Henry, formerly a lawyer of Somerville, 
who bore him two children, Mary M., 
and William V. 

William V. Steele received his primarj' 
education at a private school in Somer- 
ville, conducted by the Rev. Mr. Badger, 
and from his tenth to his fifteenth year 
he devoted his time exclusively to the 
stud}^ of Latin and Greek. He then at- 
tended a grammar-school for two years. 
This was followed by an academic course 
of four years at Hope College, Mich., 
from which he was graduated with the 
desrree of A. B. in June. 1875. He was 
invited in 1878, upon receiving the de- 
gree of A. M., to deliver the master's orar 
tion in the college before the class of that 
j^ear. He read law in the office of Hon. 
A. A. Clark, at Somerville, for three 
years, and also attended the Columbia 
Law School at New York. He was 



Biographical Sketches. 



425 



graduated from that school, and ad- 
mitted to the bar m 1878. He contmued 
iu the general practice of law in Somerset 
county for three years. In 1884 he was 
appointed prosecuting attorney for that 
county for a term of five years, and was 
re-appointed to the office in 1889 for a 
like term. He represented the common- 
wealth in four murder trials during his 
incumbency as public prosecutor. In 
one of these he obtained a signal victory 
by securing a conviction against Maurice 
Nolan, and sending him to the peniten- 
tiary, at the third trial of the case. Mr. 
Steele retired from public office two years 
ago, and resumed his general practice. 
In 1895 he associatedhimself with James 
J. Meehan, Esq., in a law partnership, 
under the name of Steele & Meehan. Mr. 
Steele has the reputation of being a good 
criminal lawyer. He is at present en- 
gaged in the defence of Jacob S. John- 
ston, who is charged with the murder of 
Anna Rogers, and of Elmer Clawson, 
who is charged with the murder of Harry 
Hodgett. He is a democrat in politics, 
and is extremely popular with the 
younger element of that party. He has 
been an active member of the National 
Guard of New Jersey, and was appointed 
adjutant of the Second Battalion, Third 
Regiment, in 1898. 



SHEPARD KOLLOCK, gentleman, liv- 
ing in retirement at Red Bank, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, is a son of 
Isaac Arnett and Elizabeth Cox Kollock, 
and was born Aug. 19, 1813, in Burling- 
ton, Burlington county. New Jersey. 
The Kollock family originally flourished 
in France, where the name was known 
as Colloque for many generations prior to 
the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes 

22 



in 1685. After that event the family, 
being Huguenots, fled to The Hague, 
whence later they came with a band of ' 
other refugees to America and settled in 
Baltimore, Md., where the head of the 
fixmily engaged in mercantile business, 
fivially removing to Dover, Del. 

Shepard Kollock (grandfather) was 
born in 1750, at Lewes, and subsequently 
removed to New York city, becoming a 
printer by trade and a publisher by occu- 
pation. In this capacity he will never 
be forgotten so long as the city of New 
York exists, inasmuch as he was printer 
of the first directory of that city ever 
published, in 1785. He espoused in 
vigorous terms the cause of the colonies 
during the Revolution, for which he was 
obliged to leave the city when occupied 
by the British. He I'epaired to General 
Washington's headquarters on Long 
Island, where he received a captain's 
commission, and served in the army for 
three and a half years, when he resigned. 
He then started a newspaper at Chatham, 
New Jersey, called the New Jersey Jour- 
nal, now published as a daily at Eliza- 
beth, in the columns of which he took a 
strong position in behalf of the colonists. 
He thus rendered himself so odious that 
the tories off'ered a large reward for his 
capture and delivery within their lines. 
This obliged the drastic writer to seek 
seclusion amidst the swamps for a time, 
but did not suspend the regular ap- 
pearance of the periodical. In 1820 he 
sold out his printing establishments, and 
on April 8, 1822, he was appointed post- 
master of Elizabeth. From this position 
he was finally removed April 13, 1829, 
by Andrew Jackson, because of his strong 
partisanship, his successor being Thomas 
B. C. Dayton. Upon the application of 
his friends Congress passed a special act 



426 



Biographical Sketches. 



authorizing the jjayment to him of a pen- 
sion of" four hundred dollars per annum, 
in which matter he was efficiently and 
I'aithfuUy represented by Peter Vreden- 
burgh, of Freehold, and Bennington Ran- 
dolph, of Essex, two lawyers of distinc- 
tion. He was one of the original charter 
members of the Cincinnati, and wag for 
man}' 3'ears a judge of the circuit court 
of Ef'sex count}'. He deceased Jul}' 25, 
1839, in Philadelphia, at the age of 
eighty-eight years. His marriage, Sept. 
30, 175G, to Susan Ai-nett, likewise of 
Huguenot stock, resulted in a family of 
ten children, some of -whom we name 
and describe : Henry KoUock, D. D., 
born Dec. 1-4, 1778, died December 29, 
1819. He was one of the most eloquent 
preachers of the day, and was called the 
" Whitfield of America." Mary God- 
dard Kollock married Chief Justice Fred- 
erick Nash, of North Carolina. Sally H. 
Kollock, married first to Judge Samuel 
King, and then to Judge Harris, both of 
Newberne, N. C. Henrietta B. Kollock, 
who married Rev. John McDowell, for 
many }ears pastor of the First Presby- 
terian church at Elizabeth, New Jersey. 
Isaac Arnett Kollock died at Fortress 
Monroe. Jane Hay Kollock mai'ried Rev. 
Wm. A. McDowell, D. D. Susan Davis 
Kollock married Rev. John Witherspoon, 
a son of John W. Witherspoon, one of 
the signers of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence ; Rev. Shepard Kosciusko Kol- 
lock, and Lydia Austin Kollock. Tiie 
Kollock family divided on the question 
of the war of 1776, some of Capt. Kol- 
lock's brothers favoring the struggle, 
others opposing it. Simon Kollock, a 
brothel- of the captain, was a tory. He 
was born at Lewes, Delaware, in 1745, 
joined the British army wherein he like- 
wise rose t) the rank of captain ; his 



property was confi.scated, and when the 
British surrendered he fled to Nova Scotia, 
where he died an exile from his kin, in 
1832, after receiving, duinng many years, 
a pension from the English government. 
Capt. Shepard Kollock at one time was 
a courier for General Washington, bear- 
ing important dispatches from him to 
Benedict Arnold, and to the Continental 
Congress. 

Shepard Kollock removed in the year 
1832 from Burlington county to the 
county of Monmouth, and settled at Red 
Bank, where he has resided ever since. 
He spent his earlier life as a farmer, and 
subsequentl}' was engaged in a general 
merchandise business on the dock for a 
period of ten years. He then returned 
to the farm and continued in successful 
agi-iculture for twelve years, after which 
he entered into the employ of Parker & 
Chadwick, lumber dealers, and remained 
with that house for twenty-one years. 
After leaving Parker & Chadwick Mr. 
KoUock's services were engaged by J. 
TrafFord Allen, a lumber merchant, to 
whom he devoted the succeeding three 
years. In 1884 he discontinued all busi- 
ness, and is spending his declining years 
in quiet retirement at Red Bank. In 
politics he was a whig in former days, 
and a warm admirer of General Han'ison, 
who he vigorously supported for the 
presidency. At the present tiuie he is a 
prohibitionist. Mr. Kollock served five 
years as overseer of the poor, and was 
twice elected a justice of the peace. Be- 
Ibre his marriage he was a presbyterian, 
but a member of the Episcopal church 
ever since. He has been a mason for 
thirt}"-five years, and is now the venera- 
able chaplain of Mystic Brotherhood, 
No. 21, F. and A. M., at Red Bank. Mr. 
Kollock was married November 9, 1833, 



Biographical Sketches. 



427 



to Haunah Piutard Tilton, by whom lie 
had a family of nine children. His wife 
deceased in 1853, at the age of thirty- 
eight 3^ears, and he subsequently married 
Elizabeth C. Tilton, a sister of his former 
Avife, to which marriage Avere also born 
five children. The}^ were daughters of 
Samuel Tilton, a son of Clayton Tilton, 
who was the leader of a band of royalists 
which greatly terrorized the patriotic peo- 
ple of New Jersey during the Revolution. 



TJ^RANK DALTON, the genial proprie- 
-L tor of the Dalton House on Third 
avenue, at Long Branch, New Jersey, is 
a son of Robert J. and Rosamond A. 
Sparks Dalton and was born on Feb. 12, 
1853, in Jersey City. The family is of 
French origin, and the name has under- 
gone in this country a modification from 
the primordial one, De Alton. The grand- 
father, Robert Dalton, was a mei'chant 
at Black Heath, England, inherited the 
business from his father and conducted 
the same for many years. 

Robert J. Dalton (father) was born 
April 6, 1827, at Black Heath, county 
of Kent, England, and was sent at a 
suitable age to Rugby College for the ac- 
quirement of his education. Before com- 
pleting his course he ran away from col- 
lege, and shipped as a seaman on a ves- 
sel of the Cunard line and remained in 
that occupation for a few years. He sub- 
sequently married and settled in Jersey 
City, where for a time he managed the 
Atlantic Hotel for its owner, John B. 
Ray. Later he went into the real-estate 
business, which he conducted with much 
profit until his death, that occurred Jan. 
10, 1881, and was also engaged in specu- 
lating on Wall street. His wife's maiden 
name was Rosamond Ann Sparks, and 



she was born Jan. 24, 1832, at Chatham in 
the county of Kent, England. Their 
marriage occurred in Jersey City, Hud- 
son county, and she deceased Dec. 30, 
1873, in the same city, after bearing eight 
children : Frank, the subject, born Feb. 
12, 1853, as heretofore stated ; Edwin R., 
born Jan. 31, 1855 ; Leon, born June 17, 
1857; William Henry, born Jan. 6, 
1860; Arthur, born Jan. 4, 1862; Rosa- 
mond, born July 3, 1864 ; Adaline, twin 
sister of Rosamond, died in infancy ; and 
May Ella, born Dec. 22, 1869, married 
to James Beatty of Brooklyn, N. Y. 

Frank Dalton received a common- 
school education after which, at the in- 
stance of his mother, he was sent to 
learn the carpenter trade with George 
Throckmorton, which he followed for 
twelve years. Subsequently, after a 
period of four years spent at home and 
assisting his father in a general way, he 
opened a summer hotel on a ti;act of 
land ten acres in extent at Goose Neck, 
on the Shrewsbury river. Here he was 
married Jan. 7, 1877, to Maretta Hamp- 
ton, a daughter of James Hampton, by 
whom he had two children : Hattie Ros- 
well, born July 22, 1879 ; and Arthur, 
deceased, aged five months. In 1892 
Mr. Dalton became proprietor of the 
Third avenue, or Dalton House, at Long 
Branch, his present business and location, 
and since that time has conducted a suc- 
cessful and well-appointed hotel. He is 
a democrat in full sympathy and accord 
with his party, but not especially active 
in its affairs nor is he an aspirant for 
public office. He is a member and the 
secretary of the Liquor Dealers' Associa- 
tion of Monmouth county ; a member of 
Long Branch Lodge, No. 78, Free and 
Accepted Masons ; and a member of 
Takanassee Tribe, No. 158, I. 0. R. M. 



428 



Biographical Sketches. 



In the order of Red Men he has been in- 
vested with the " Side degree," other- 
wise known as " Haymakers." Mr. Dal- 
ton was formerly a Knight of Pythias ; 
bat he left that order on account of a 
misunderstanding with the lodge. His 
wife deceased Mai'ch 10, 1881, and on 
Jan. 26, 1886, he married again, his pres- 
ent wife being Isabella C. Byers, a 
daughter of Robert Byers, a resident of 
Cornwall-on-the-Hudson. To this mar- 
riage have been born five children : 
Robert, born Jan. 7, 1887 ; David, born 
May 3, 1889 ; an un-named infant, de- 
ceased; Jessie Isabel, born March 18, 
1891 ; and John Palmer Bloomer, born 
May 12, 1895. Mr. Dalton is an ex- 
tremely popular hotel-man and a gentle- 
man of pleasing address, obliging man- 
ners and of broad-gauged, generous ideas. 
His patronage is a large and profitable 
one, and his affairs are in a deservedly 
flourishing condition. 



TpDWARD KEASBEY, president of the 
-*-^ Rai'itan Hollow and Porous Brick 
Co., and an old and highly-esteemed citi- 
zen residing at Perth Amboy, New Jei*- 
sey, is a son of Edward, 2d, and Marj- 
Pany Keasbey, and was born Aug., 1827, 
at Salem, New Jersej'. He received his 
education in the public schools of Salem 
county. At the age of sixteen 3^ears he 
took charge of one of his father's farms 
in that county for the ensuing twelve 
years. He subsequentl\' for one 3'ear 
was in the employ of the Panama rail- 
road on the Isthmus of Panama. He 
afterwards returned to New Jersey, and 
for five years was superintendent of a 
horse-car line between Irvington and 
Newark. In 1869 he came to Perth 
Amboy, where he became interested in 



clay mining and brick manufacturing, 
and in 1882 organized the present Rari- 
tan Hollow and Porous Brick Co., of 
which he has been president ever since. 
Politically he is a republican, and an 
earnest advocate of all its principles. 
Religiously, he is a member and president 
of the board of trustees of the First 
Baptist church at Perth Ambo3^ He has 
been three times married. By his first 
wife, Maiy Ann Griffith, who he mar- 
ried in Maj^, 1848, were born three chil- 
dren : Henry Griffith, Marj^ Parry, who 
married F. A. Hardy, of Chicago; and 
Robert A. His first Avife deceased in 
March, 1860. For his second wife he 
married Louise Pothier, March, 186.3, 
who deceased in Juh*, 1893, having born 
one child, Dr. William P., whose sketch 
appears elsewhere in this volume. In 
Aug., 1895, he was united in marriage 
with Mrs. Sarah Steele, of Somerville, 
New Jersey. Mr. Keasbey has been a 
successful business man, a good citizen, 
and commands the entire respect of the 
community in which he resides. 

As the originator of the extensive 
enterprise of which lie is the president, in 
the extent of emploAinent and labor 
which he has thus provided, he deserves 
to be ranked among the leading bene- 
factors of his town. 

Antlion}^ Keasbey (grandfather), of 
whom but little authentic tradition is 
known, Avas a son of Edward Keasbey, 
and at one time served as surrogate of 
Salem county, New Jersey, where by 
occupation he was a farmer. His chil- 
dren were : Matthew, Edward, 2d ; Wil- 
liam, Prudence, Rebecca, Hannah and 
Annie. 

Edward Keasbe}', 2d (father), after 
acquiring a common-school education, 
took a medical course at the medical col- 



Biographical Sketches. 



431 



lege at Philadelphia, entered upon a suc- 
cessful practice as a physician in Salem 
county, and deceased in the harness in 
1846. He became the owner of con- 
siderable land in and around his neigh- 
borhood. In politics he was an old-line 
whig, and in religious matters he wor- 
shiped with the Baptists. His wife's 
maiden name was Mary Parry Aertsen, 
to whom he was married in 1818 ; she de- 
ceased in 1872. They were the parents 
of six children : Helen A., Annie, who 
married Wheeler H. Peckham, of New 
York city; Anthony, Quinton Edward, 
Mary, and Maria Louise, both deceased. 



nV/TINOR BROWN, an active young , 
-^-^ farmer of Holmdel, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, is a son of William 
and Harriet Skilton Brown, and was born 
March 17, 1874, at Holmdel. He is of 
English descent, his grandfather being a 
native of England, and his father a native 
of Canada. 

William Brown (father) was born Feb. 
22, 1825, at Toronto, Canada. He ac- 
quired a common-school education, and 
his avocation was that of a horse-dealer 
and trainer of thoroughbred horses. In 
1865 he came to this country, settled at 
Holmdel, and carried on the business 
above mentioned up to within thi^ee 
years of his death. During those three 
years that ensued he lived in retirement. 
Religiously he was a member of the 
Dutch Reformed church, and in politics 
he embraced the Republican faith. His 
wife, Harriet Skilton, who he wedded 
in 1864, is still living at Holmdel, having 
survived her consort since 1881. They 
. were the parents of two children : Wil- 
liam, deceased; and Minor. 

Minor Brown received his earlier edu- 



cation in the common schools of Holmdel 
township. This was followed by a course 
of three years at the Freehold Institute, 
Freehold, New Jersey, and later by six 
months' training in Stewart's Business 
College, at Trenton. He chose the occu- 
pation of an agriculturist, and is now 
engaged in that business on a productive 
farm of one hundred and twenty-three 
acres, which he owns, near Holmdel, and 
which he has brought to a high state of 
perfection. Politically Mr. Brown is a 
republican ; in religion he is a member 
of the Dutch Reformed church of Holm- 
del ; and in fraternal affairs he is a mem- 
ber of Holmdel Council., No. 132, Jr. 0. 
U. A. M. 

Mr. Brown was wedded January 1, 
1896, to Dora Til ton, a daughter of Syl- 
vester and Cornelia Tilton, of Holmdel, 
New Jersey, and commenced life's duties 
under most favorable auspices. Although 
a young man he is shrewd and careful in 
the conduct of his affairs, and his educa- 
tion and business training have peculiarly 
qualified him to grasp in an able and in- 
telligent manner all the details involved 
in successful agriculture. 



T3UFUS BLODGETT, of Long Branch, 
-L^ New Jersey, was born at Dorches- 
ter, N. H., on Oct. 9, 1834. His parents 
were Jeremiah and Amanda Johnson 
Blodgett. 

Mr. Blodgett's educational advantages 
were only such as he obtained at the 
common schools and at the Wentworth 
(N. H.) Academy. At an early age he 
engaged with the Amoskeag Locomotive 
Works, at Manchester, N. H., to learn loco- 
motive building. After completing his 
trade he followed it for several years in 
his native state and at New Haven, Conn. 



432 



Biographical Sketches. 



In 1866 he was appointed master mechanic 
of the New Jersey Southern railroad, 
and in 1874 became its superintendent, 
remaining in that capacity until 1884, 
when he was made superintendent of the 
New York and Long Branch railroad, 
which position he still holds. 

Mr. Blodgett took an active part in 
political aflairs. He was director of the 
board of chosen freeholders for Ocean 
county, New Jersey, and was elected a 
member of the New Jersey assembly for 
the years 1877, '78 and '79. In the lat- 
ler year he was the candidate of his party 
for speaker. He Avas a district delegate to 
the National Democratic convention of 

1880, and a delegate-at-large to the recent 
convention which nominated Bryan and 
Sewall. I 

Mr. Blodgett served as chairman of 
the Democratic state committee during 
the contest of 1884. He was a candi- 
date for the gubernatorial nomination of 
the Democratic party in 1886, and, after 
a bitter contest, was defeated by Robert 
S. Green on a close vote. In 1887 Mr. 
Blodgett was elected United States sena- 
tor, serving his full term of six years. 
He assisted in organizing the First Na- 
tional Bank of Long Branch, and became 
its president, and still holds that office. 
lie is also a director of the First National 
Bank of Princeton, New Jersey, and of 
the Long Branch Water-Supply Co. He ' 
Avas elected mayor of Long Branch in 
1893, and was re-elected in 1894 and '95. 

Jeremiah Blodgett (father) was born at 
Hudson. N. II. (formerly called " Not- 
tingham West "), on March 10, 1806, and 
died at New Haven, Conn., on August 2, 

1881. He was a man of prominence in 
his native state, having been many times 
a member of the legislature ; a member 
of two constitutional conventions which 



amended the constitution of that state, 
and also a member of the governor's 
council for the years 1873 and 1875. 

Ashael Blodgett (grandfather) was born 
at Hudson, N. H., Jan. 19, 1756, and 
died at Dorchester, N. H., June 2, 1842. 
He served in the war of the Revolution 
during the years 1777 and 1778. On 
the maternal side, Mr. Blodgett's great- 
grandfather, Samuel Johnson, Avas born 
at Sutton, N. H., in 1755, and died at 
Wentworth, N. H., July 25, 1847. He 
served with distinction in the war of the 
ReA'olution, for Avhich he received a pen- 
sion of eight dollars per month until the 
time of his death. 

William Brown, a great-grandfather 
also on the maternal side, born in Eng- 
land, on the river Trent, about 1753, 
came to this country in 1772. At the 
breaking out of hostilities betAveen the 
colonies and the mother-country, he en- 
listed on board the frigate " Boston " and 
sailed from Moonhead, noAV called Mar- 
blehead, under Cajitain Samuel Tucker. 
During the term of his enlistment that 
vessel Avas used to transport John Adams, 
the elder, as minister to France. Mr. 
Adams Avas accompanied by his son, John 
Quincy Adams, then a lad twelve years 
of age. For Mr. Brown's service to his 
adopted country he also receiA'ed a pen- 
sion up to the time of his death. 



T WEED NAFEW, a prominent and suc- 
" • cessful druggist of EatontoAA'n, Mon- 
mouth count}', NcAV JerscA', is a son of 
John and Mary Nafew, and Avas born at 
Albany, N. Y., July 25, 1851. His pa. 
ternal ancestors Avei'e of Avorthy French 
Huguenot stock, and suffered persecuticm 
for conscience sake. Hunted from their 
homes they came to America in the early 



Biographical Sketches. 



433 



part of the seventeenth century, and 
found a roj'al welcome in the state of New 
York, where their descendants have 
borne an honorable part in the establish- 
ment of our republic. His maternal an- 
cestors were of English descent, and set- 
tled in New York state at an early date, 
figuring in the pioneer life of this countr}^ 

Francis Nafew (grandfather) was born 
at Saratoga, N. Y., and lived and died at 
that place. He was a miller by trade 
and followed that craft all his life. He 
married Mary Jones, and they became the 
parents of four children : William, Samuel, 
John, and David. 

John Nafew (father) was born at Troy, 
N. Y., in 1817, and acquired a good com- 
mon-school education. Leaving school 
he learned the trade of a compositor with 
Charles Hooper. He followed this trade 
until about 1847, when he entered poli- 
tics, in which he attained considerable 
prominence. He was a democrat and 
served as clerk of the New York state as- 
sembly in 1853. During this time he 
was offered the nomination for state sen- 
ator of his district, but declined to accept 
the honor. In 1865 he removed to New 
York city, where he spent the remainder 
of his life in happy retirement, dying in 
1872. He married Mary Weaver, by 
whom he had seven children : John, 
Henry, Mary, Charles, J. Weed, David, 
and Jane. 

Mr. Nafew's education was obtained in 
the public schools of Brooklyn, N. Y., 
and in 1866 he began learning the drug 
business in New York city and Brook- 
lyn. Having learned the business, he 
continued it there until 1873, when he 
removed to Springfield, 111. He remained 
there, however, but one year, when he 
accepted a clerkship at Northport, N. Y. 
In 1876 he returned to Springfield, and 



in 1881 removed to Eatontown, where 
he has since resided, engaged in the drug 
trade. He is a careful business man, and 
has established a large and remunerative 
patronage. In politics he is a staunch 
and loyal republican, and has served as 
trustee of the Eatontown schools, and was 
postmaster of that town during Harri- 
son's administration. In 1875 Mr. Nafew 
and Miss Ada Byron Mclntire, a daugh- 
ter of B. L. Mclntire, of Springfield, 111., 
were married, and to them have been 
born one child, a daughter, Archie Ca Rue 
Nafew. 



A F. BEDLE, proprietor of the largest 
-^-^' undertaking establishment in Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, at Key port, 
is a son of William and Jane (Morrell) 
Bedle, and was born Nov. 15, 1853, at 
Keyport, where he has always resided. 
The paternal grandfather, Thomas Bedle, 
was born at Rock Brook, near Keyport, 
in 1777. He learned the carpenter trade, 
but for some reason he never followed it 
as an occupation, and made the business 
of milling his life employment, in which 
he was engaged at Keyport. Politically 
he was a democrat, and in religion a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church at 
Bethany. He was married to Elizabeth 
Aumack. The former died June 9, 1847, 
the latter March 14, 1850. They were 
the parents of eleven children : Sarah, 
married to Samuel Carhart, of Keyport ; 
Mary, wife of Leonard HofF, of Keyport ; 
Ann, now Mrs. Stephen Van Brakle, of 
Holmdel ; William, Richard, Susan, wife 
of G. S. Wharton, of Philadelphia ; Eliza- 
beth, married to William Van Dine, of 
Keyport ; Leonard B., Almira, widow of 
Daniel W. Holmes, and subsequently 
married to George H. Barton, of Holm- 
del ; and James. Two children died in in- 



434 



Biographical Sketches. 



fancj'. Thomas Bedle, Sr. (great-grand- 
father) wa8 a native of NeAv Jersey. Bj' 
occupation he was a tanner, and in poli- 
tics a democrat. His wife, whose maiden 
name was Lucretia Hoft, bore him twelve 
children : Joel, Thomas, Richard, Joseph, 
James, Martha, who mai'ried John Stout, 
of near Keyport; Mary, Lydia, who be- 
came the Avife of Archibald Burrowes ; 
Elizabeth, Sarah, Katharine, and Nan- 
nie. 

William Bedle (father) was born near 
Keyport, Monmouth county, New Jersey, 
in 1808. He received a common-school 
education, learned the trade of a wheel- 
wright, and followed that avocation for 
twelve 3-ears. In 1845 he opened an 
undertaking establishment at Kejport, 
to which he afterwards admitted his son 
William in partnership. He is a pro- 
hibitionist and a member of the Metho 
(list Episcopal church at Ke3^port. A 
large family of children was gathered 
about his hearthstone : Henrietta, de- 
ceased at an early age ; Albert F., James 
H., William, Jr., Septimus, Thoma.s, Mel- 
ville C, Marv Elizabeth, Maraaret J.. 
Sarah, and Vienna. 

A. F. Bedle derived his education from 
the public schools of Keyport. After 
leaving school he engaged with his father 
to learn the undertaking business. He 
succeeded so rapidly and became such a 
complete master of the business in all its 
details that his lather gave him an inter- 
est in the establishment, which thence- 
forth, to the present time, has been known 
as William Bedle & Son. In politics he 
is a re{)ublican. He was elected assessor 
of Keyport in 1885, and to membership 
on the board of commissioners of that 
town in 1879. He is a member of sev- 
eral secret societies in Keyport: Csesarea 
Lodge, No. 64, F. and A. M.; Bay Side 



Lodge, No. 193, I. 0. 0. F., and Chinga- 
wea Tribe, No. IIG, I. 0. R. M. 

Mr. Bedle was married April 9, 1873, 
to May A. Griffith, daugliter of Robert 
and Margaret Griffith, of Matawan. 
They are the parents of five children : 
Lillian B., Norman L., Robert G., Har- 
vey S., and Flora A. Mr. Bedle is a 
good business man as well as a very 
prosperous one, and he has secured the 
respect of all his fellow-citizens of Key- 
port and of its environs by the probity of 
his character. 



T NEAFIE JOHNSON, postmaster and 
^ • an active business man of Freehold, 
was born in Howell township, Monmouth 
count}-, New Jersej-, on Feb. 16, 1862, 
and is the fifth son of J. K. and Charity 
A. (Taylor) Johnson. 

J. K. Johnson (father) owned and 
operated a farm of seventy acres in How- 
ell township, and also owned marl-pits 
in Lower Squankum township, Mon- 
mouth county. He married Charity A. 
Ta3lor, and their children, six in num- 
ber — all of them born in Howell town- 
ship — were : William L., Austin P., at 
present the town marshal of Freehold 
and court crier of Monmouth county ; 
Elizabeth, wife of Joseph Tajdor, grocer, 
at Ocean Grove ; Granden V., deceased, 
who was a merchant at Freehold ; J. 
Xeafie, and Emma, who died in infancy. 
In 1862 he bought a farm near Turke}", 
Monmouth county, upon which lie re- 
sided until his death seven years later. 
He was survived by his wife, Charity, 
who is yet living. He was a staunch 
democrat, and a zealous member of the 
Methodist church at Bethesda. 

J. Neafie Johnson, at the age of twelve 
years, was placed upon his own resources 



Biographical Sketches. 



435 



for making his way in life and earning a 
livelihood. He followed various employ- 
ments, at different places during the 
summer, and resided with an uncle, John 
Neafie, a prominent citizen of Freehold, 
during the winter, where he pursued ir- 
regularly the acquisition of a rudimen- 
tary education. At the age of sixteen 
he entered the employ of his brother, 
Austin P., then a butcher at Freehold, 
with whom he remained up to the age of 
twenty years, at which time by untiring 
industry and strict economy he had suc- 
ceeded in saving sufficient margin of his 
small earnings to enable him to purchase 
an interest in his brother's business. He 
remained associated with his brother in 
this business relation under the caption 
of Johnson Brothers, located at 2-3 East 
Main street, until 1879, when he pur- 
chased his brother's interest, became the 
sole proprietor, and has continued to 
operate the business alone ever since. 
His business so prospered that he soon 
was enabled to purchase a one-half inter- 
est in the old " Briar Hill " farm, which 
is notorious for having been the ground 
upon which Lee overhauled the British 
army during the Revolution, and which 
would have been the battle-field of the 
battle of Monmouth had Lee stood his 
ground. One of the numerous tablets 
that have been erected at various points 
of the battle-ground in commemoration 
of this the scene of the state's greatest 
conflict, is erected on this farm. 

On Dec. 6, 1884, he was united in 
marriage with Miss Jenny, a daughter of 
John H. Buck, of Freehold, which union 
has been blessed with two children : 
Emma N., and John B. He is a member 
of the Second Reformed church, for 
which he served in the capacity of clerk 
for two years. He was one of the board 



of commissioners of Freehold for two 
terms, but was obliged to resign at the 
expiration of the second term to accept 
the appointment of postmaster at Free- 
hold, which position he occupies at the 
present time. He served on the board 
of education for two years, but resigned 
at the expiration of that time, when he 
was elected as monitor for both parties. 
In 1893 he removed from the " Briar 
Hill " farm back to Freehold, and in 1895 
purchased the site and built the hand- 
some cottage which is his present resi- 
dence. He is a pi'ominent member of 
the Freehold board of trade, and deeply 
interested in the advancement of the 
prosperity and general welfare of the 
town. He is a staunch democrat, and 
always active in the best interests of his 
party. In 1896 he was offered by his 
friends the postmastership of Freehold, 
and his petition was signed by four hun- 
dred and eighty-nine voters, among 
whose names are found all of the county 
officials and the best citizens of Freehold, 
highly attesting Mr. Johnson's popularity 
as a citizen. Among those who pressed 
his appointment were ex-Congressman 
Geisenheimer and Senator James Smith, 
and on Feb. 5, 1896, Mr. Johnson was 
duly commissioned. He is a member of 
Olive Branch Lodge, No. 16 F. and A. 
M. ; Alpine Lodge, No. 69, Knights of 
Pythias ; and Keith Council, Royal Ar- 
canum. 



rpHOMAS REDHING, one of the most 
-^ energetic and successful business 
men of Perth Amboy, is an Englishman 
by birth, having been born at Northamp- 
tonshire, England, Sept. 23, 1849. His 
parents were John and Anna Barret 
Redhing. His paternal grandfather left 
four children : Michael, March, John, 



436 



Biographical Sketches. 



and Daniel. John Redhing (father) was 
possessed of a good common-school educa- 
tion, and learned the trade of a shoe- 
maker, which he abandoned to accept 
a position as private coachman to a 
prominent family of wealth at Oun- 
dle. He remained with this family 
for thirty-three years. He was a very 
strict member of the Episcopal church, as 
also was his wife. To them were born 
thirteen children, of which the subject 
of this sketch was the fourth, some of the 
others being : Rosanna, Michael, David, 
Eliza, Emilicent, Charles, George, and 
Martha, deceased. 

Thomas Redhing was so unfortunately 
circumstanced during his early years that, 
after having been able to secure but three 
weeks' schooling, he was compelled to 
enter a mill and work for his daily sus- 
tenance. After passing several years in 
this mill he determined to better himself 
and, therefore, emigrated to this country. 
This was in 1871, and he was then twen- 
ty-one years of age. Previous to this he 
had come to the realization of hoAV im- 
portant a factor in his life education might 
be made to be, and set himself zealously 
to the task of learning to read and 
write. i 

Coming to Perth Amboy he embarked 
in the contracting business : grading, 
digging, paving, etc., and making a 
specialty of house-moving. This business 
has continued to grow and expand under 
his oneim'tic and intelligent mananement. 
and it is now so extensive that it re- 
quires the aid of eighty-three men and 
twenty-eight horses. Mr. Redhing has 
had many vicissitudes during his business 
career, but as his motto has always been 
to "keeji moving," he has never allowed 
any misfortune to wither his courage or 
cause him to lessen his effort. Burned 



out at one time with a loss of everything 
he had in the world, a total of not less 
than ten thousand dollars, he made this 
misfortune a stimulant to his energ}- and 
re-commenced the battle of life with re- 
newed vigor. 

Mr. Redhing is essentially, and in the 
best sense of the word, a self-made man. 
Beginning life's struggle hampered by 
poverty and complete lack of education, 
he has by sheer force of character, in- 
domitable will, and the possession of a 
sterling integrity, his word being accepted 
b\' eveiy one who knows him as his 
bond, succeeded in becoming a man of 
practical intelligence in current affairs, a 
successful man of business, and a highly 
respected and esteemed citizen. Mr. 
Redhing's political affiliations are with 
the Republicans, but he has never taken 
any active part in political affairs. He 
was a freeholder for one term ; has been 
a member of the I.O.O. F. since 1874 ; is 
a member of the Knights of Pythias; 
a member of the fire department; was 
foreman of the Washington Hose Com- 
pan}', and is a member of the Exempt 
Firemen's Association. On Nov. 25, 
1874, he was united in marriage to Mary 
Ann Munn, and their union has been 
blessed with seven children : George, 
Earnest, deceased ; Albert Stephen, Mary 
Emma, Earl D., Eva H., Bertha L. and 
Cora deceased, Aug. 12, 1896, at the age 
of seven years. 



TpRANZ ROESSLER, vice-president and 
^ general manager of the Roessler & 
Hasslacher Chemical Co., whose prin- 
cipal offices are in New York city, and 
whose factories are located at Perth Am- 
boy, New Jersey, is a son of Frederick 
and Marie (Andrea?) Roessler, and was 



Biographical Sketches. 



437 



born, December 6, 1856, at Frankfort-on- 
the-Main, in Prussia. 

His father was a native of Frankfort- 
on-the-Main, and resided in that city dur- 
ing his entire life. He became a metal- 
lurgist hy occupation, and occupied the 
responsible position of assay-master in 
the Frankfort mint until within ten 
years of his death, which occurred in 
1883. He was the father of a large 
family. 

Franz Roessler received his rudimental 
education in the free schools of Frank- 
fort; afterwards supplemented by a lib- 
eral training in the college at Zurich, 
Switzerland. He subsequently attended 
the School of Mining at Freiberg, in the 
Kingdom of Saxony, where he obtained 
a thorough course in mining, metallurgy, 
and general chemistry. He completed his 
education in 1879, and settled in Berlin^ 
then a city of neai'ly 800,000 inhabitants, 
where he opened a laboratory for assay- 
ing metals. He developed unusual abil- 
ity in this profession, and soon became 
recognized as a competent authority on all 
metallurgical subjects. He also attained 
an excellent reputation in Prussia's cap- 
ital as an expert chemist. He emigrated 
to this country in 1882, on a prospecting 
tour, and for two years was engaged in 
Brooklyn as a manufacturer of liquid 
colors for ceramic decoration. He be- 
came satisfied that in this country lay 
the opportunity for the successful em- 
ployment of large capital in the chemi- 
cal business, and decided to make his 
stay in America permanent. In 1884 he 
founded the present extensive establish- 
ment at Perth Amboy, known as the 
Roessler & Hasslacher Chemical Co. ; a 
corporation formed under the laws of 
New Jersey for the purpose of carrying 
on a chemical business with a wide range 



of purpose : the manufacture of acetone, 
chloroform, cyanide of potassium, metal 
oxides, ceramic colors, and a large line of 
general chemicals. Mr. Roessler person- 
ally superintended the construction af 
the company's large plant, which com- 
prises four separate factories, and which 
are known, respectively, as " The Chlor- 
oform Building," " The Cyanide of Potas- 
sium Building," "The Acetone Building," 
and " The Dye and Liquid Colors Build- 
ing." In the last named building are 
manufactured all colors used in decorat- 
ing china- and glass-ware. It is the 
most complete establishment of its kind 
in the country, and rests upon a solid 
financial basis. Its capital stock, $250,- 
000, is carefully and successfully man- 
aged by the following officers : Jacob 
Hasslacher, of New York city, president ; 
Franz Roessler, of Perth Amboy, vice- 
president and general manager; Alex- 
ander Schneider, of Frankfort-on-the- 
Main, and John K. Creevy, of New 
York city, directors ; and William A. 
Hamann, of New York city, secretary. 
I The company's principal office is at No. 
73 Pine street. New York ; and it has a 
branch office at No. 56 Fifth avenue, 
Chicago, under the management of F. C. 
Schapper. It has also branch offices 
in Berlin, Vienna, and other European 
cities. In addition to manufacturing the 
company does a commission business in 
acids, ammonias, various oils, textile and 
aniline colors, and a variety of other 
chemicals and chemical preparations used 
in pharmacy and in the arts. Mr. Roess- 
ler's company is the owner of the cele- 
brated gold and silver brand sulphate of 
quinine, and is a representative of the 
" Quinine Factory Auerbach," of Berlin. 
It also represents the German Gold and 
Silver Refinery (late Roessler), and the 



438 



Biographical Sketches. 



Griesheim Chemical Works, both at 
Frankfort-on-the-Main ; and the Aluinin- 
iuin Co., limited, of London and Old- 
bury, Worcestershire, England. Mr. 
Roessler, in his capacity as manager of 
the chemical works, gives employment 
to forty-two men of Perth Amboy. He 
is pi'esident of the Niagara Electro-Chem- 
ical Co., organized at New York city in 
1896, with a capital of $100,000, for the 
manufacture of sodium and its peroxyd 
on an extensive scale. The plant at this 
writing is nearly completed and ready 
for business. 

Mr. Roessler was united in marriage. 
May 11, 1890, to Elizabeth Kuechler, a 
daughter of George J. Kuechler. They 
are the parents of three children : Maria, 
Hans, and Fritz. Mr. Roessler was for a 
time a member of the Tax-Payers' Asso- 
ciation of Perth Amboy. He is an inde- 
pendent in politics, and a liberal-minded 
and progressive citizen; has never sought 
nor held office, but has devoted his evei'y 
energy to his business, which he has 
made a success, and to his art, of which 
he is a master. 



"A/TRS. LENA H. DANZ, proprietress 
-^-^ of the Lake hotel at New Market, 
New Jersey, was born in Sweden, Oct. 
14, 1848, and in 1872 left her native land 
to seek a home and new associations in 
America. She resided in Brooklyn, N. 
Y., until after her marriage, and then re- 
moved to Plain field, thence to New Mar- 
ket, this state, her present place of abode. 
Her late husband, Herman Danz, was 
a native of the German empire, born 
June 25, 1849, and at the age of twenty- 
four, in 1873, emigrated to the United 
States. He resided most of the time, 
after coming to this country, at Plain- 



field, but died at New Market, June 7, 
1895. The nuptials which made Mr. 
and Mrs. Danz [nee Johnson) husband 
and wife were celeljrated August 19, 
1881 ; and they became the parents of 
four children : Hannah L., Edw.ard, who 
died in infancy ; Emma F., and Herman 
W. In 1886 Mr. and Mrs. Danz pur- 
chased the Lake hotel at New Market, 
and conducted it until the demise of Mr. 
Danz, since wliich time Mrs. Danz has 
assumed the I'esponsibility of its manage- 
ment herself Being a thoroughly prac- 
tical woman of good business qualities, 
she is amply qualified for the conduct of 
her hotel business. She is also enter- 
prising and progressive, having com- 
pletely remodeled and refitted her hotel 
with all the modern equipments and ap- 
purtenant conveniences so highly appre- 
ciated by hotel patrons. Mrs. Danz is an 
hospitable entertainer and a genial host- 
ess, and as such her popularity is co-ex- 
tensive with that of Lake hotel and 
summer resort. 



TAMES E. COOK, one of the proprie- 
^ tors and the manager of the Man- 
asquan Coal and Spring Lake Ice Co., is 
a son of David and Margaret Noble Cook, 
of Brick township. Ocean county. New 
Jersey, and was born in that township, 
Oct. 27, 1845. The early ancestors of 
the Cook family came fi-om England, and 
were among those settlers who located on 
Long Island, and subsequently spread 
inland into New York state and the 
state of New Jersey. David Cook 
(father) was a son of Dr. David Cook, 
and was born and reared in what is now 
Ocean, but at that time was Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, and lived there for 
some years on a farm. He also kept a 





"t^^^;^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



441 



store in Brick township, said county, for 
some time, and in 1852 moved to Lower 
Squankum, Howell township, where he 
was engaged in farming until 1860. He 
was a democrat in politics, and served 
as a constable, an overseer of the poor and 
a school trustee. He was a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church and a 
progressive, active christian. He mar- 
ried Miss Margaret Noble, daughter of 
Daniel Noble, of Staten Island, N. Y., 
and they had born to them the follow- 
ing children : Ellen, married to Abraham 
J. Jones, of Ocean county ; Sarah, mar- 
ried to Captain John Stiles, of Mana- 
squan ; Abram N., Jas. E., John, a paint- 
er at Manasquan ; Randolph, deceased ; 
and two boys who died in infancy. 

James Cook attended the public 
schools of Brick township, Ocean coun- 
ty, until the age of thirteen years, after 
which he worked on his father's farm 
for a short time. He then obtained em- 
ployment on coasting vessels, and was 
thus engaged for about seven years, after 
which he entered into the lake trade of 
Canada and Chicago, in which he spent 
three years. He subsequently learned 
the trade of a painter at Chicago, and trav- 
eled through the greater portion of the 
west and south working at his trade as 
a journeyman. After spending about 
seven years in travel and western adven- 
ture, he returned east in 1874 and located 
at Manasquan, where he started the 
painting business in his own interest, 
secured large contract work, and carried 
on extensively. His brother, Abram N., 
had established the ice business at Man- 
asquan, and in 1875 he became associated 
with him in that enterprise and continued 
up to his brother's death, latterly as 
manager, when he succeeded to the en- 
tire business, and has since continued the 



same with greatly increased trade. He 
employs as many as fifteen men and 
four or five supplj^ wagons to carry on this 
immense operation which is conducted 
under the title of the Manasquan Coal 
and Spring Lake Ice Co. He is an ex- 
cellent business manager and is thor- 
oughly active in all his movements. 
Since 1891 Mr. William G. Schanck, of 
Spring Lake, New Jersey, has been his 
partner in business, and they are both well 
qualified to handle the interests of an 
enterprise which has reached such vast 
proportions. 

Mr. Cook's business interests are lo- 
cated at Manasquan, Spring Lake, North 
Spring Lake, Como and Birch, and in 
every line prosperity has followed him. 
In fact, few men have had more success- 
ful business careers. He is a member of 
the Presbyterian church at Manasquan, 
and has been one of its trustees for the 
past three years. He has been a mem- 
ber of the board of education, also, for 
four years. In politics he is a republican 
and has been a member of the executive 
committee of his party for seventeen 
years. In 1896 he was elected a free- 
holder from Wall township, Monmouth 
county, overcoming two hundred of a 
democratic majority, and is the recog- 
nized leader of his party in Wall town- 
ship. He is also deeply interested in a 
number of fraternal organizations, such 
as the Free and Accepted Masons, the 
Odd Fellows, in which he is a past-offi- 
cer ; and the Red Men. He is an ex- 
empt fireman, having served eight years 
as an active, with Hook and Ladder Co., 
No. 1, of Manasquan. 

Mr. Cook married Miss Jennie Burge, 
daughter of Samuel Burge, of Mana- 
squan, Dec. 19, 1875, and they have had 
the following children : David R., James 



442 



Biographical Sketches. 



E., Wilber H., John Borden, and Helen 
M. Three others died in infancy. 



BENJAMIN F. OSBORN, dealer in 
general merchandise at Dayton, 
Middlesex county. New Jerse}', is a son 
of John W. and Harriet Stiles Osborn, of 
Essex county, New Jersey-, and was born 
at Milburn, in said county, on Novem- 
ber 8, 1840. Hand Osborn, his paternal 
grandfother, was a highly respected 
farmer in Essex county, New Jersey. 

John W. Osborn (flither) was born in 
Westfield, Essex county. New Jersey, in 
1809, and received his early education 
in the common schools of his native 
village. He sjaent his early life on the 
farm of his father, but later on he 
learned the trade of a hatter at Railway, 
New Jersey, and this occupation he fol- 
lowed up to the day of his death. He 
worked at the business at Milburn and 
other places in New Jersey for upwards of 
twenty-five years. He was an affiliant 
of the Republican party, but never was 
an active partisan. He was an attendant of 
the Presbyterian church at Milburn, and 
ever actively interested in church work. 
In his earlier years he had also exhibited 
much interest in military affairs, and was 
a member of the state militia. He mar- 
ried Miss Harriet Stiles, daughter of Ben- 
jamin L. and Mary Stiles, of Westfield 
township, Essex county, New Jersey, on 
June 16, 1833, and thej- had born to 
them the following children : Hannah, 
Mary, married to Sidney S. AVard, of 
NeAvark, New Jersey, and Benjamin F. 
Mr. Osborn died in the seventy-third year 
of his age. 

Benjamin F. Osborn was reared at 
Milburn, Essex county, New Jersey, and 
received his education in the public 



schools of his native \Tillage. On leaving 
school, he entered a general merchandise 
store at Milburn as a clerk, where he 
spent two years. He afterward went to 
New York city, where he was employed 
in a mercantile establishment for the en- 
suing three years. Subsequently, in May, 
1861, he returned home and engaged in 
farming on his mother's homestead farm 
in Westfield township. Here he remained 
until April, 1875, when he removed to 
Dayton, New Jersey, and there continued 
to fkrm until 1880. He then abandoned 
farm life and accepted a clerliship in the 
general store of Thomas W. Schenck, at 
Dayton. In 1886 he purchased the busi- 
ness from Mr. Schenck, and since then 
has conducted it in his own interest. 
He also served as acting postmaster of 
Dayton, from 1887 until March, 1895, 
when he was succeeded by Mr. Ely. He 
is a republican in politics, served one 
term as township clerk in Union county, 
formerly Essex count}', and in 1895 was 
elected a commissioner of appeals for one 
year. He is a member of the Presbj^te- 
rian church, of Dayton, and holds the 
exalted position of deacon therein. 

He married, January 23, 1867, Miss 
Mar}' E. Geery, daughter of William J. 
and Susanna Geery, of Rahway, New 
Jersey, and they have had born to them 
the following children : John W., who is 
Avith his father in the store, at Dayton ; 
David W., who died in his fifth year ; 
Benjamin F., Jr., who died in his in- 
fancy; Henrietta M., Susie G. and 
Hattie S. 



DAVID SERVISS, county collector of 
Middlesex county, and one of the 
leading insurance men of the county, 
with offices at South River, is a son of 
Richard and Esther (Messier) Serviss, 



BlOGRAPHICAIv SkETCHKS. 



443 



and was born June 2, 1851, near South 
River, New Jersey. He was educated in 
the Dunham's Corner common schools, 
and at Claverack College, Claverack, 
New York. Five years of his life were 
spent in teaching school at Carteret and 
other schools, and in 1875 he engaged in 
the business of land surveying, which he 
still carries on. In 1884, he established 
his present business of insurance in that 
section of the county known as South 
River, near New Brunswick, where he 
still resides. 

Mr. Serviss is the South River repre- 
sentative of some of the most substantial 
insurance companies of the world, in- 
cluding the Home Insurance Co., and the 
Continental Fire Insurance Co., of New 
York ; the Insurance Company of North 
America, of Philadelphia ; and the Stand- 
ard Fire Insurance Co., of Trenton. He 
handles all the local business of these 
companies, and has been highly success- 
ful in placing risks to the extent of manj^ 
thousands of dollars on valuable proper- 
ties throughout Middlesex county. Mr. 
Serviss is a democrat in politics. In 
1893 he was appointed county collector 
of Middlesex county, to fill out an unex- 
pired term, and in May, 1894, was 
elected for a full term of three years. 
He has also occupied the position of 
township clerk of East Brunswick town- 
ship, since 1877. He was justice of the 
peace at South River for the five years 
ending in 1883. He is a prominent 
member of the order of Masons. 

In Oct., 1886, he was married to Miss 
Mary Throckmorton, daughter of Charles 
and Rebecca Throckmorton, of Brooklyn, 
N. Y., and they have had two children : 
Charles R., deceased, and Esther R. 

Mr. Serviss is regarded as one of the 
influential men of South River. He is a 



clear-headed, active worker in politics ; is 
a shrewd, enterprising business man, and 
is zealous and faithful in the discharge of 
his official duties. While justice of the 
peace, he exercised the power of that 
trying office with impartiality and rigid 
adherence to his convictions, and his 
entire public record is clear and credi- 
table. (See sketch of Richard Serviss 
for Mr. Serviss' ancestral record.) 



TTOWARD WESNER, an active and 
-*--'- prominent politician of New Bruns- 
wick, is the son of Andrew and Catherine 
Wesner, and was born Nov. 19, 1850, in 
that city. His paternal grandfather was 
a progressive and well-to-do farmer resid- 
ing in Bucks county. Pa., and had four 
children : John, William, Charles, and 
Andrew. 

Andrew Wesner (father), after complet- 
ing his education at the public schools, 
learned the carriage-making trade at 
Lambertville, New Jersey, came to New 
Brunswick in 1835 to make this his per- 
manent home and to establish his busi- 
ness on a firmer and broader foundation. 
This he was successful in doing, for 
many years carrying on an extensive 
business, and accumulated a handsome 
competency. During the war he was 
deputy United States marshal, and for 
twenty years after that he filled the 
duties of a watchman in a bank. He is 
now retired from all active participation 
in business, and resides in New Bruns- 
wick. In his younger days he took an 
active part in politics, always joining his 
fortunes to those of the Republican party. 
He is a member of St. James church. To 
his wife, who died in 1894, and himself 
were born five children : William, who 
died at an early age ; Howard, Sarah, 



444 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



deceased ; James, deceased ; Willie, de- 
ceased, and George. 

Howard Wesner left the public schools 
at the age of sixteen, having become pro- 
ficient in all the knowledge obtahiable 
there and went into the book and station- 
ery business, in which he remained twelve 
years. In the meantime he had become 
an active political worker, and having 
made himself very popular with his fel- 
low-citizens was rewarded, on his giving 
up mercantile business, with the appoint- 
ment of deputy sheriff under Sheriff Ed- 
ward F. Roberts. He has also been clerk 
of the courts for two years. Mr. Wesner 
is a member of the masonic order, be- 
ing a past master as well as a knight 
templar. 

A LVAH GRAY, a prominent dealer in 
-^--*- coal, lime and fertilizers, at Dun- 
ellen, Middlesex county, and a well- 
known citizen of that town, is a son of 
Ransom and Elizabeth Gray, and was 
born Nov. 18, 1850, at German Valley, 
Hunterdon county. New Jerse}^, where 
he received a common-school education. 
At the age of sixteen years he went to 
work on his fathers farm in Lebanon 
township, Hunterdon county, and for 
twelve years was engaged alternately in 
farming and in the butcher business at 
German Valley. In April, 1882, he re- 
moved to Dunellen and established his 
present bushiess in co-partnership with 
W. H. Cole. The firm dissolved after 
four 3'ears, Mr. Gray taking the business 
alone. Mr. Gray has an extensive trade 
in coal, lumber, flour, feed and fertilizers, 
his patronage extending throughout the 
township. He is a republican in politics, 
and takes an active part in local affairs, 
having been a member of the township 
committee of Piscataway township for 



seven years. He has been treasurer of 
the Dunellen Building and Loan As.socia- 
tion since 1892, and is a respected mem- 
ber and a trustee of the Presbyterian 
church at German Valley. 

In ] 870 he was manned to Miss Mary 
Bonnell, daughter of Joseph Bonnell of 
Lebanon township, and they have one 
daughter, Sarah Louise. 

Mr. Gra}^ is an energetic business man 
and a progressive citizen. His influence 
is unvariably exerted for good in town- 
ship affairs, and he has added materially 
to the building up of Dunellen. He is 
sincere in church work, decided in his 
political connections, and is regarded 
with respect and esteem by all who know 
him. 

Ransom Graj- (his father) was a widely- 
known farmer near German Valley, 
where he was born and where he resided 
continuously for sixty-two years. He 
owned three farms in Lebanon township, 
covering an aggregate area of three hun- 
dred and sixtj-one acres. He was a re- 
publican in politics, and was justice of the 
peace at German Vallev for about forty 
years. His I'eligious affiliations were 
with the Lutheran church. The latter 
years of his life were spent at German 
Valley, Morris county, where he died in 
1880. His children were six in number : 
John, now a resident of Newark, New 
Jersey ; Willard, residing in New York 
state ; Elizabeth Gray, Emma, wife of 
Andrew Naugliright ; Mary, wife of John 
Hand, all of German Valley, and Alvah 
Gray, of Dunellen, New Jersey. 



GOTTLOB STRAUB, a prosperous meat 
dealer of South Amboy, Middlesex 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Frederick 
and Christiana (Bechtel) Straub, and 



Biographical Sketches. 



445 



was born Jan. 22, 1844, at Wittenberg 
Houser, Germany. His forefathers were 
natives of the fatherland, but as the family 
records are lacking, it is impossible to 
furnish even an epitome of their lives 
prior to his father's time, except the 
meagre fact that the maternal grand- 
father was a minister of the Lutheran 
church. 

Frederick Straub (father) acquii-ed a 
modest education in the public schools 
of Germany, and afterward learned the 
trade of a shoemaker in that country. 
He emigrated to the United States in 
1846, and for eight years carried on his 
trade in New York city. In 1859 he re- 
moved to Matawan, Monmouth county, 
where he established himself in the hotel 
business for a period of four years, and 
subsequently engaged in farming. He 
finally retired from all forms of business 
and lived the I'emainder of his days with 
his daughter. In his politioal views he 
was a strong democrat, and in religious 
precept and practice was a member of the 
German Lutheran church. He was mar- 
ried to Christiana Bechtel, and had born 
to him seven children : Frederick and 
Christiana, both deceased; Charlotte, mar- 
ried to Jacob Batzel, now residing at 
Philadelphia; Christian, a butcher in 
South Amboy; Katharine, married to 
Frederick Schock, in the cigar business at 
Matawan ; Gottlob and Rose. 

Gottlob Straub attended the public 
schools of Twentieth street. New York 
city, until he was ten years of age, and 
for two years thereafter studied the Ger- 
man language under a private tutor at 
New York. In 1859 he removed to 
Matawan with his father, who he assisted 
in conducting his hotel business. At the 
age of twenty years he went into the 
butchering business with his brother 

23 



Christian at that place, which was con- 
ducted under the name of Straub Broth- 
ers. At the end of three years this 
partnership was dissolved, and Gottlob 
removed in the year 1869 to South Amboy 
where for three months he conducted a 
business for himself in the same line. 
He then associated with him Sydney 
Smith, in a partnership known as Smith 
& Straub, and conducted a very success- 
ful meat business on Broadway, South 
Amboy, until .1873. Another partner- 
ship was formed with his brother on 
Nov. 23, 1873, which lasted about nine 
months. In the summer of 1874 he 
opened a business of his own at No. 228 
Hroadway, where he has been enjoying 
a good trade and a prosperous business 
ever since. At the present time he con- 
ducts two markets, and is also engaged 
at farming in Madison township, about 
one mile from South Amboy. The farm 
is managed under his personal super- 
vision, and is a source of additional 
revenue to Mr. Straub. In politics he 
has attached himself to the Republican 
party, and in religious belief he clings to 
the doctrines of the Presbyterian church. 
He is a member of several secret socie- 
ties : St. Stephens Lodge, No. 63, F. and 
A. M. ; General Morgan Lodge, No. 96, 
I. 0. 0. F., and Good Samaritan Lodge, 
No. 52, K. of P. In financial matters he 
was president and treasurer of the South 
Amboy Building and Loan Association, 
and vice-president of the Star Building 
and Loan Association for several years. 
He is also commissioner of the sinking 
fund of South Amboy, elected for three 
years. In municipal affairs he is fore- 
man and engineer of the Protection En- 
gine Company of South Amboy. 

Mr. Straub was married to Antoinette 
Miller, a daughter of John Miller, of 



446 



Biographical Sketches. 



South Anil)oy. They are tlie parents of 
of two children : Carrie, married to Alfred 
T. Kerr, of South Amboy, and Antoi- 
nette, residing at home with her parents. 
Mr. Straub must have in his posses- 
sion the philosopher's stone, or else has 
felt the touch of Midas, for he has been 
eminently successful in all his under- 
takings. 



TAMES BISSETT, oneof themostpromi- 
^ nent and enterprising manufacturers 
of South River, New Jersey, was born 
in that town Oct. 14, 1833. He is a son 
of Asher Bissett, who was sheriff of Mid- 
dlesex county from 1842 to 1845. His 
paternal grandfather, John Bissett, came 
from Scotland and settled at Old Bridge, 
New Jerse}', prior to the Revolution. His 
father, Asher Bissett, was born at Old 
Bridge, New Jersey. He received his 
education in the common schools of his 
native township, engaged in farming, and 
in time gained considerable prominence 
politically, becoming sheriff in 1842. 

James Bissett received his early educa- 
tion at the public schools of South River, 
and afterwards attended the well-known 
seminary of Professor Coxe,at Old Bridge. 
Upon his graduation lie adopted the oc- 
cupation of farming, and successfully fol- 
lowed this for a number of years. In 
1870 he decided upon pursuing a more 
active life, and purchasing a very exten- 
sive cla3--bed on what is known as the 
Homestead farm, at South River, with 
wharves and docks at South River, he 
entered upon the manuiacture of bricks. 
At the time of his purchase of this plant 
its annual production was limited to three 
million ])ricks, but notwithstanding his 
lack of business experience Mr. Bissett 
has developed so great a capacity for af- 
fairs, suj^plemented by an untiring energy, 



that since his proprietorship its annual 
output has Ijcen increased to over eight 
million bricks at the present time. These 
are shipped to Newark and New York 
city, and require for their water tran.s- 
portation four schooners and one barge. 
The value of the property has increased 
materially under the ownership and ad- 
ministration of Mr. Bissett, and he is re- 
garded as one of the most prosperous 
manufacturers of South River, as well as 
one of its foremost citizens. Mr. Bissett 
is a member of the Democratic part}' and 
an active political worker. In 1869 he 
was elected a freeholder and gave his 
town eight years of faithful and intelli- 
gent service. 

While James Bissett was a member of 
the board of freeholders he was director 
of the l^oard the greater part of the time. 
While he was director the Albany street 
bridge at New Brunswack, the bridge at 
Washington (South River), and the one at 
Cheesequakee, which ^vere all toll bridges, 
were each made free through the especial 
efforts of Mr. Bissett. 

When the town of Washington (South 
River) was incorporated James Bissett 
was the chairman of the first board of 
commissioners. 

He is a member of the New York 
Building Material Exchange. In religi- 
ous matters he is very zealous, is an ac- 
tive member of the Baptist church, at 
South River, and one of its trustees. 

Mr. Bissett married Maria Brown, 
daughter of A. W. Brown, who was sheriff 
of Middlesex county from 1830 to 1839, 
and is a sister of Judge Hendrick H. 
Brown, of Browntown, New Jersey. The 
issue of their marriage has been four chil- 
dren : Abraham W., Lillie R., Maria B. 
(now the wife of T. G. Thompson, formerly 
of Westfiold, Mass.), and Margaretta. 



Biographical Sketches. 



447 



/CHARLES DRAKE, the leading pliar- 
^ macist and druggist, and treasurer 
of the Dime Savings Bank, of Wood- 
bridge, Middlesex county. New Jersey, is 
a son of Ellis and Jane R. Thompson 
Drake, and was born September 29, 1846, 
in Woodbridge. Tracing the ancestral 
history of the Drake family many gener- 
ations back has developed the fact that 
the subject of this sketch is in line of 
direct descent from that celebrated navi- 
gator and explorer. Sir Francis Drake. 

Mr. Drake received his primary educa- 
tion in the public school of his native 
town, and subsequently attended the Elm 
Tree Institute, at Woodbridge, conducted 
by Professor T. H. Morris. Completing 
his studies in 1860, he commenced his 
first start in business life the same year 
by becoming a clerk in the drug store of 
Dr. E. B. Freeman, at Woodbridge, and 
was thus employed for five years, after 
which he attended a course of lectures at 
the New York College of Pharmacy, by 
which means he united pharmaceutical 
theory with his practice. He subse- 
quently removed to the city of Brook- 
lyn, and spent two years in the drug 
business with Darius G. Farwell. In 
1869 he came to Woodbridge and opened 
a pharmacy on Main street. Two years 
later he purchased some property situated 
directly opposite his former location, and 
there established his present store, which 
at the very beginning sprang into promi- 
nence as the leading headquarters within 
a large radius for evexything in the line 
of drugs, chemicals, hygienic supplies and 
stationery. He enjoys, besides, the largest 
prescription trade in the town of Wood- 
bridge. Mr. Drake is a member of the 
Pharmaceutical Society of New Jersey, 
his connection with that organization 
dating from 1887. He is an ardent re- 



publican in politics, but h<as never been 
an office-holder or an office seeker. He 
was elected, however, to a very responsi- 
ble business position in 1874, becoming 
the treasurer of the Dime Savings Bank, 
of Woodbridge, which office he still 
holds while the institution is making 
final payments. Aai'on Drake, the pa- 
ternal grandfather, was a farmer and the 
owner of a large tract of land in Wood- 
bridge township. He was a member of 
the Methodist church in that place, and 
his political views and opinions coincided 
with those of the Democratic party. He 
died in 1857, at a ripe old age. His 
wife, Nancy Harned, survived until 
1871. They had eight children : Benja- 
min, Jonathan, John, Charles, Ellis, Mat- 
thias, Josiah, and Elizabeth A. 

Ellis Drake had an ordinary common- 
school education in Woodbridge. At the 
age of sixteen years he left school and 
took up the sterner studies of life as an 
apprentice to Reuben Harned, engaged 
in the coach and carriage building at 
Rahway. At the expiration of his period 
of probation he went into that business 
for himself at Woodbridge, which he con- 
ducted very successfully to and during 
the year 1857. He also succeeded to the 
business of his brother, Jonathan, as un- 
dertaker, who died in that year. Mr. 
Drake conducted that business at Wood- 
bridge for thirty years, and built up an 
extremely large and profitable trade. He 
was strong in the faith of the Republican 
party doctrines, but never evinced any 
desire to hold office. He was a member 
and trustee of the Presbyterian church 
at Woodbridge, serving in the latter 
capacity for many years. He died in 
1887, at the age of sixtjMiine years, and 
was survived by his wife until March 2, 
1895, on which day she too papstd away. 



448 



Biographical Sketches. 



Her age was seventy-seven years. They 
had seven children : Edward T., Ellis, 
Charles, the subject, Howard, Benjamin, 
Martha J., and Thompson. 



13 EV. HENKY CROSS, the popular pas- 
-*-*' tor of the First Baptist church, of 
Manasquan, New Jersey, was born at 
Beeston, Nottinghamshire, Enghand, Dec. 
12, 1846. Having sprung from ardent 
Baptist parentage, it was but natural 
that Mr. Cross should have inherited 
strong religious proclivities for the family 
church, and in the course of time having 
made ample preparation, he entered upon 
a course of study at the Baptist College, 
Nottingham. Upon the completion of 
his college and seminaiy course, he was 
ordained and given a charge at Coventry. 
England, remaining at that place several 
years, when, at the age of twenty-five, 
he came to America by special call in 
1873, and was installed as pastor of the 
First Baptist church at St. Paul, Minn., 
continuing that pastorate for a ^leriod of 
five years. Here he found a large field 
in which to labor, and throwing into the 
work his vouthful eiieroies and soul, in 
this time, completed the building and 
furnishing of the house of worship in 
which he preached. Then there came a 
call from the Pilgrim Baptist church, 
Thirty-third street. New York city, and 
the Rev. Cross removed to the east and 
served the above congregation for several 
years. In New York he had the mis- 
fortune to lose his wife b}^ death ; a most 
estimable lady and exemplary christian. 
He Avas left with eight children, the 
youngest just born. The loss of his wife, 
was to him, for the time l)eing, most 
ci'ushing, and necessitated his I'cmoval 
from New York to a field not so exacting. 
His resignation was accepted with feel- 



ings of the deepest regret. In 1882 he 
became pastor of the Germain Street 
Baptist church, St. John's, N. B. In 1884 
he married his present wife, who was the 
widow of Lorenzo Wilson, Esq., of that 
city. In 1886, Mr. Cross was called to 
Manasquan, and labored diligently six 
years. In 1892 he left Manasquan for 
the Washington Street Baptist church. 
Orange, New Jersey. After serving the 
Orange church nearly four years, the 
church in Manasquan prevailed upon 
him to return to tliem — a sure evidence 
of appreciation on their part. Mr. Cross 
commenced his second pastorate of the 
same church in Manasquan on April 1, 
1896. He interests himself in every- 
thing that tends to the moral and spirit- 
ual welfare of the community. 

Mr. Cross has been very successful in 
his labors, and ministers to a growing 
church, having a membership of one 
hundred and fifty members, and a live, 
healthy Sunday-school with one hundred 
members, of which Henry Reynolds is 
superintendent. The members of his 
congregation who now are serving on the 
official boards are : Mark Brown, Clar- 
ence Poland, James P. Newman, John 
P. Hulshart and John Davison, deacons ; 
Captain Poland, Henry Reynolds, J. P. 
Hulshart, Dr. R. W. Herbert and Benja^ 
min Burge, trustees. 

Mr. Cross has a familj- of eight chil- 
dren : William C, now residing in St. 
John's, N. B. ; Henry S., of New York 
city; Ernest J., who lives in Chicago; 
Noel, whose home is in New York city ; 
Hannah, Charles V., of New York city ; 
Paul B., and Francis E. The Rev. 
Henry Cross is an earnest church worker, 
a highly-esteemed citizen, an interesting 
and effective speaker, and is imbued 
with true christian charity. 



Biographical Sketches. 



449 



TTENRY WALCOT, a widely-known 
-LJ- and prosperous grocer at Eaton- 
town, Monmouth county, is a son of 
Eseck and Sarah Haynes Walcot, and 
was born Nov. 26, 1856, at Oceanport, 
Monmouth county. The name is of 
English origin, and an account of Mr. 
Walcot's ancestral record will be found 
in the sketch of his fathei', which also 
appears in this volume. 

Mr. Walcot was educated in the pub- 
lic schools of Oceanport, later at the 
Keyport Academy, and at the age of 
thirteen years he entered the grocery 
business at Keyport, where he remained 
for two years. He then went to Warren 
county, 0., but after a short experience 
there returned home and became clei-k 
in a grocery store at Eaton town. In 
1881 he established a grocery store of [ 
his own, but shortly became interested 
in race-track operations at Brooklyn, and 
devoted himself successfully to that busi- j 
ness for five years. In 1886 he i-emoved 
to Brooklyn, New York, and again es- 
tablished a grocery trade, which in April, 
1891, he transferred to Eatontown, where 
he has since remained located. He has 
a finely stocked store, and conducts a 
very extensive trade in and around 
Eatontown. Mr. Walcot is a republican 
in politics, is a prominent member of the 
Second Advent church of Eatontown, 
and an active christian. He is also a 
member of Crescent Council, No. 93, Ju- 
nior Order of American Mechanics, of 
Eatontown. 

On May 31, 1878, he was married to 
]\Iiss Sarah A. Brant, a daughter of Jotliam 
Brant, of Allaire, N. J. Mr. Walcot is an 
energetic and successful business man, 
a popular and progressive citizen, and an 
influential member of the community in 
which he lives. 



JOSEPH M. MAIER, proprietor of the 
Park Hotel, at Dunellen, Middlesex 
county. New Jersey, and a well-known 
citizen of that town, is a son of Joseph 
and Catharine (Eder) Maier, and was 
born, June 7, 1873, at Dunellen, where 
he received a common-school education. 
Upon leaving school he became associated 
with his father in the management of the 
Park Hotel, and during twelve years he 
had a good, practical experience in all 
details of the business. Upon his father's 
death, in 1892, he succeeded to the own- 
ership of the hotel, and has conducted it 
successfully ever since, making it one of 
the best-known hostelries in Middlesex 
county, outside of New Brunswick. He 
has a large trade among the influential 
people of the county, and runs the house 

[ on high-class principles. He is a demo- 
crat in politics, and takes a leading part 
in local afiiairs ; his hotel being the place 

I of assembly for many of the caucuses 
and conventions of Piscataway township. 
Although young in years Mr. Maier 
has become well-known throughout Mid- 

I dlesex county. He is energetic in his 
business and decided in his opinions, and 
has already done much to advance the 
interests of Dunellen. He is a genial 
host and a public-spirited citizen. Mr. 
Maier's family is of sturdy German 
origin. His paternal grandfather, Joseph 
Maier, was a prominent citizen of Wur- 
temberg, Germany, and was the father of 
three children : Joseph, Casper, and Gott- 
fried. Joseph Maier (father) was born 
in 1831, at Empinger, Germany, and 
came to the United States in 1857. He 
was a shoemaker by trade, but first 
turned his attention to farming, near 

[ Martinville, New Jersey. Subsequently 
he worked at shoemaking at Bound 

■ Brook for two years, and at Martinville 



450 



Biographical Sketches. 



for eight j'ears. In 1867 he bought 
property at Dunellen, and established 
the Park Hotel, which he continued to 
manage, in connection with a prosperous 
boot and shoe business, to the time of his 
death in 1892. He was a staunch Jack- 
sonian democrat in politics, and was at 
one time delegate to the assembly from 
Middlesex county. His surviving chil- 
dren are : Joseph M., Katharine, Annie, 
and Lena. Their mother is also surviving. 



TTTILLIAM H. INGLING, a prominent 
' ' merchant and successful business 
man of Freehold, and the propi'ietor of 
one of the largest and best known gen- 
eral stores in Monmouth county, is a son 
of Samuel and Ann (Shearman) Ingling, 
and was boi-n Nov. 1, 1846, at Jobs- 
town, Burlington county, near Mount 
Holly, New Jersey. Mr. Ingling is of 
German descent, his famil^^ having set- 
tled here while the Amei'ican colonies 
were in their infancy. His father was a 
carpenter, but he decided that his son 
should have a wider scope in life, and so 
from boyhood began to lit him for a busi- 
ness career. His early education was 
acquired in the public district schools of 
Burlington county. Subsequently he 
took a thorough course at the People's 
Business College, Reading, Pa. After 
leaving college, as no opportunity pre- 
sented itself immediately, he worked 
a short time with his father at carpen- 
tering, but lie soon secured a j^osition 
with his uncle who was proprietor of a 
store at Perrineville, Monmouth county. 
During the time he was at Perrineville 
he also taught the male department of the 
village school, having previously taught 
in a local school at Brown's Mill, Burling- 
ton county, New Jersey, with great suc- 



cess. On March 3,1 8 68, he moved from Per- 
rineville to Freehold and entered the em- 
ploy of Davis & Burtis as book-keeper. He 
occupied this position for a year, and re- 
mained for another year Avith James T. 
Burtis, who continued the business alone 
after the dissolution of the firm. His 
next position was that of messenger for 
the New Jersey Express Co., a corpora- 
tion that was afterwards absorbed by 
the Adams Express Co. He eiitered 
their employ, March 5, 1870, and for 
nearly sixteen years served in the ca- 
pacity of special messenger, v/ith every 
attention to the company's interests and 
with honor to himself After serving 
the corporation in various capacities he 
was finally made their agent at Freehold, 
which jDosition of trust he held until 
April 1, 1893, when, owing to the ptes- 
sure of his other business interests, he 
relinquished the position. On March 1, 
1891, he had established a grocery busi- 
ness on South street, and this was now 
in such a thriving condition that he de- 
voted all his time and energies to it. On 
Jan. 9, 1892, he, in conjunction with Mr. 
Jacob 0. Burtt, bought out the well- 
known general store of Neafie & John- 
son, and assumed control of the business 
under the firm name of Burtt & Ingling. 
His firm continued to prosper until Jan. 
13, 1896, when it was dissolved, Mr. 
Ingling buying out his partnex''s interest 
and since that time has continued the 
business alone, having consolidated his 
grocery business with the general store 
in Feb., 1896. He occupies two hand- 
some two-story houses at Nos. 19 and 21 
East Main sti-eet. At No. 19 he carries 
books, stationery and fancy goods, and at 
No. 21 a full line of tovs, croclcery, 
glassware, house-furnishing goods, wall 
paper and groceries. The former is 



Biographical Sketches. 



453 



eighty feet deep by sixteen feet front; 
the latter, one liundred and sixty feet deep 
by twenty-eight feet front. He employs 
three clerks continually, besides which 
he is always personally at hand, giving 
every attention to his business. He is a 
man of deep and earnest convictions in 
both political and religious matters. He 
is a prohibitionist in politics, and has 
taken a very active part in the councils 
of that party for many years. During 
the period from 1890 to 1894 he was 
chairman of the county prohibition com- 
mittee and rendered very material assist- 
ance in wiping out the " Race Course 
Ring" in 189-3. There is no more dili- 
gent and conscientious member of the 
Freehold Methodist Episcopal church 
than Mr. Ingling. He has been trustee 
for twelve years ; steward for twenty-six 
years ; and superintendent of the Sun- 
day-school for fifteen years, and was re- 
elected in 1896. All the charitable and 
missionary work of the church finds in 
him a zealous supporter. He is a mem- 
ber of the Royal Arcanum, the Jr. 0. U. 
A. M., the I. 0. R. M., and for several 
years was a member of Freehold Lodge, 
I. 0. 0. F. 

Mr. Ingling was married July 15, 
1869, to Elizabeth C, daughter of Wil- 
liam H. Weeks, of Freehold, and their 
union has been blessed with three chil- 
dren: Adeline Y., born Sept. 17,1870, 
died Aug. 28, 1871 ; George C, born 
Apriri2, 1874, who is now on therepor- 
torial staff of the New Brunswick 
Daily Times; Harry W., born Oct. 
20, 1877, who is a student of the class of 
"99 " at the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons, New York city, standing third 
in his class for the first year studies. 

As has already been stated, the Ingling 
family is of German origin. Content 



Ingling, the paternal grandfather, was 
born Aug. 23, 1778, and lived during the 
latter part of his life near Jobstown, 
Durlington county, New Jersey, was a 
pump-maker by trade, and in politics 
a prominent federalist. His children 
were : John, Samuel, Brazilla, Joseph, 
Thomas, Content, Mary, and Susan. 

Samuel Ingling (father) was a native 
of Jobstown and was a carpenter by 
trade ; following this occupation during 
the greater part of his life. Latterly he 
removed to Freehold, where, like his son, 
he was in the employ of the Adams Ex- 
press Co. In politics he Avas a strong 
whig, afterwards joining the Republican 
party. He was a member of the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows and faith- 
fully observed the ritual of his lodge. 
His wife was a Miss Ann Shearman, and 
all their children, except William H., 
died in childhood. They were Catherine, 
Thomas, Amor A., who was drowned in 
Hartshorn's pond near Freehold, June 
28, 1876, and William H. Mr. Ingling 
died May 25, 1894, in his seventy-eighth 
year, respected by a wide circle of 
friends. His faithful wife died on 
Christmas day, 1859. 



MARTIN LUTHER FxiRRINGTON, 
long and favorably known as a 
railroad man, was born at Derby, Vt., in 
1844. He is a son of Zenas G. and Cor- 
nelia Ann (Paul) Farrington, and belongs 
to a good old New England stock. His 
ancestors were among the pioneers of that 
section of the country, having settled in 
or near Boston in the seventeenth cen- 
tury. Peacham, in the southern part of 
the state of Vermont, was afterwards the 
location of the family for many years. 
Zenas G. Farrington (father) was a 



454 



Biographical Sketches. 



fanner all his life and a large owner of 
land. He had a family of eleven chil- 
dren, six sons and five daughters, the 
subject of this sketch being the ninth 
child. 

Martin L. Farrington obtained his 
early education in the district schools in 
his native state, and in 1861 learned the 
trade of a printer, and followed that oc- 
cupation near his home for seven years, 
after which he was for a short time eni- 
2)loyed as a compositor on the Stanstcad 
Journal, published on the Canadian bor- 
der. On March 3, 1868, he went to the 
town of Palmer, Mass., which was the 
home of his mother's family, and re- 
mained there six months, emploj'ed at 
his trade. He then entered into the 
employ of the New London & Northern 
railroad, and after two years' service was 
promoted to the position of conductor. 
When Superintendent Bentley assumed 
charge of the New Jersey Southern rail- 
road, in 1872, Mr. Farrington was offered 
a position as conductor, which he ac- 
cepted, and located himself at Long 
Branch, New Jersey, until 1877, when 
he removed to Freehold, since his home. 
During the well-remembered strike on 
the New Jersey Southern railroad in 
1873-74, Mr. Fari'ingtou was one of a 
committee of its employees delegated to 
go to Trenton and push a bill through 
the state assembly for the benefit of the 
employees of the road. Through the active 
and sympathetic assistance of Governor : 
Parker, since deceased, the bill was I 
passed, and the road, being tied up and 
not ojicrated for forty-eight consecutive 
hours, became the property of the state. 
Another bill Avas also passed, through the 
energy of Mr. Farrington and his associate 
delegates, which was most important in 
its effect upon the employees of the rail- , 



road company, since it gave them the 
right to have their claims against the 
company, for wages due, entered and 
filed as a lien on the road. By reason of 
the strike referred to, one hundred and 
forty-three miles of road wei-e tied up for 
two months. 

Mr. Farrington has also served as a 
conductor on the New York & Freehold 
railroad, which was bought by the " New 
Jersey Central" in 1889, and since that 
time has been in the employ of the lat- 
ter company. Mr. Farrington was the 
originator of the employees' annual excur- 
sions to Asbury Park which, for eighteen 
years, have been under his successful 
management, and have been the means 
of furnishing a pleasant and healthy 
yearly recreation to thousands. In poli- 
tics Mr. Farrington is a straight republi- 
can, and during the incumbency of the 
presidential chair by Chester X. Arthur 
was appointed postmaster at Freehold. 
He gave to this office a strictly business 
administration, which was indorsed in 
terms of high praise by the local press 
and the citizens of Freehold generally 
without respect to party. The compli- 
ment of this position lay especially in the 
fact that he did not seek the appointment, 
but it was conferred upon him without 
solicitation. 

Mr. Farrington is an active member 
of the Presbyterian church and of the 
Sunday school, and is also interested in 
the work of the Christian Endeavor So- 
ciety, having attended as a delegate 
several state conventions as well as the 
National convention held at New York 
in 1893. He is also a member of the 
masonic order, and is interested in the 
Freeholders' Building and Loan Associa- 
tion. Mr. Farrington married Adelaide 
S. Squier, of Moiison, Mass. 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



456 



rpHOMAS GALLAGHER, a popular and 
-*- well-knowi^ conductor on the New 
Jersey Railroad and Transportation Co., 
now tlie Pennsylvania railroad, and a re- 
spected citizen of New Brunswick, was 
born in Ireland in 1830, and is a son of 
James and Mary Dorton Gallagher. His 
paternal grandfather, Thomas Gallagher, 
was a farmer in Ireland all his life, and a 
member of the Roman Catholic church. 
Three children were born to him : James, 
Thomas, and Patrick. James Gallagher 
(father) was educated at the public 
schools in Ireland, after leaving which 
he took up the occupation of farming, 
which he followed until the year 1852, 
when he came to the United States, and 
locating at Jersey City, lived a retired 
life. He was a member of the Roman 
Catholic church. He died in 1854, hav- 
ing had his married life blessed with 
three children, of whom Thomas was the 
eldest, the others being two daughters: 
Mary, married to John Terney, and Kate. 
Thomas Gallagher received a sound pub- 
lic school education, in the public schools 
of Jersey City, after which he secured a 
position as errand boy in the offices of the 
New Jersey Railroad and Transportation 
Co., where by his politeness and close at- 
tention to his duties he won the con- 
fidence and respect of his employers, and 
step by step climbed the ladder of pro- 
motion until in 1866 he reached the 
position of conductor on the road, run- 
ning between Jersey City and Millstone. 
This position he has retained ever since, 
and has so performed the oft-times onei'- 
ous duties of it that in 1890 he won the 
diamond studded gold watch offered to 
the most popular conductor on the road, 
the largest number of votes being cast 
for him. He belongs to the Democratic 
party, is a member of the Roman Catho- 



lic Benevolent Legion, and of the L. 0. 
R. C. He resides in New Brunswick. 
He was united in marriage with Kate 
Colton, daughter of Thomas Colton, Esq., 
July 18, 1851, and to their union have 
been born five daughters and two sons : 
Kate, Mary, married to James Woods ; 
James, Lizzie, Louise, Thomas, and 
Fanny, married to Wm. Masterson. 



TTUDSON BENNETT, a prominent re- 
-L- L tired citizen of Freehold, is the 
youngest son of William H. and Jane 
(Leffertson) Bennett, and was born. 
May 1, 1825, at Freehold, New Jersey. 
He acquired his education in private 
schools of the town of his birth, but was 
taken from school to assist his father in 
the management of the farm, upon which 
he has resided all his life down to the 
present time. He has been more or less 
engaged in farming all his life, but since 
his father's death he has turned his at- 
tention to developing that portion of 
Freehold by cutting his farm up into 
building lots, improving them, and lay- 
ing out streets. It may be truly said 
that all the southeastern portion of the 
present limits of the town has been 
built up on the site of his farm, and the 
greater portion of this improvement was 
made by Mr. Bennett personally, and 
about all of which has been accomplished 
within the past six years. He has 
already laid out the following streets : 
Elm, Mechanic, Bennett, Bitumen, and 
Main on the west side of the New York 
and Atlantic Highlands railroad ; the 
greater portion of these streets are built 
up and well improved. Beyond this rail- 
road he has laid out the following streets : 
Center, Factory, Broad, Liberty, First, 
Second, Third, and Fourth. The prop- 



456 



Biographical Sketches. 



erty on these streets being chiefly owned 
and occupied by eniployeep of the Koth- 
child Shirt Factoiy, which is also located 
upon his farm. 

Mr. Bennett, partly by virtue of his 
extensive real-estate interests and ever 
out-reaching enterprise, has probably con- 
tributed more to the industrial wealth 
and material development of Freehold 
than any other one citizen of the town. 
Mr. Bennett has always been found in the 
foremost rank in support of eveiy worthy 
movement or enterprise inaugurated for 
the welfare of the town and community. 
He was one of the active members of the 
Freehold Improvement Co.; is a member 
of the Freehold board of trade, as a 
member of which he rendered valuable 
assistance towards securing the locating 
of new enterprises at Freehold. He was 
one of the first to subscribe for stock, and 
lend his encouragement to securing the 
construction of the Freehold and James- 
burg railroad ; also one of the first stock- 
holders in the First National Bank at 
Freehold. In jjolitics he is a democrat, 
but has never sought or held office, and 
would never accept any political position. 
For seven years he Avas an active mem- 
ber of the Freehold infantry militia, 
under Major Yard. 

Mr. Bennett enjoys the distinction of 
being one of the three oldest citizens of 
Freehold. He was married on Jan. 5, 
1854, to Cornelia, a daughter of Hen- 
drick Sickles, a farmer of Holmdel, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jerse^^, and has had 
two children : Anna, born Oct. 19, 1854, 
married to William II. Forman, an at- 
torney und ex-mayor of Freehold, and 
now residing at Freehold ; and Henr}- 
Hudson, born March 22, 1857, who is 
now practicing medicine in New York. 
For ancestral history refer to sketch of 



Judge Charles S. Bennett, found else- 
where in this volume. • 



TD.ATRICK CAMPION, ex-city collector 
-L of South Amboy, Middlesex county. 
New Jersey, and now foreman for John 
Scully in the hard-coal department of his 
extensive coal business, is a son of Mich- 
ael and Julia Campion, and was born in 
1842, at Johnstown, Count}^ Kilkenny, 
Ireland. His paternal grandfather, David 
Camjjion, and Michael Campion, his 
father, were also natives and successful 
farmers of Erin. The latter emigrated to 
this countrj^ in 1858, and settled origi- 
nally near Syracuse, N. Y., where at first 
for a time he followed the plow. He 
subsequently came to South Amboy, and 
for many years was a laborer on the 
freight docks of the Camden and Am- 
boy Railroad Co. He lived a retired 
life for several 3-ears prior to his death, 
in 1890. He had been saving and frugal 
in habits, and he had happilj^ accumu- 
lated a sufficiency of this world's goods to 
keep him veiy comfortabl3^ In politics 
he was a democrat, and in religion a mem- 
ber of the Roman Catholic chui'ch. He 
was an active worker in the cause of 
Christianity, and was esteemed a good 
man. He was an old-time member of St. 
Patrick's Society, No. 1, South Amboy, 
New Jersey. Julia, his wife, died in 1891, 
one year subsequent to his own death. 
They were the parents of four children : 
Patrick, John, deceased; Bridget, de- 
ceased; and Maggie, who subsequently 
became the wife of Richard Burden, of 
South Amboy. 

Patrick Campion attended school in 
Ireland about six years ; five of those 
years were spent in the parochial school, 
and the remaining yeax in a private 



Biographical Sketches. 



467 



school of his native town. He then joined 
his father in America, and attended the | 
public schools of South Amboy until he ' 
reached the age of seventeen years. He 
had meanwhile attracted the notice of 
Captain De Graw, superintendent of the 
Camden and South Amboy Railroad | 
Co., who offered him employment on 
the docks. He" accepted, and for a year 
he was employed in stowing freight of all 
kinds on the company's boats. He was 
then appointed boss stevedore, and held 
that position for two years. He was sub- 
sequently engaged in the same capacity ' 
and for a similar period by the Union 
Freight Co. He remained with that 
company until the removal of their of- 
fices to New York. He spent the ensu- 
ing seven years in the service of the Cam- 
den and Amboy ; two years as a brake- 
man on the road and five years on the 
water in the capacity of stevedore. He 
retired from that company's employ in I 
1869, when he was appointed by John i 
Scully, of South Amboy foreman of his 
department of soft coals. He success- 
fully conducted that branch of Mr. 
Scully's extensive business during eigh- ' 
teen years,, when he was transferred by ; 
Mr. Scully to his hard-coal department. 
In this position Mr. Campion still re- 
mains, and he has acquitted himself to 
the complete satisfaction of his employer, 
who regards him as a good and faithful 
servant. He prides himself upon these 
facts that he never was discharged from i 
a position, and never was obliged to , 
solicit one. In politics his democracy has : 
never been questioned, nor his activity 
ever been relaxed. He has given good 
service in the township committee, of 
which body he has been a member for 
eight years. He was elected to a seat in 
the town council of South Amboy for a 



five-years' term, and about a year prior to 
its expiration his friends elected Rim to 
the responsible office of borough collector 
for a term of three years. He is a Roman 
Catholic in religion, and be was a member 
of St. Patrick's Society, No. 1, of South 
Amboy. He was also one of the charter 
niembei's of St. Patrick's Society, No. 2, 
at a later period, and was elected to, 
and has served in the treasurership of 
that society for twenty-seven consecutive 
years. He has never in all that time 
been a beneficiary of the society. He is 
a member of the Order of Foresters and 
of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, of 
which latter organization he is treasurer. 
Mr. Campion was married Oct. 31, 
1869, to Sarah Ann Conlough, a daughter 
of Bernard and Catherine Conlough. 
They have five children, all living : Katie, 
James, a clerk to Howell & Gordon, 
grocers, of South Amboy ; William, Juli- 
etta, and David, all attending the paro- 
chial school. 



Tp A. HULTS, M.D., a prominent phy- 
-*-^' sician of Middlesex county, and 
a leading practitioner of Perth Amboy, 
New Jersey, is a son of John and Leah 
(Howell) Hults, of Plainsboro, Middlesex 
county. New Jersey, at which place he 
was born, August 26, 1861. The name 
Hults indicates its Teutonic origin, and 
is unquestionably the original name of 
the family, coming down to us unchanged, 
either through interpretation or abbrevia^ 
tion, as has been too frequently the case. 
James Hults, the grandfather of Dr. 
Hults, was a native of Plainsboro, New 
Jersey, and a well-known and prosperous 
farmer. He was an old-line whig in 
politics, but never the subject of political 
preferment. He was married at an early 
age, and as the result of such marriage 



458 



Biographical Sketches. 



the following progeny are inscribed upon 
the family record : Ellen, wife of S. 
Davidson; Eva Ann, wife of John Maple, 
deceased ; Mary, Alfred, deceased ; and 
John. 

John Hulls, the father of Dr. Hults, 
was the youngest, and was born atPlains- 
boro, Middlesex county. He has been a 
farmer all his life, highly respected and 
esteemed as a citizen and a man. He is 
an active and zealous rejjublican in poli- 
tics, and is a devout christian and com- 
municant of the Baptist church. He also 
married at an early age, and he and his 
wife are still living in the peaceful enjoy- 
ment of a happy and healthy age. There 
are three children : Carrie, Jacob M., and 
Eugene A., the doctor. 

Dr. Hults received the benefit afforded 
by the common school of his native place, 
until he reached the age of sixteen years, 
when he entered a store as a clerk. After ! 
spending a year in this store, at the ' 
age of eighteen years, he began teaching 
school and taught for a brief period, 
when he entered the normal school at 
Trenton. Upon leaving the normal 
school he resumed his avocation as a 
teacher, and taught school for the next 
four years. He taught school during the ; 
winter months, and during the summer 
months devoted himself to the study of 
medicine. He first studied with Dr. 
Skill man, of New Brunswick, and then 
taught school again for a while. He next 
studied medicine under Dr. G. M. Skill- 
man, of Bound Brook, New Jersey, for 
two years. After teaching a school in 
Washington Valley for another A'ear, he 
entered the Hahnemann Medical College 
of Philadelphia, Pa., from which institu- 
tion he graduated in 1886. He began 
the practice of his profession at Perth 
Amboy, and by dint of close application 



and skill in his profession, has succeeded 
in building up a very large and lucrative 
business. He is president of the local 
Building and Loan Association of Perth 
Amboy, a branch of the Mercantile Co- 
operative Bank ; was a member of the 
board of health ; now health inspector; is 
a member of the Junior Order U. A. M. ; 
the Royal Arcanum, and of the exam- 
ining board for teachers. He is also 
medical examiner for the American Life 
Insurance Co., the Home Life Insurance 
Co., the United States Industrial Life 
Insurance Co., and the Royal Arcanum. 
Dr. Hults is an earnest and devoted 
christian gentleman ; he is a deacon 
and trustee of the Baptist church, and 
is highly esteemed by the brethren for 
his devout and exemplary piety. He 
married, on June 16, 1886, Miss Lucy 
Voorhees, daughter of Mr. Charles Vooi'- 
hees, by which union they have been 
blessed with three children, all of them 
sons : E. Arthur, Sidney E., and Chas. V. 



A DRIAN LYON, a successful and prom- 
^^--*- ising member of the junior bar of 
Middlesex county, residing at Perth Am- 
boy, is a representative of one of the 
oldest and best-known families of East 
Jersey. He is a son of William L. and 
Ursula (Sebring) Lyon, and was born 
July 25, 1869, at Pluckamin, Somerset 
county, New Jersey. His elementary 
education was obtained in the common 
schools of Somerset county. He after- 
wards, for a short time, attended Bed- 
minster Academy, a college preparatory 
school, and also taught for a brief jjeriod. 
While still but a youth, he removed with 
his father to Perth Amboy. Here he 
entered the law office of James S. Wight, 
being registered as a student, duly served 



Biographical Sketches. 



459 



his clerkship of four years, and was 
formally admitted to the bar in June, 
1892. He was a hard student, devoting 
himself energetically to the mastery of 
every branch of legal information. He 
now desired even a better fitting for his 
profession, and with this end in view, 
although he had begun to practice, he 
entered the New York Law School, 
studied even harder than ever, and 
graduated from that institution in the 
class of 1894 with the degree of LL.B. 
Since then he has devoted his entire 
time to the practice of law, and has risen 
very rapidly in the ranks. He has a 
large and constantly-growing practice, 
and is a very popular man. In 1895 he 
was appointed city attorney of Perth 
Amboy for a term of three years. He is 
counsel for the board of health. He 
served one term and part of a second as 
superintendent of city schools of Perth 
Amboy, only resigning that position on 
account of the accumulation of his pri- 
vate business. His political connections 
are with the Republican party. At 
present, he is serving his third year as 
register of the board of East Jersey Pro- 
prietors, an organization which dates its 
existence back to the early part of the 
seventeenth century. Mr. Lyon is a 
member of the Royal Arcanum; is, at 
present, sitting past regent of the local 
lodge, and has passed through all the 
chairs. He is also a member of the board 
of trade of Perth Amboy. He is zealous 
and active in his religious duties, being 
one of the trustees of the Presbyterian 
church. He was happily married on 
May 8, 1895, to Miss Cornelia Post, 
daughter of John C. Post, of Passaic. 

The Lyon family is of English origin. 
Stephen Lyon, the grandfather of Mr. 
Lyon, lived at what is now Lyon's Sta- 



tion, New Jersey, where he owned a 
large farm. He was very active in the 
politics of his time. Like all of the 
family, he was a devout christian, and a 
steadfast member of the Presbyterian 
church. He passed away at his home- 
stead, Lyon's Station, in 1872. His 
wife was Nancy Hill, daughter of Cap- 
tain Hill, of Washington's army, who, 
during the Revolution, in company with 
Captain Cook, was sent upon the delicate 
errand to Lord Sterling, to obtain from 
the latter an expression of his position 
on the war of the colonies. They carried 
with them a major-general's commission, 
which they were authorized by Washing- 
ton to tender to Lord Sterling, and which 
the latter ultimately accepted. By this 
wife, Mr. Lyon's grandfather had four 
sons and. one daughter : David, who is 
now a retired clergyman of the Presby- 
terian church, living at Sloansville, N. 
y., and who was one of the early gradu- 
ates of Princeton College, graduating in 
1834 ; John, who was for many years in 
the insurance business in St. Louis, now 
deceased ; Stephen, who has retired from 
business, and resides at Orange, New 
Jersey; William L., the father of Mr. 
Lyon, who is still living in Perth Am- 
boy; Mary, wife of Dr. Cornelius Suy-. 
dam, of Basking Ridge, also deceased. 

William L. Lyon, father of Mr. Lyon, 
was born on the family farm at Lyon's 
Station, and received his early education 
in the common schools of the vicinity. 
While still young in years he removed to 
Morristown, and became engaged in the 
general store business, going from there 
to Liberty Corner, and thence in 1861 to 
Pluckamin, Somerset county, near Som- 
erville. Here he resided continuously 
until 1888, and here his children were 
born. He was one of the best known 



460 



Biographical Sketches. 



men in Pluckamin ; was postmaster there 
for several years, and carried consider- 
able weight and influence in the local 
councils of the Republican partj. Since 
1888 he has resided in Perth Amboj-, 
and is still interested in a general mer- 
cantile business. He is an active mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church, and has 
always performed his religious duties 
faithfully and unostentatiously. His wife 
was Miss Ursula Sebring, who deceased 
Jan. 30, 1894. Their children, three 
in number, were : Mary, who died in 
infancy ; Ella S., who is still living, 
and Adrian. 



T3UD0LPH FLEIDNER, a successful 
-*-*' paper-box manufacturer, and a 
worthy and substantial citizen of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Frederick W. and Christiana (Rank) 
Fleidner, and was born at Qnion, Hud- 
son county. New Jersej^, Sept. 15, 1856. 
His grandfather, Frederick Fleidner, was 
born in Bavaria, Germanj-, and passed 
his entire life in his native kingdom, en- 
gaged as a minister of the Gospel. An 
active, earnest and zealous worker in his 
chosen field, he did much for the ad- 
vancement and up-building of the king- 
dom of God. His marriage resulted in 
the birth of two sons, of whom Frederick, 
the father of the subject of this sketch, 
was the younger. He was born in Ba- 
varia, German}', and passed the earl}- part 
of his life in his native kingdom of Bav- 
aria, engaged in book-binding and paper- 
box manufacturing. Leaving the Father- 
land in 1848, he emigrated to the United 
States, and settled at New York, where 
he died. Here he embarked in the book- 
binding and paper-box business, which 
he followed successfuU}' during the re- 



mainder of his active life. Politically he 
Avas a staunch republican, and took a 
lively interest not only in the political, 
but the militar}' aflairs of his adopted 
state as well. He was a member of the 
Sharpshooters Society, and of the vigil- 
ance committee of New York at the time 
of the war, 1861" to 1864. He married 
Christiana Rank, a daughter of Wm. 
Rank, and to them were born the follow- 
ing children : Frederick, William, de- 
ceased ; Ferdinand, deceased ; Rudolph, 
Henry, Eugene, Otto, Francis, Hugo, 
and Louis. 

Rudolph Fleidner attended the public 
schools until fourteen 3'ears of age, when 
he sought and obtained employment in a 
stationery store. Here, however, he re- 
mained but a short time, when he was 
employed in the bindery with his father, 
with whom he remained until 1882. 
During that year he started the box de- 
partment for the Consolidated Jar Com- 
pany, of New Brunswick, New Jersey. 
He superintended this department for a 
period of six years, and then embarked 
in manufacturing Ijoxes on his own ac- 
count. His start was a ver^^ meagre one, 
but by close application and the employ- 
ment of sound business methods, he has 
established a permanent and lucrative 
business. The plant is located at Nos. 
16 and 18 Bartlett street. New College 
avenue, New BrunsAvick, and has an 
annual output of, approximately, 1,000,- 
000 boxes, which find a ready market at 
the rubber and shoe factories of Ncav 
Brunswick. Politically he affiliates Avith 
the Republican party, and religious!}' he 
is a member of the First Baptist church. 
Fraternally Mr. Fleidner is identified 
Avith Union Lodge, No. Ill, F. and A. 
M., Raritan Lodge, A. 0. U. W., Friend- 
ship Lodge, No. 30, K. of P., and is a 



Biographical Sketches. 



461 



member of the Uniform Rank of the 
latter. His mai'ital alliance was with 
Amelia Huber, who bore him two chil- 
dren, William and Rudolph, both of 
whom are deceased. The former died 
at the age of five, and the latter in in- 
fancy. His marriage with Amelia Huber 
was celebrated Nov. 25, 1883. 



WILLIAM BEDMAN, JR., a large 
grower of seeds at Woodbridge, 
Middlesex county. New Jersey, is a son 
of William and Harriet Keeler Bedman, 
and Avas born in that town July 1, 1836. 
The Bedman family is of English de- 
scent, originally living in England, but 
came to this country in 1830, settling in 
Woodbridge, New Jersey. 

The name Bedman is said to be of 
German origin. William, Sr., father of 
William, Jr., was born in England, June 
10, 1811, and died Feb. 15, 1885, aged 
seventy-four. He received a common- 
school education in England ; on arriving 
in this country he followed the business 
of a seed-grower, and was very success- 
ful. He was a member of the Episcopal 
church of Woodbridge, and served it as 
a trustee and a vestryman. He took a 
lively interest in all church matters. In 
politics he was a democrat. He married 
Harriet Keeler at Woodbridge, 1833, who 
died at the age of seventy years. To 
his marriage there were born eight 
children, of whom two died after arriv- 
ing at adult age ; namely, Lewis and 
James. The others were Charles, John, 
Adelaide V. Kelly, and Henry and Har- 
riet, who are now residing at San Jose, 
California; and William, Jr. 

William Bedman, Jr., attended the 
public school in Woodbridge until he 
arrived at the age of eighteen years. 



He then started to work with his father, 
and acquired a thorough knowledge of 
the business of growing floAver and vege- 
table seeds. At the age of twenty-two 
years he went into the business for him- 
self, locating on Main street, Woodbridge, 
on three acres of choice land, renting 
two acres adjoining, in connection with 
some six acres one mile from town, 
where he has grown for him, under his per- 
sonal supervision, from his selected stock 
of seeds, named sorts of tomato and other 
seeds, his speciality in novelties, for which 
he has found remunerative markets in 
New York, Philadelphia, and other lead- 
ing cities. He has been successful in a 
high degree, energetic and ambitious, and 
is well informed in practical seed grow- 
ing. He is a republican in politics, and 
has been active in party work, having 
been elected for a term of thi'ee years, one 
of the trustees of Free School lands in 
and for the township of Woodbridge, and 
was secretary of the board during the 
term, but has never been an office-seeker. 
He is also a member and trustee of the 
First Presbyterian church, of Wood- 
bridge. 

In 1859 Mr. Bedman was married to 
Harriet E. Kelly, a daughter of Lewis 
Kelly, a well-known citizen of Wood- 
bridge. They have one daughter, Clara. 



JOHN F. VANDERVEER, a prominent 
farmer, living near Somerville, New 
Jersey, belongs to one of the oldest and 
most respected families in that section of 
the state. He was born July 8, 1840, 
near Somerville, and is a son of Henry 
and Mary Ann Frelinghuysen Vander- 
veer. His grandfather, Lawrence Van- 
derveer, was born April 28, 1741, at 
Roycefield, and was a noted physician 



462 



Biographical Sketches. 



during his life. He was a democrat polit- 
ically, and a prominent member of the 
Reformed church. He died Dec. 8, 1815, 
having had as issue to his marriage six 
children : Maria, wife of Isaac Davis ; 
Henry, Jacob, John, Sarah, married to 
Elias Conover, and Henry. 

Henry Yanderveer (father) was born 
Nov. 3, 1791, at Ro3-cefield, and, after 
being educated at the Academy of Soraer- 
ville, entered Princeton College, from 
which he graduated in 1811. He then 
became a student at the Medical College 
of the University of Pennsylvania, and 
was given his degree of M. D. in 1815. 
At the age of twent3"-four he began the 
practice of medicine at Eoycefield, and 
during his life was regarded as one of the 
most skillful and successful physicians in 
the vicinity. His political allegiance was 
first given to the Democratic party, but 
during his later life he was an active re- 
publican. He was a prominent member 
of the Reformed church, and from time 
to time held various offices in it. He 
was also an influential member of the 
Somerset County Medical Society. His 
death took place Feb. 14, 1874. To his 
marriage there was an issue of three 
children : Maria, Lawi-ence, deceased, and 
John F. 

John F. Yanderveer finished his edu- 
cation at the public schools of Somer- 
ville at the age of fifteen, when he was 
given employment on a farm near Somer- 
ville, belonging to his father. Upon the 
latter's death it came into his possession. 
This farm he has since cultivated con- 
tentedly and successfully, and he enjo3-s 
the reputation of being one of the most 
substantial and respected citizens of what 
may be called his native town. He is an 
active member of the Republican party, 
and of the Second Reformed church, m 



which he holds the respected and influ- 
ential ofiices of deacon and elder. Mr. 
Vanderveer was married June 27, 1871, 
to Sarah J. Tunison, daughter of the late 
Dr. Peter Tunison, of Somerville, and 
their marriage has Ijeen blessed b}^ the 
birth of one son, Henry, born Jan. 8, 
1874, and now living with his parents. 



T3EY. JAMES LE FEYEE, D.D., the 
-^^ present pastor of the Reformed 
church of Middlebush, New Jersey, is a 
son of Nathaniel J. and Magdalene 
(Hornbeek) Le Fevre, and was born, 
Jan. 19, 1828, at New Paltz, New 
York. The ancestors of Mr. Le Fevre 
were among the original Huguenot pat- 
entees, who settled in New Paltz, Ulster 
county, N. Y., as earlj^ as 1760. Johan- 
nes Le Fevre, his grandfather, was very 
active in the life of his county, and was 
justice of the peace for some years. His 
political ideas associated him with the 
^Vhig party. He was a member and lil> 
eral supporter of the Reformed church, 
and married Elizabeth Du Bois. also of a 
distinguished Huguenot family, and be- 
came the father of the following chil- 
dren : Andries, Rachael, Petronella, Nsr 
thaniel, Maria, Sarah, and Cornelia. 

Nathaniel J. Le Fevre (father) was 
one of the most honored and substantial 
men of the community in which he 
lived. He received a common-school 
educati(m, and engaged in agricultural 
pursuits all his life; was a member of 
the Refonned church, in which he was a 
ruling elder for many ^ears. He was a 
staunch whig, and was looked up to, and 
considered a progressive citizen, aud an 
excellent and charitable neighbor. Mr. 
Le Fevre was the father of eleven chil- 
dren ; James being the eightii born. 



Biographical Sketches. 



463 



Rev. James Le Fevre obtained his 
preparatory education under the tutor- 
age of the Rev. Baynard R. Hall, D. D., 
of Newburg, N. Y. He was graduated 
in the classical course, from Rutgers 
College, in 1854 ; taking a high stand in 
his class, and received the first Suydam 
medal, as a. prize for the best composition. 
He afterwards completed his professional 
education in the Theological Seminary 
at New Brunswick, in 1857, and was li- 
censed and ordained the same year. He 
received his first charge at Raritan, New 
Jersey, where he remained as pastor of 
the Reformed Protestant Dutch church 
for the period of seventeen and one-half 
years. In 1874 he received and accepted 
a call from the Reformed church at Mid- 
dlebush, beginning to serve his congrega^ 
tion on the first Sunday of January, 1875. 
Zealously has he labored in these charges, 
since the day of his installation as pastor; 
and has had the well-deserved pleasure 
of seeing them grow and prosper, and 
the cause of the Master flourish in his 
hands. 

The Rev. Le Fevre early realized the 
incalculable importance of the work of 
the Sunday-school, and has for many 
years been an energetic promoter of that 
branch of church work, having served as 
corresponding secretary of the Somerset 
County Sunday-school Association for 
thirty-three years. Having been natur- 
ally endowed with a taste for literary 
work. Dr. Le Fevre has well fulfilled the 
promise of his youth. Li connection 
with his numerous pastoral duties he con- 
tributes valuable and timely articles to 
several magazines and newspapers, has 
written a complete history of the old 
church at Middlebush, and is a promi- 
nent member of the Huguenot Society of 
America, having written a paper on the 

24 



" Twelve Huguenot Patentees of New 
Paltz," commonly called the "Duzine." 
Dr. Le Fevre is a perfect specimen of 
political evolution ; the whig tendencies 
of his worthy ancestors having devel- 
oped and matured to sturdy, staunch 
republican ideas. 

On June 18, 1857, Dr. Le Fevre mar- 
ried Cornelia Hasbrouck, daughter of 
James Hasbrouck. Resulting from their 
union are the following children : Egbert 
Le Fevre, M. D., adjunct professor of 
the medical department. New York Uni- 
versity, first assistant physician to the 
Bellevue Hospital, consulting physician 
to the Beth Israel Hospital, and author 
of a paper on the " Significance of Pleu- 
risy;" Cornelia Bevier, Laura Has- 
brouck, Esther De Witt, and James 
Hasbrouck, who is now in business at 
Steelton, Pa. 

Dr. Le Fevre received the title of 
D. D. from Rutgers in 1893, of which 
college he is a trustee. It is with much 
pleasure that we note the most interest- 
ing fact, that of the young men brought 
up in the Middlebush congregation twelve 
are now engaged in the work of spread- 
ing the gospel. Who can tell where the 
influence emanating from Dr. Le Fevre's 
labors will not reach? Surely he can 
look upon a long professional career with 
the sweet pleasure that comes from work 
well done, and a life well spent. 



y\ANIEL G. STUBBLEBINE, president 
-L^ and superintendent of Elmwood 
cemetery, and a well-known former store- 
keeper of New Brunswick, was born 
Sept. 15, 1833, in Berks county. Pa., and 
is a son of William and Mary (Garver) 
Stubblebine. His early education was 
extremely limited. His boyhood was 



464 



Biographical Sketches. 



spent upon his father's farm until he was 
twelve years old, when he became a 
clerk in a countiy store at Unionville, 
Pa., where he remained for three years. 
He subsequently occupied a similar posi- 
tion in a store at Port Union until he 
was twenty years old. On April 4, 1854, 
he removed to New Brunswick, and was 
for five }■ ears clerk for Jarrard & Dilitash, 
who had a grocery store and canal stable. 
He was then in the bakery business for 
two years, and afterwards established a 
grocery and canal stables on his own 
account. A partnership was formed Avith 
L. D. Jarrard for the conduct of the latter 
business, which lasted for eight years. 
Mr. Stubblebine then organized a com- 
pany and started Elmwood cemeter}^, of 
which he has been president and super- 
intendent ever since. In addition he 
also owns an excellent farm near New 
Brunswick, which he Avorks with profit. 
He is a well-known man in the city, is a 
republican, and took an active part in 
local politics when he was younger. He 
has been twice married. His first wife 
was Miss Mary E. Booraem, to whom he 
was married Dec. 30, 1867, and who died 
Sept. 30, 1866. By her he had one 
child, Henry L. On Nov. 18, 1869, he 
mari'ied Miss Amanda Carel, daughter 
of Davis Carel, and they have five chil- 
dren : Minnie, Ann B., Davis C, Nellie 
G., and Olive May. 

Andrew Stubjjlebine (grandfather) was 
born in Germany, and came to the United 
States. He was a well-known farmer in 
Berks county. Pa., a prominent Avhig, 
and a member of the Dutch Keformed 
church. He was the father of five sons : 
Daniel, David, John, Moses, and William. 

William Stubblebine (father) was born 
on the ancestral farm in Berks county, 
Pa., received a common-school education. 



and was a farmer all his life, although 
he learned weaving as a trade. He was 
a republican, and a staunch supporter of 
the Dutch Reformed church. He died 
in Sept., 1874, having been the father of 
six children : Henry G., John, Hiram, 
Daniel G., Ann E., wife of Daniel Benner, 
and Mary E., wife of George Wells. 



TAMES E. BOGLE, a member of the 
^ enterprising firm of Pearsall & Bogle, 
leading contractors and builders, at Oce- 
anic, Monmouth count}-, New Jersey, is 
a stepson of T. Watson and H. Maggie 
(Baird) Bogle, and was born April 20, 
1861, at Harrisburg, Pa. 

Joseijh H. Bogle (grandfather) was a 
native of New York city, where he re- 
sided during the years of his active life, 
and his declining days were spent at the 
Soldiers' Home, in Norfolk, Va., within 
whose hospitable and sheltering walls he 
died in the sixties, a respected veteran of 
the Mexican war. 

T. Watson Bogle (father) was born 
Aug. 29, 1833, in New York city, and 
deceased at San Francisco, Cal., in De- 
cember, 1885. In the earlier years of 
his highly successful career " Thomas W. 
Brown," for such was his stage pseu- 
donym, was a comedian of just preten- 
sions to a high degree of abilitj-, and 
later when he adopted heavier roles his 
success became no less pronounced. He 
attained a position of marked promi- 
nence on the stage, and at his death was 
one of the oldest theatrical men in this 
country. During the last two years of 
his life he was profitabl}^ engaged in the 
jjatent medicine trade at San Francisco. 

James E. Bogle attended the public 
schools at Harrisburg until he reached 
his fourteenth year, and was subse- 



Biographical Sketches. 



467 



quently employed in the car shops of 
the Pennsylvania railroad in that city. 
In 1875 he became an attache of a 
theatrical company, and later in various 
similar companies, in which he served 
as advance agent and manager during 
the seven years that ensued. In 1882 
Mr. Bogle located permanently in Oce- 
anic, where he began the occupation 
of painting and house decorative work, 
at which he continued alone for ten 
years. In 1892 he entered into a part- 
nership with William H. Pearsall, the 
well-known contractor and builder at 
Oceanic, under the firm name of Pearsall 
& Bogle. This combination of two sepa- 
rate and distinct trades, painting and 
carpentering, to which each partner con- 
tributed his individual knowledge, ex- 
perience, skill, and capital, was a strong 
one, and the house at once entered upon 
a prosperous business. They employ 
on an average sixty men, whose bi- 
weekly pay-rolls range from |G00 to 
$1800. They have erected many of 
the handsomest cottages in Monmouth 
county. In religious matters Mr. Bogle 
is a member of the Presbyterian church 
at Oceanic, New Jersey, and in politics 
he is a democrat. He has been a mem- 
ber of the board of education of Shrews- 
bury township for the last five years, in 
which position he has rendered valuable 
service as a faithful friend and ally of the 
public schools. In secret fellowship he 
is a member of the following societies : 
Narumsunk Tribe, No. 148, I. 0. R. M.; 
Haymakers' Association, No. 148 J j De- 
gree of Pocahontas, No. 23, all of Oce- 
anic, New Jersey, and OnAvard Council, 
No. 148, Jr. 0. U. A. M., of Red Bank, 
in the same state. Mr. Bogle was united 
in marriage Oct. 8, 1883, to Hulda B. 
Longstreet, a daughter of Joseph W. 



Longstreet, of Oceanic, and to their union 
have been born two daughters : Chrissy, 
born July 16, 1886, and Eva B., born 

May 23, 1888. 



pi EORGE DE WITT FAY, M. D., one 
^-^ of Monmouth county's leading 
homoeopathic physicians, practicing at 
Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, is a son 
of James De Witt and Elizabeth Worthley 
Fay, and was born Nov. 10, 1858, at 
Eatontown, Monmouth county. New Jer- 
sey. He descends from Scotch-Irish 
ancestry on the paternal, and from Puri- 
tan stock on the maternal side, his Ameri- 
can progenitor being Ethan A. Fay, who 
was one of the Pilgrim fathers. 

Ethan Allen Fay, the grandfather, was 
a kinsman of Ethan Allen, one of the 
rebels of '76, and came from Vermont to 
New Jersey in 1817, located at Shrews- 
bury, and pursued the trade of a wheel- 
wright for a time ; subsequently remov- 
ing to Eatontown. At a later period he 
went west, became one of the pioneer 
settlers at Chicago, whence after a resi- 
dence of three years he returned to his 
Eatontown home and engaged in steam- 
boat traffic. He was a wealthy man at 
the time of his death and possessed of 
considerable real estate. His marriage 
Feb. 12, 1826, to Maria Edwards, resulted 
in the birth of six children : Ethan A., 
Webley, James De Witt, Robert, Sarah 
M, and Lucinda. 

James De Witt Fay (father), was edu- 
cated in the district schools of Eaton- 
town, and at an early age learned the 
trade of a wheelwright, which he carried 
on for a number of years as his father's 
successor. Later he became a merchant 
and a butcher, for which employment he 
subsequently substituted that of a real- 



468 



Biographical Sketches. 



estate agent and promoter of shore prop- 
erties. He acquired a handsome compe- 
tence and is now Uviug in retirement at 
Eatontown, where he is held in high esti- 
mation as a prominent citizen and as a 
local preacher and elder in the Methodist 
Episcopal church, as well as an active 
worker in religious and temperance ma1> 
ters. In politics he is a republican of 
strict party bias, and decidedly active in 
local affairs. He was married April 4, 
1853, to Elizabeth Worthley, a native of 
Red Bank, New Jersey, and is the father 
of three children: George De Witt, Albert 
W., and Anella L., wife of Rev. W. Win- 
field Ridgely, of Baltimore, Md., now a 
member of the New Jersey Annual 
Conference of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. 

George De Witt Fay received his primary 
education in the district and select schools 
at Eatontown and in the Pennington 
Seminary. At the age of eighteen years 
he entered Hahnemann College, Philadel- 
phia, from which he was graduated in 
medicine with the class of 1881. His 
first location for medical practice was at 
Asbury Park with his old preceptor. Dr. 
Hetrick, with whom Dr. Fay remained 
about six months. He removed in 1882 
to Atlantic Highlands, and entered into 
an especially successful individual prac- 
tice in an office in the old " Foster Pavi- 
lion," where he remained until 1886, 
when he removed to his present offices 
on Bay* View avenue. He has during 
these fourteen years devoted himself ex- 
clusively to his profession, and his present 
large practice and medical prominence 
are due to this unvarying application. 
His reputation is that of one of the lead- 
ing homoeopathic physicians of Mon- 
mouth county, and his term of practice 
in Atlantic Highlands is concurrent with 



that of Dr. Van Mater, both having 
located in that town on the same day. 
Li political matters Dr. Fay is a republi- 
can, and at present is the president of the 
local board of health. He is a tireless 
worker in this capacity and takes the 
keenest interest in all hygienic and sani- 
tary affairs of the town. His opinion 
always carries weight in such matters 
and business. Bemg a deeply respected 
member of the medical fraternity, he en- 
joys a large social popularity. Dr. Fay 
was united in marriage Feb. 5, 1895, 
with Lillie Campbell, a daughter of 
Anthony F. Campbell, of Brooklyn, N. Y. 



"DOBERT POTTER, one of the oldest 
-L »J and most successful fishermen, and 
a well-known citizen of Monmouth 
county, New Jerse}^, is a son of Jesse 
and Katharine Morris Potter, and was 
born at Long Branch, New Jersey, Dec. 
24, 1829. 

Joel Potter (grandfather) was born in 
Connecticut, and was a fiirmer by occu- 
pation. He subsequently removed to 
and located in New Jer.sey. Jesse Pot- 
ter (father) was born at Manasquan, 
New Jersey, June 11, 1805, and in the 
way of education was his own teacher, 
having never gone to school. He fol- 
lowed the water for some years, and later 
engaged in fishing at Long Branch, after 
which he worked on the Jersey City 
ferry for seven years, and then returned 
to Long Branch and continued in the 
fish business for the remainder of his 
life, which-ended April 4, 1863. In his 
early political life, Mr. Potter was an 
old-line whig, and, at the disruption of 
that party, naturally became a supporter 
of republican doctiines and principles. 
In 1828, Jesse Potter led to the altar and 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



469 



married Miss Katharine Morris, a daugh- 
ter of WilliarQ and Katharine Morris, of 
Long Branch, and to them were born 
five sons and four daughters : Robert, 
Sarah (Mrs. William Manehan), James 
H., Benjamin, Jeane (Mrs. Nelson Jo- 
line), Amelia (Mrs. Theodore Joline), 
Almira (Mrs. John Wood), William, who 
died young; and Charles, who died in 
1888. Mother Potter lived until July 
12, 1895, when she passed away, aged 
eighty-four years. 

Robert Potter obtained his early edu- 
cation in the common schools of Long 
Branch, and the public schools at Jersey 
City. At the early age of sixteen, he 
began what was to prove his life-long oc- 
cupation — that of fishing on the Atlantic 
at Long Branch, and also in the Raritan 
bay. Having learned the details of this 
business from boyhood, Mr. Potter bent 
his youthful energies to this particular 
line of work, and has since built up 
one of the largest fishing establishments 
in that locality, at present having in his 
employ twenty-six men. In politics, Mr. 
Potter is a consistent republican, and has 
held several political ofiices in his town. 
He is also a member in good standing of 
the following orders of Long Branch : 
Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and 
Knights of Pythias, No. 83. Prior to 
the war, Mr. Potter was connected with 
the state militia of New Jersey, and 
served as first lieutenant of the Third 
regiment. During the latter part of the 
war. Lieutenant Potter helped to raise a 
company of ninety-six men, and was 
just taking them to Trenton to be mus- 
tered into the service, when the news of 
Lee's surrender reached the north. 

Mr. Potter has an enviable record as a 
church man, and for many years has 
been one of the pillars of the Asbury 



Methodist Episcopal church at North 
Long Branch. He takes particular inter- 
est and concern in the welfare and affairs 
of his church organization, and has made 
a long record as class leader and as an 
official member of the congregation. At 
present he is treasurer of the board of 
stewards, a member of the building com- 
mittee, and treasurer of the same, and 
has been for many years a member of 
the board of trustees. 

On Feb. 26, 1853, Robert Potter was 
united in marriage to Miss Rachael B. 
West, daughter of George and Abgiail 
West, of Long Branch. This happy 
event has resulted in the birth of three 
daughters and one son : Eva (Mrs. Wil- 
liam L. Chadwick), Letitia (Mrs. Arthur 
J. Whiting), Ella (Mrs. George R. Hoyt), 
and William N., bookkeeper for Messrs. 
Hoyt & Francis, of North Long Branch. 

Mr. Potter is a man of rare character, 
successful in business, an enterprising 
and liberal-minded citizen, and retains 
the friendship and esteem of a large 
circle of acquaintances all over Mon- 
mouth county. 



TT C. TERHUNE, assistant cashier of 
-LJ— the Navesink Bank of Red Bank, 
New Jersey, and a man who stands high 
in the confidence and esteem of the peo- 
ple, is the eldest son of James J. and 
Margaret D. Terhune, and was born in 
New York city, in the Ninth ward, on 
Perry street, April 21, 1840. Mr. Ter- 
hune is descended from a sturdy Holland 
Dutch ancestry, and his grandfather, 
William Terhune, was a prominent boot 
and shoe manufacturer of Newark, New 
Jersey. He was prosperous and success- 
ful in his business, and was regarded as 
one of the leading and substantial citi- 



470 



Biographical Sketches. 



zens of his town. He married Mary 
Johnson, of Rockland county, N. Y., by 
whom he had seven children : Mary, de- 
ceased ; William, of Newark ; John, de- 
ceased ; Daniel, of Brockton, Mass.; 
Catharine, of Newark, this state, the 
widow of John B. Thoi'n ; Caroline, the 
widow of Edwin T. Ball ; and Eliza, 
the wife of George Edwards, of Newark. 
James J. Terhune (father) was a na- 
tive and life-long resident of the state of 
New Jersey, born at Newark on Dec. 12, 
1812, and passed his entire life in that 
city, universally loved and respected. 
While he had but a common-school edu- 
cation, he was yet a close student of men 
and events, possessed a logical and dis- 
criminating mind, qualities which, com- 
bined with executive ability and good 
organizing powers, made him one of the 
most potent factors in the poUtics of the 
state of New Jersey. He took an active 
part in the gubernatorial campaign of 
1856 and was largely instrumental in 
securing the election of Gov. William A. 
Newell. In 1854 he was elected clerk 
of Essex county, by the Republican 
party, and filled that office ably and sai> 
isfactorily. He was one of the oldest 
and most prominent members of the Odd 
Fellows and Masonic lodges in the state, 
and was the founder of Oriental Lodge 
of Masons at Newark. He was for 
many years trustee of the South Baptist 
church of Newark. Public-spirited, phi- 
lanthropic and liberal, he contributed 
both his time and means to every move 
which had for its object the material im- 
provement of his county and state, and 
the amelioration of human suffering. 
He married Margaret D. Lefferts, of New 
York city, by whom he had five children : 
H. C, Adelia M., the wife of Amzi 
Pierson, of Newark; Theodore F., of 



Milwaukee, Wis. ; William L., of Water- 
ville, N. Y. ; and Laura F., of Newark. 
H. C. Terhune and Josephine W. 
Akers were united in the bonds of matri- 
mony on Sept. 23, 1862, and to their 
union two children have been born : 
Lillian, deceased, who was the consort 
of James W. Stafford, of White Plains, 
N. Y.; and Edgar A., who is superinten- 
dent of the electric light company of 
Red Bank ; a natural engineer and mathe- 
matician. Mr. Terhune attended the 
common schools of his native town, and 
then took an academic course in the 
Newark Wesleyan Institute. Graduat- 
ing in 1850, he took the honors of his 
class in mathematics. He aftei'wards 
attended the Bloomfield Institute three 
years, and then took a clerkship for two 
years under his father, who was then 
county clerk. In 1856 he entered the 
law office of Lewis C. Grover, of Newark, 
under whose preceptorship he read four 
years, having at the same time full 
charge of Mr. Grover's oflBce work. 

In 1861, when the cruel civil war 
burst upon the country, Mr. Terhune 
was among the first to enlist in defence 
of the nation's honor. He served as 
adjutant of the Twenty-sixth regiment. 
New Jersey volunteers, until June 10, 
1863, when he was honorably discharged 
at Newark. He was a soldier always 
found at his post of dutj^, is now promi- 
nent and active in the work of the G. 
A. R., has been commander of Post No. 
61, at Red Bank, and adjutant-general 
of the department of New Jersey. Re- 
turning from the war Mr. Terhune en- 
gaged in the banking business, first as 
receiving teller of the Marine Bank of 
New York city, next as cashier for the 
banking house of Northrup & Chick, of 
New York city, and later became cashier 



Biographical Sketches. 



471 



of the First National Bank of Dennison, 
Texas. In 1883 he came to Red Bank 
as discount clerk of the Second National 
Bank, and continued in that position 
until 1892, when he resigned to help or- 
ganize the N avesink Bank of Ked Bank, 
tlpon its organization he was made its 
assistant cashier, and has since been contin- 
ued in that position. He is a careful and 
methodical official, noted for the rapidity 
and accuracy of his work. He is secre- 
tary of the board of trade of Red Bank, 
and in politics he is a republican. Lib- 
eral and generous in his views, he sup- 
ports the men who are best qualified to 
fill the office. His tastes are for intelli- 
gent and refined society, and his chosen 
friends are persons of ability and culture. 
He is an earnest, fluent and forcible 
speaker, and certain to command the at- 
tention of those whom he addresses. 



TAMES G. SERVISS, superintendent of 
^ Van Liew cemetery. North Bruns- 
wick township, and. well known through 
his untiring work in connection with 
church and charitable affairs in that 
township, is a son of Richard and Ann 
(Norman) Serviss, and was born Dec. 16, 
1828, at South River. He was educated 
in the district schools at Dunham's Cor- 
ner. When fifteen years old he entered 
a blacksmith shop at George's Road, 
learned the trade thoroughly, and fol- 
lowed it for forty years, his shop being 
located on the road leading from New 
Brunswick to Milltown. He was elected 
superintendent of Van Liew cemeter};' in 
1879, and has filled that position ever 
since. His duties comprise attention to 
all business matters connected with the 
cemetery, and he has taken extraordinary 
interest in beautifying and adorning the 



grounds, turning them into a veritable 
garden spot. 

Mr. Serviss has always been a staunch 
republican in politics, and served as town- 
ship collector and treasurer of North 
Brunswick for seven years. He is a 
member of the Livingston Avenue Bap- 
tist church of New Brunswick, and has 
always been prominent in the conduct 
and advancement of church affairs. Mr. 
Serviss is widely known and respected 
throughout Middlesex county. He is 
especially prominent by his practical in- 
terest in charitable matters, and it is well 
known that he never refuses a helping 
hand to any deserving fellow-man in dis- 
tress and never withholds aid from any 
philanthropic plan which promises to 
bear good fruit. 

He is a brother of Richard Serviss, 
sheriff of Middlesex county, and an uncle 
of David Serviss, collector of Middlesex 
county, and the reader is referred to the 
sketch of the former in this volume for 
an account of the family's ancestry. 



JOHN MOY, merchant and deputy 
postmaster of Stelton, New Jersey, 
and a man of varied business experience, 
and an extensive traveler, is a son of 
William and Mary Moy, and was born 
at Epsom, County of Surrey, England, 
July 13, 1824. His ancestry, eminently 
respectable and industrious, originated in 
the city of Norwich, Norfolk, England, 
and belonged to the yeoman class, which 
constitutes the real strength of any 
country. Young Moy attended the com- 
mon schools until the age of ten years, 
and was reared in the public house (the 
Royal Standard) at No. 32 Stock Bridge 
Terrace, Pimlico, London ; of which his 
uncle, John Moy, was proprietor. He 



472 



Biographical Sketches. 



then became a steward on the first mail 
steamer, the " Australian," that sailed to 
Sydnej'^, Australia, and back to England ; 
leaving Blackwall, London, June 1, 1852, 
and returning, arrived at Pljanouth, Eng- 
land, Jan. 11, 1853. This steamer, on 
her return trip, had on board eleven tons 
of gold, and the largest specimen found 
up to that time ; weighing twenty-eight 
pounds, four ounces. The same year he 
left his native land and landed in New 
York city, where he immediately ac- 
cepted a position with a book firm. He 
filled this position but a short time; and, 
after occupying several other positions, 
he became associated with the Singer 
Manufacturing Co., in whose employ he 
continued for thirteen years. At the ex- 
piration of this time he removed to Mid- 
dletown, Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
and embarked in the grocery business. 
Subsequently he came to New Bruns- 
wick. Here he was elected constable, 
and sei'ved during the years 1882, '8-3, 
'84, and '85, and at the same time was 
engaged in the kerosine oil business. In 
1889 he engaged in merchandising at 
Stelton, New Jersey ; and, in the same 
year, he was appointed deputy-postmas- 
ter of that town by President Cleveland. 
Politically Mr. Moy is an active and 
loyal republican, and cast his first vote 
for Abraham Lincoln ; religiously, an 
earnest and devoted member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. Frater- 
nally he is a member of Palestine Lodge, ! 
No. Ill, F. and A. M., New Brunswick ; 
and the Union League of Brooklyn, 
N. Y. In 1855 he was also a member of 
the volunteer fire department. New York 
Hook and Ladder Company, No. 11. To 
his marriage union have been born six 
children : Elizabeth Bertha, born Oct. 27, 
1856, married Samuel Tolman, and re- 



sides in Brooklyn; Sarah Adelia, born 
May 1, 1859, and died in infancy; 
Phoebe Augusta, born June 5, 1861, and 
also died in infancy ; John Lincoln, born 
May 4, 1863, married, and resides in 
Brooklyn ; George Washington, born 
August 29, 1865, married, and lives in 
Brooklyn ; William, born Nov. 15, 1868, 
and died in infancy. 

Mr. Moy is a man of wide and varied 
experience with men and affairs. In 
business he is found careful and methodi- 
cal, and of proverbial honesty and up- 
rightness in all his business and social 
relations. 



TTTILLIAM H. CARSON and GARRETT 
' ' D. CARSON, comprising the firm 
of Carson Brothers, extensive wholesale 
and retail butchers and dealers in live 
stock at Freehold, are sons of John V. 
and Adelia Carson. 

Their grandfather, Disbi'ow A. Carson, 
was a prosperous farmer and large land- 
owner in Marlboro township, where he 
was a school trustee and an elder in the 
Marlboro Dutch Reformed church. One 
of his sons, William Carson, was at one 
time revenue collector at Holmdel, and 
another, D. A. Carson, was deputy-sheriff 
of Monmouth county in 1878. 

John V. Carson (father) was educated 
in the Marlboro district schools, and was 
widely prominent, not only as a farmer, 
but more particularly as proprietor of the 
Hotel Belmont at Freehold, from 1861 
to 1864. He is an active democrat in 
politics, and was a large land-owner in 
Monmouth countj^ He is the father of 
two sons and three daughters : Garrett 
D., William H., Jennie, Lizzie, and Sarah. 

Garrett D. Carson, elder of the two 
brothers, and senior member of the firm, 
was born Oct. 2, 1859, at Pleasant Val- 



Biographical Sketches. 



475 



ley, New Jersey, and was educated at 
Freehold, graduating from the Freehold 
Institute in 1874. His early life was 
spent with his father on his farm in 
Marlboro township, but after completing 
his education he became book-keeper for 
C. B. Ellis, a butcher doing business at 
the place now occupied by him and his 
brother. In 1885 Mr. Carson purchased 
the business, and entered into partner- 
ship with Job E. Emmons, and they re- 
mained together until 1889 under the 
firm name of Carson & Emmons. The 
present co-partnership of the two brothers 
was founded Jan. 1, 1890. Mr. Carson 
is a member of Lodge No. 16, F. and 
A. M. ; K. of P. ; Jr. 0. U. A. M., and 
the local lodge of I. 0. 0. F., of which he 
was treasurer for six years. In 1890 he 
was married to Miss Lillian K. Johnson, 
daughter of P. K. Johnson, of Philadel- 
phia. He is a staunch, industrious busi- 
ness man, a popular and progressive 
citizen, and one of the most active sup- 
porters of the First Presbyterian church, 
of which he is a leading member. 

William H. Carson, junior member of 
the firm, was born March 25, 1862, at 
Freehold, and graduated from Freehold 
Institute in 1881. He assisted his brother 
Garrett in his business until 1890, when 
he became a member of the firm. In 
1890 he was married to Miss Annie D. 
Rue, daughter of Matthew Rue, of Red 
Bank. He is a popular and respected 
citizen of Freehold, and an energetic busi- 
ness man. Carson Brothers are the lead- 
ing buyers and sellers of cattle, sheep and 
other live stock in Monmouth county, 
in addition to conducting an extensive 
wholesale and retail butcher trade. They 
receive and ship cattle in car-load lots, 
and buy from all the surrounding country. 
They own considerable property, includ- 



ing large slaughter houses at Freehold, 
where they have six employees, and from 
whence they run both local and country 
delivery wagons. Both of the brothers 
are noted horse-fanciers, and were promi- 
nent in the organization of the Freehold 
Driving Association. The firm has a 
wide reputation as a prosperous and en- 
terprising one. 



r\ B. REYNOLDS, president of the 
^-^ • Bound Brook Water Company, the 
Bound Brook Electric Light, Heat and 
Power Company, and vice-president of 
the First National Bank of Bound Brook, 
a retired railway contractor of unusual 
experience, is a son of William and Eliza- 
beth Bowen Reynolds, and was born 
Feb. 13, 1823, at North Kingston, R. I. 
The family is of English origin. The 
paternal grandfather, Jabez Reynolds, 
was a native of North Kingston, R. I. 
He was a farmer all his days and reared 
but one son, William, father of the sub- 
ject of this sketch. 

William Reynolds (father) was born 
and raised at North Kingston, R. I., 
where he received a good education, and 
later became a surveyor of lands. He 
became a man of considerable prominence 
in the state, and a man who possessed 
the entire confidence of the people. His 
services were in frequent demand in set- 
tling of estates. He owned a farm of 
four hundred acres near Kingston, the 
old homestead farm, and he operated for 
many years in Warwick township, R. I., 
one of the first cotton mills established in 
Rhode Island. From 1840 to 60 he was 
president of the East Greenwich National 
Bank. He was an ardent advocate of 
the cause of temperance, and he organ- 
ized one of the earliest temperance socie- 



476 



Biographical Sketches. 



ties in his stcate. He was a whig and an 
abolitionist in politics, and an admirer of 
the late Horace Greeley. He was a mem- 
ber of the Society of Friends, likewise his 
first wife, Sarah Bowen. They had eight 
children : Jabez, deceased, at Cincinnati ; 
James, deceased, at Providence, R. I. ; 
William K., also deceased, at Cincinnati ; 
Thomas A., an ex-senator from Rhode 
Island ; Richard, deceased in Michigan ; 
0. B., and Lydia B. 

0. B. Reynolds attended the district 
schools at North Kingston, but owing to 
an attack of lung-fever, which he suffered 
in early boyhood and from which he did 
not entirely recover for seven years, his 
education was quite limited. He quit 
school and entered the service of Sewall 
Belknap, a railroad contractor and 
builder, whose foreman he soon became 
and with whom he remained until the 
death of that gentleman. He assisted 
Mr. Belknap in the construction of the 
Fitchbui'g railroad, and subsequently was 
appointed I'oad master. After two years 
he entered upon an extensive career as 
a railroad contractor and builder. He 
built the Marietta and Cincinnati rail- 
road, between those two Ohio cities. He 
was superintendent of construction of the 
Lake Shore and Michigan Southern from 
Erie to Pennsville, at Girard, and of the 
filling of Boston bay, Boston. He car- 
ried out a successful contract with the 
Union Pacific which extended from the 
Summit, thirty-six miles from Chejenne, 
AVj-oming, to Ogden, Utah. From there 
he returned to the East and secured a con- 
tract at Daubury, Conn., and built what 
is now the New England road. He 
went thence to New Orleans and entered 
upon the construction of the New Or- 
leans, Mobile and Texas railroad, to 
Donaldsonville, which he finished in 1870. 



He subsequently built fourteen miles of 
the Lehigh Valley road from Bound 
Brook, west, completed the New Eng- 
land railroad, and built the Delaware 
and Lackawanna extension from Bing- 
liamton to Buffalo. After he completed 
this last undertaking he sold out his en- 
tire outfit of apparatus and machinery 
with a view of retiring from that busi- 
ness. He subsequently, however, was 
engaged in work for a time on the rail- 
road between Halifax and Monti'eal. He 
retired from business in 1883 and settled 
permanently at Bound Brook, where he 
is interested in some of its most substan- 
tial institutions. He is president of the 
Bound Brook Water Company', vice-presi- 
dent of the First National Bank, and 
president of the Bound Brook Electric 
Light and Heat Company. 

Mr. Reynolds is a republican in poli- 
tics, and was for many years one of the 
commissioners of Bound Brook. He was 
married in 1845 to Cynthia White. She 
died three weeks after the marriage cere- 
mony was performed. For his second 
wife Mr. Rejnolds married Mary J. 
Lampman, a daughter of John Lamp- 
man, in 1852. She also has passed to 
the other world. Her death occurred in 
1888, at the age of sixty-two years. She 
was the mother of two children, both of 
whom died in infancy. Mr. Reynolds 
has reached and passed the scriptural 
seventy years allotted to human life, and 
on his scroll there is traced during the 
greater number of those years the record 
of a busy, eventful and prosperous life. 
He has without doubt contributed more 
time and a greater experience to the 
cause of successful railroad building in 
this country than an}- other one man, for 
the field of his operations cover every 
state in the Union. 



Biographical Sketches. 



477 



TDENJAMIN E. GEIGGS, a successful 
-'--' grocer of Matawan, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Benja- 
min and Mary (Stillwell) Griggs, and was 
born Sept. 15, 1847, in that town. The 
family is originally of Scotch descent. 
The paternal grandfather, also named 
Benjamin, was a successful farmer and 
resided near Freehold, New Jersey, all 
his life. His political faith was that of a 
democrat, and in religious creed he was 
a baptist. He was married to Mary 
Whitlock, and he deceased in 1846. 
His wife died in 1858, after bearing him 
six children : John, William, Benjamin 
E., Edmund, Lydia, and Mary. 

Benjamin E. Griggs (father) was born 
near Freehold in 1810. He there re- 
ceived a common-school education, and 
later removed to Matawan, then Mid- 
dletown Point, where, after clerking sev- 
eral years in a store, he entered into busi- 
ness for himself by forming a partnership 
with Conover Whitlock, under the firm 
name and style of Griggs & Whitlock, 
dealers in general merchandise. He car- 
ried on a prosperous business in that line 
for a number of years, and at a later 
period he engaged in the business of 
milling at Matawan. He was subse- 
quently employed in the custom house 
at New York city for a time, and still 
later was engaged in the grocery busi- 
ness with his son at Matawan. In this 
latter occupation he remained until his 
death, which occurred in 1887. He was 
an active democrat in politics, was an 
efficient toiler in the party ranks, and 
was assessor for his township for a period 
of twenty years. In the Presbyterian 
church at Matawan, of which he was an 
earnest and devoted member, he occupied 
the position of elder for many years. He 
was the father of six children : Sarah, 



married to Garret Hendrickson, of Mat- 
awan ; William, in business with the sub- 
ject; John, in mercantile business at 
New Haven, Conn.; Louisa, deceased in 
1876 ; Benjamin E., the subject, and 
Elizabeth, living with her brother, Benja- 
min E. 

Benjamin E. Griggs (subject) received 
his earlier education in the public schools 
of Matawan, but subsequently he at- 
tended the Glenwood Institute, from 
which he was graduated. After a series 
of clerkships in various stores at Mata- 
wan he opened a grocery business of his 
own on M ain street, in the same town, in 
1876. In this enterprise, to which he 
added the business of dealing in hay and 
feed, he soon built up a very successful 
and profitable trade, and one that is con- 
stantly increasing. Mr. Griggs is a demo- 
crat politically ; in religious matters is 
an active member and a trustee of the 
Matawan Presbyterian church, and is 
interested in the Sunday school. He is 
a member of three secret societies, the 
Royal Arcanum, the T. 0. 0. F., and the 
Jr. 0. U. A. M. 



TTON. WILLIAM F. HARKINS, ex- 
-•--*- member of the New Jersey state 
legislature, a prominent figure and leader 
in the political affairs of New Brunswick 
and Middlesex county, New Jersey, now 
the assistant postmaster of that city, is a 
son of James and Catharine (Lannon) 
Harkins, and was born at New Bruns- 
wick, Middlesex county, Sept. 22, 1863. 

Johii Harkins (grandfather) was a na- 
tive of New Brunswick, and was con- 
nected with a distillery at that place. 
He was a democrat, and a member of the 
Roman Catholic church. John Harkins 
and his estimable wife, formerly Miss 



478 



Biographical Sketches. 



Margaret Lynch, had a family of seven 
children: Mrs. Mary Trainor, Charles, 
James, Elizabeth (Mrs. Elizabeth Lynch), 
John, Edward, and Robert. Grandfather 
and grandmother Harkins died respec- 
tively in 1865 and 1894, and are both 
buried in the St. Peter's Roman Catholic 
cemetery, New Brunswick, New Jersey. 

James Hai-kins (father) was born in 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, where he 
received his education in the common 
schools, learned the trade of a mason, 
and sustained a high reputation as a 
bricklayer. Mr. Harkins, Sr., followed 
his chosen calling for many years, and 
finally relinquished it, and became a trav- 
eling representative for a Philadelphia 
company, in whose employ he remained 
until his death, which occurred Dec. 24, 
1893. He was an unfaltering believer in 
the principles of the Democratic party, 
and in church doctrine and holdings was 
a catholic. On Nov. 23, 1856, James 
Harkins married Miss Katharine Lan- 
non, daughter of Catherine and James 
Lannon, and their family of children are 
as follows : Margaret, John J., Mary 
(Mrs. James Maher), William F., James 
and Charles, deceased ; Anna S., died 
young; Teresa Anglea, Charles, and 
Loretta. 

William P. Harkins (subject) obtained 
his preliminary instruction in the pa- 
rochial schools, and then attended the 
Rutgers College Grammar School. He 
read law for one year in the office of 
Messrs. Rile}^ & Stone, but being obliged 
to give up the prospect of completing a 
law course Mr. Harkins connected himself 
with the New Brunswick button factory, 
where he remained eight years. In the 
meantime he learned telegraphy, and for 
eight years was employed by the Penn- 
sylvania Railroad Co. at Metuchen, New 



Jersey, and held some responsible posi- 
tions in the service of that corporation. 

In the spring of 1890 Mr. Harkins 
was nominated by the Democratic party 
for the office of city recorder, and was 
elected by a majority of one hundred 
and eightj^-nine votes. In 1893 he was 
again a candidate for the same office, and 
received seven hundred and sixty-four 
majority over his opponent. In 1893 he 
became the recipient of still higher 
honors, this time being elected to a seat 
in the assembly of his state. He served 
his term, but was defeated at the next 
election in 1894. Mr. Harkins has also 
been justice of the peace in the Sixth 
ward of his city, and also commissioner 
of deeds. His political and public life 
has been one of great activity and de- 
votion to the interests of the general 
public and to a well-satisfied constitu- 
ency, and he has gained an enviable 
reputation as an able, courteous, and pop- 
ular official. He is a member of the St. 
Peter's Roman Catholic church of New 
Brunswick, and actively suppoi'ts the 
same. He is also connected with a brass 
band, organized in 1888, and at one time 
was leader of that organization. 

On Sept. 25, 1896, William F. Harkins 
married Miss Mary A. Norton, daughter 
of John and Catherine Norton, of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey ; and this happy 
union has resulted in a family of three 
children : Katharine, James, and John. 

Mr. Harkins was appointed, April 1, 
1896, to the position of assistant post- 
master of New Brunswick, which office 
he continues to occupy and discharges its 
duties in a manner extremely gratifying 
to the people of that citj^ In his social 
and domestic relations Mr. Harkins occu- 
pies a happy medium, and is regarded 
with the highest esteem and affection. 



Biographical Sketches. 



479 



A BONIS NELSON, M. D., an eminent 
-^-^ practitioner of Neshanic Station, 
New Jersey, is a son of Alexander and 
Abigail Thorp Nelson, of Middletown 
township, Bucks county, Pa., and was 
born at Washington Crossing, Pa., June 
4, 1856. His father, during the early 
part of his life, was engaged in the shoe 
business at Bristol, Pa. Subsequently 
he entered the hotel business and was 
proprietor of the Washington House, 
Washington Crossing, New Jersey. The 
last forty years of his life he passed at 
Washington Crossing, New Jersey, where 
he died July 22, 1893, at' the age of 
eighty-one. He was a republican in poli- 
tics, and a member of the masonic order. 
The mother of Dr. Nelson died June 1, 
1889, at the age of seventy-five. Their 
children were : Ada B., married to W. 
H. Fisher, of St. Paul, Minn. ; Anna C, 
married to John Farley, of Sioux Falls, 
Dak. ; Alonzo, now in the insurance 
business at Chicago; Alexowna, Abby 
L., Achilles, Alice and Adonis. 

Dr. Nelson received his early educa- 
tion at the public schools of his native 
town, and then attended the Model 
School of Trenton Normal, and after- 
wards took the normal course, graduating 
in 1874. He then taught school for two 
years at Cedarville, and Point Pleasant, 
New Jersey, and in 1876 entered the 
University of Pennsylvania. Here he 
took the regular three years' course, and 
graduated in 1879, with degrees in both 
medicine and surgery. He first entered 
upon the practice of his profession at 
Baptisttown, Hunterdon county. New 
Jersey, where he remained about one 
year, and from thence removed to Tren- 
ton Junction, where he remained two 
years. He then removed to Neshanic 
Station, where he now resides. Here he 



has built up a large and lucrative prac- 
tice, and enjoys a high reputation as an 
exceptionally skillful physician and sur- 
geon. He belongs to the Republican 
party, is one of the Somerset county 
coroners, and a member of the Somerset 
County Medical Society. He married 
Retta Polhemus, daughter of Peter Pol- 
hemus, Esq., of Hunterdon county, New 
Jersey, June 7, 1882, and two children 
have been born to them, Ada Byron, 
born May 4, 1883, and Don A., born 
Dec. 22, .1886. 



TTENRY L. ZOBEL, who is a prosper- 
-*— *- ous and successful dealer in shoes 
and gents' furnishings at Sea Bright, 
Monmouth county. New Jersey, is the 
youngest son of Henry and Anna Hassel 
Zobel, and was born at Oceanport, this 
county. May 15, r869. 

His father, Henry Zobel, is a native of 
Germany, born at Frankfort-on-the-Main, 
June 3, 1831, but emigrated to America 
in 1851, when he was between the age of 
twenty and twenty-one years. He had 
learned the trade of a shoemaker in his 
native country, and soon found employ- 
ment at his trade after landing in the 
city of New York. He worked at his 
trade there four years, and then migrated 
to Monmouth county. New Jersey. 
Since then he has resided in various 
parts of the county, and, finally, in 
1892, came to Sea Bright, where he has 
since resided, engaged in his trade. 
Loyal to the flag of his adopted country, 
and in perfect sympathy with the Union, 
he volunteered his services to maintain 
the honor of that flag and the preserva- 
tion of the Union. He accordingly en- 
listed on Aug. 28, 1863, at Freehold, in 
Company H, Thirty-fifth regiment, New 



480 



Biographical Sketches. 



Jersey Volunteer infantry, and served 
until the close of that conflict, having been 
honorabl}' discharged at Trenton, June 
6, 1865. His regiment was connected 
with the Army of the Tennessee, under 
the command of Gen. William T. Sher- 
man. He participated in a number of 
regular battles, some skirmishes, and 
with Sherman in the celebrated mai'ch 
to the sea. On July 12, 1857, Mr. Zobel 
and Miss Anna Hassel were united in 
marriage, and to their union six children 
were born : John, deceased ; William, de- 
ceased ; Emma, the wife of Daniel Cran- 
mer, of Rahway, Union county. New 
Jersey ; Mary, at home with her parents ; 
one that died in infancy, and Henry L., 
the subject of this biography. 

Henry L. Zobel obtained his education 
in the public schools of Monmouth 
county, and at the early age of thirteen 
entei'ed the general mercantile establish- 
ment of J. Goldstein, of Long Branch, 
in the caj^acity of a clerk. He occupied 
this position for years, and then took 
charge of the shoe dejDartment of Stein- 
bach Brothers, general merchants of 
Long Branch. He managed this depart- 
ment successfully until 1891. Carefulh^ 
husbanding his earnings during this time, 
he opened, in October of that year, a 
shoe and gents' furnishing store at Lake- 
wood; which, however, he operated thei'e 
but a short time, transferring his busi- 
ness to Sea Bright in June, 1892. Here 
he has, by careful and conscientious deal- 
ing, built up a good and profitable trade. 
Politically he is a democrat, and takes a 
lively interest in local politics, but has 
never sought political preferment. Fra- 
ternal! v he is a member of Ashland 
Lodge," No. 28, Jr. 0. U. A. M., of Sea 
Briglit. Mr. Zobel is an energetic and 
progressive young business man, and 



from the energy and ability already dis- 
played, we predict that he will become a 
prominent and potent factor in the busi- 
ness circles of Monmouth county. 



13 EV. CHARLES E. HILL, an eloquent 
-*- ^ and popular minister of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church, who for nearly a 
half century has laboi'ed faithfully in 
the cause of christianitj' and for the spiri- 
tual welfai-e of humanity, is a son of 
Hon. Charles and Jeane Hill, and was 
born at Georgetown, Sept. 7, 1824, the 
year Marquis De La Fayette visited 
America. 

Hon. Charles Hill, a refined gentle- 
man, scholar and statesman, was of En- 
glish birth and parentage ; possessed of 
a college training, and close studious 
habits, he was a man of superior educa- 
tion and intellectual attainments, and 
spoke with ease and fluency seven dif- 
ferent languages. He was a democrat 
in political texture, and served a term in 
the United States Congress. 

Rev. Hill attended in early life the 
common schools and Lewistown Acad- 
em}- ; but the greater part of his educa- 
tion was obtained, however, by self study, 
and association with people of refinement 
and culture. Naturally- of a religious 
bent of mind, he early in life was con- 
verted, studied for the ministrj^ and was 
ordained in the Methodist Episcopal 
church, in the New Jersey Conference. 
Since then he has traveled many times 
over the state of New Jersey, preaching 
in evei'y city, town and hamlet of the 
state. In 1862 he enlisted in the civil 
war as chaplain of the One Hundred 
and Eighteenth regiment, Pennsylvania 
volunteers, but owing to declining health 
he was soon obliged to resign. He is 



Biographical Sketches. 



481 



now serving for the eighth year as de- 
partment chaplain of the New Jersey 
G. A. R. He is also treasurer of the 
Camdeij State Mutual Loan Association. 
He is a republican in politics, and takes 
an intelligent interest in local, state and 
national politics, but never sought politi- 
cal preferment. 

Rev. Hill is a man of strong intellec- 
tual parts, an eloquent and powerful 
speaker, a man of marked individuality, 
deep religious convictions, and leads the 
masses by his personality as well as by 
his teachings. The blending of such 
forces under the guidance of an uncom- 
mon generosity and humanity has en- 
deared him to the people of his state, 
and especially to the people of Red Bank, 
who are proud to claim him as their 
fellow-citizen. 



JOSEPH NEW, a successful grocer, and 
an old resident of New Brunswick, 
Middlesex county. New Jersey, is a son 
of Joseph and Sarah Dillon New. He 
was born Feb. 19, 1818, in the County 
Wicklow, Ireland. 

The family is originally of German 
descent. The paternal great-great-grand- 
father was a native of Germany, whence 
he emigrated to England and settled in 
Manchester. Here was born William 
New, great-grandfather of Mr. New. 
William, after marrying, carried his 
family to Dublin, Ireland, and there lo- 
cated. His son, also William (born in 
England), was educated at a boarding 
school in the County Wicklow, near the 
town of Bray, and at a later period con- 
nected himself in business with his 
father, who was a manufacturer of hats 
in Dublin. William (grandfather of 
Mr. New) subsequently removed to, and 



resided on, Myrtle Hill, near Dungans- 
town church, his home being known as 
" The Fly." His half-brothers, mean- 
while, had immigrated to this country, 
and settled at New Castle on the Dela- 
ware. 

Joseph New, son of the preceding 
and father of the subject of this sketch, 
was born in Ireland, probably at " The 
Fly." He was a farmer and dairyman. 
One of his daughters having lived in 
America, and returned to Ireland, in- 
duced her family to turn their eyes 
toward these shores. This was the more 
easily done, as the neighboring mill own- 
ers, who were the family bankers, failed 
about this time. 

Joseph New (father) came to America 
about 1844. He died Jan. 10, 1847, 
in his seventy-eighth year. His wife 
survived till Jan. 10, 1856, she, too, dy- 
ing in her seventy-eighth year. Their 
children were : Garret, John, William, 
Margery, Margaret, and Joseph. 

Joseph New, the last named and the 
subject of this sketch, came to America 
about 1835 or 1836, bringing his mother 
and two sisters, and settled at Newark, 
New Jersey. They embarked at Liver- 
pool on the " Rothschild," a sailing vessel 
of about five hundred tons, which was 
considered a large ship in those days. 
The voyage lasted sixty-six days. As a 
boy in Ireland, Mr. New attended a pay- 
school conducted by Daniel Doyle. Sub- • 
sequently he went to work on a farm 
during the planting and reaping seasons, 
attending school during the winter 
months. On reaching Newark, he found 
emploj'ment on the street car line, after 
which he became a brakeman on the 
New Jersey railroad. He continued in 
this position seven years, and then moved 
to New Brunswick, some time in the 



482 



Biographical Sketches. 



'40s, and then opened a grocery store on 
the corner of Easton avenue and Somer- 
set street. He was evidently a pioneer 
in that locality, inasmuch as there were 
but few buildings west of him at that 
time where now is a large portion of the 
city. About 1846 he was employed by 
the New Jersey Railroad Co., and as- 
sumed charge of the baggage department 
at its New Brunswick depot, where he 
remained thirty-four years. About 1853 
he bought the site now occupied by his 
present store. Politically Mr. New is 
an independent. He votes for men 
whom he considers the best, and advo- 
cates and supports those principles that 
appeal to his best judgment, regardless 
of party. He was a staunch Unionist 
during the Civil War, and evinced his 
faith in the stability of the existing gov- 
ernment by parting with his cash hoard 
of gold and accepting United States bonds 
in lieu thereof. 

He was an ardent admirer of Ulysses 
S. Grant, and faithfully supported that 
chieftain during his successive and suc- 
cessful candidacies for the presidency. 
Several of Mr. New's nephews served in 
the northern army during the Civil War, 
and one, his sister's son, was killed on 
the battle-field. 

In religion, Mr. New is a Catholic and 
a member of St. Peter's church. New 
Brunswick. He is also one of its lay 
•trustees. He was married Feb. 17, 1844, 
to Rosanna Haggerty of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey. Their six surviving chil- 
dren are : Joseph, Jr., James G., William 
A., Harriet C, Mary A., and Francis D. 



HON. WILLIAM SCOTT JACKSON, a 
leading pharmacist, and the pres- 
ent mayor of Belmar, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, is a son of J. Moi-ris and 



Eleanor J. (Scott) Jackson, and was born 
Nov. 13, 1845, in Fulton township, Lan- 
caster county. Pa. He comes of Eng- 
lish ancestors of the quaker persuasion, 
which he traces for two hundred and 
fifty years. 

Anthony Jackson, born at Eccleston, 
Lancashire, England, moved to Lurgan, 
County Cavan, Armagh, L-eland, in 1649, 
for better privileges of civil and religious 
' liberty ; but even here, in 1681, and 
prior thereto, suffered imprisonment on 
account of his religious principles. He 
was a devout Friend, and with his 
brother organized, in 1654, the first 
Friend's meeting in Ireland. 

Isaac Jackson, son of Anthony, was 
born in 1665; married Feb. 29, 1696, 
to Ann Evans, daughter of Rowland 
Evans, of county Wicklow, Ireland, and 
resided at Ballitore. Isaac and Ann, 
with their surviving children, emigrated 
to the United States in 1725, settled at 
London Grove, Chester county, Pa., and 
became members of New Garden month- 
ly meeting. Isaac deceased in 1732. 

William Jackson, son of Isaac, was 
born Feb. 24, 1705; married Sept. 9, 
1733, to Kathei'ine, a daughter of James 
and Kathei'ine Miller, devout quakers, 
and deceased Nov. 24, 1785. 

John Jackson, son of William, was 
born Nov. 9, 1748 ; married Mary, a 
daughter of Joel and Hannah Harlan, 
and deceased Dec. 20, 1821, leaving seven 
children. He was a scientific man and 
a botanist of prominence. He resided in 
London Grove township, Chester count}', 
Pa. 

Joel Jackson, son of John, was born 
Oct. 20, 1776 ; married Alice, a daughter 
of Dr. Jonathan and Alice Morris, of 
Delaware county, on Sept. 8, 1802, and 
had eight childi'en. Joel Jackson in- 



Biographical Sketches. 



485 



herited his father's love of nature, was a 
man of highest intellectual endowments, 
and noted for probity and correctness in 
all business transactions. He lived at 
Little Britain, now Fulton, Lancaster 
county. Pa., locating there in 1812, and 
there deceased Sept. 21, 1857. He was 
a farmer during life and owned " Home- 
stead farm," a domain of five hundred 
and thirty-two acres ; was a literary man 
of local distinction, and prominent in all 
affairs of the society of Friends. 

Jonathan Morris Jackson, son of Joel 
and father of the subject, was born Sept. 
13, 1810, on the homestead farm ; mar- 
ried Nov. 23, 1834, to Eleanor Jane 
Scott, who deceased Sept. 20, 1853, after 
bearing six children : Alice Mary, Avho 
married Thomas Grubb; Hannah R., 
who wedded Albert Haines : Joel, who 
deceased in 1862 ; William Scott, our 
subject; John M., and Walter Davis, 
who deceased in infancy, 1853. Jona- 
than was again married in 1858, to Mar- 
garet Wright, by whom he became the 
father of three children : Ida May, Henry 
E., and Eva E. He was educated in the 
Friends' school; was a devout member 
of the Friends' meeting, and owner of 
the Jackson homestead farm. 

William S. Jackson passed the early 
years of his life on his father's farm, and 
after attending the public schools entered 
Millersville Normal school at the open- 
ing of the rebellion. He threw down his 
books in July, 1862, when scarcely seven- 
teen years of age ; joined Company B, 
First Maryland Light artillery, under 
command of Captain Alonzo Snow, and 
was attached to the Sixth corps, army of 
the Potomac ; in the spring of 1864 the 
battery was sent into the Shenandoah 
valley of Virginia, taking part in " Hun- 
ter's raid," during which he was cap- 

25 



tured near Salem, Va., June 21, 1864, 
and sent to Andersonville. He remained 
as prisoner of war for ten months, five 
days, during which time his weight was 
reduced from one hundred and fifty 
pounds to seventy-four pounds, and he 
received disabilities from which he has 
never recovered. At the close of the 
war private Jackson returned to his home, 
and resumed his studies at the Millers- 
ville Normal school, from which he was 
graduated in the class of 1868. He sold 
out his interest in the Lancaster county 
farm, upon which he was engaged in 
farming, and lived in retirement until 
1885, when he removed to Belmar, New 
Jersey. He subsequently became en- 
gaged by H. H. Yard, Esq., as superin- 
tendent of all outside work in the con- 
duct of his real-estate improvements, and 
remained in such service until the winter 
of 1894. On June 26, 1895, Mr. Jack- 
son purchased the pharmacy of F. P. 
Philbrick, at the corner of Ninth avenue 
and F. street, Belmar, which he there 
conducts during the whole year, operat- 
ing another store during the summer 
season at the Hotel Columbia. In re- 
ligious matters he is a member of the 
Penn Hill Friends' meeting of Lancas- 
ter county. Pa., and in politics an ardent 
republican, and an active, influential 
worker for his party. He has served 
during the past seven years on the board 
of education of the borough of Belmar, 
and has been district clerk of the board 
during that time. He was assessor of 
Fulton township, Lancaster county. Pa., 
for seven years, was one of the incorpo- 
rators of Belmar, served as borough com- 
missioner from 1890 to 1895, and in the 
latter year was elected mayor of Belmar, 
without opposition, for a term of two 
years. In this position Mayor Jackson is 



486 



Biographical Sketches. 



serving his townsmen with efficiency and 
well-directed intelligence and zeal, and is 
always interested in matters of borough 
improvement. In fraternal fellowship 
he is a member of the following societies : 
Captain Snow Post, No. 461, G. A. R., 
at Pleasant Grove, Lancaster county, Pa.; 
Washington Lodge, No. 156, F. and A. 
M., at Quarryville, Pa. ; Chapter No. 43, 
R. A. M. ; Commanderj- No. 13, Knights 
Templar, Lancaster, Pa., and Silver Lake 
Council No. 92, Jr. 0. U. A. M., of Bel- 
mar. Mr. Jackson was married Nov. 13, 
1877, to Hannah R., a daughter of An- 
drew Stewart, of Christiana, Lancaster 
county. Pa. 

COLONEL E. S. GREEN, a prominent 
and successful real-estate dealer of 
Long Branch, New Jersey, is a descend- 
ant of one of the oldest and most illus- 
trious families in American histor3^ He 
is a son of James and Elizabeth (Murphy) 
Green, and was born in 1834, together j 
with his five brothers and sisters, in the 
same room in which his father was born, 
at the old mansion house of the old , 
Green estate, adjoining Holl^^vood, New 
Jersey, which place was a part of the 
original Green property, and belonged to ' 
Maj .-Gen. James Green (gi'andfather). In | 
1812 Gen. Green was driven from his 
property by the British blockade of the 
forts at Sandy Hook. Gen. Green and 
his brother William came to New Jersey 
from Rhode Island, which, as far as can 
be learned, was the original home of all 
the American branch of this distinguished 
family. His grandfather was engaged in 
managing his large landed estate, and 
was deepl}- interested in agricultui'al af- 
fairs. He was a member of the episcopal 
church, and reared a family of three chil- 
dren : William, Emeline, and James. 



James Green (father) was engaged 
chiefly in farming at Long Branch. In 
1834 he was appointed and served for a 
number of years as a wreck commissioner 
for the district. At the time the ship 
" Garreck " was wrecked Mr. E. K. Col- 
lins appointed Mr. Green, Sr., agent of 
the New York board of underwriters. 
Leaving his farm in 1840, Mr. Green ran 
the Bath Hotel at Long Branch up to 
the time of his decease in 1862. He 
was a staunch democrat, and was for 
eight years township collector. James 
Green married Elizabeth Murphy Oct. 
24, 1892. She was born Dec. 9, 1807, 
and died July 12, 1840. To this mar- 
riage were born the following children : 
Charles H., on whose property the life- 
saving station was built, and who became 
its keeper up to the time of his death, in 
1872; E. S., Louis E., and Walter, who 
took charge of the above station after the 
death of Charles Green, and was keeper 
until his death. Both these brothers 
were famous for their great courage and 
skill in manipulating both the motor 
boats and the life-lines, and Charles was 
presented with a gold medal by the life- 
saving association of New York for the 
heroic work in rescuing the crew of the 
ship "Adonis." The entire family was 
educated under the direction of a private 
tutor at Freehold, New Jersey, where 
they were prepared to enter the sopho- 
more class of Princeton College. But 
owing to the return of a part of the old 
estate to the heirs the eldest brother re- 
turned to take charge of that interest, 
while E. S. Green took charge of the 
Bath Hotel. 

Mr. E. S. Green (subject) continued as 
manager of the hotel up to 1867, when it 
was destroyed by fire, a memorable con- 
flagration, incurring a heavy loss of prop- 



Biographical Sketches. 



487 



erty and $57,000 worth of improvements. 
Mr. Green then went to St. Augustine, 
Fla., and there opened the Magnolia 
House, which he conducted until 1871, 
when he returned to Long Branch, and 
has since been engaged in extensive real- 
estate operations. He is a democrat in 
political faith, takes an active part in 
local affairs, and is a member of the Pres- 
byterian church. Mr. Green is a mem- 
ber in good standing of the Lodge of 
Masons, and is past high priest of Stand- 
ard Chapter. Mr. Green has also for a 
number of years past been connected with 
the New Jersey state militia, and finally 
reached the rank of lieutenant^colonel, 
having enlisted as a private in Company 
A, Twenty-ninth regiment. In 1862, at 
the earnest solicitation of Gen. Haight, 
Col. Green went to Freehold and assumed 
charge of the commissary department of 
Camp Freehold until the regiment moved 
south. On June 15, 1860, E. S. Green 
married Miss Jane Ann Thompson, 
daughter of William S. and Maria 
Thompson, of New York city, and this 
union has resulted in the birth of six 
children, three of whom are living. 



TTENEY FIELD, a prominent farmer, 



jn. 



surveyor, and owner of a marble 



and granite works at Red Bank, was 
bom in Middletown township, near Mid- 
dletown. New Jersey, August 2, 1844, 
and belongs to one of the old and re- 
spected families in that section. He is a 
son of Thomas S. and Martha Taylor 
Field. His grandfather, Thomas Field, 
was a native of the same township and 
passed all his life there; following the 
occupation of a farmer. He was an old- 
line whig in politics, and of Quaker des- 
cent. To his marriage were born five 



children, as follows : Joseph, who is now 
living at the age of one hundred and 
four years ; Mary, who married Daniel 
West, and died at the age of ninety- 
two ; Rebecca, married to Elnathan 
Field, and deceased ; Caroline, who mar- 
ried James Wilson, and Thomas S., father 
of the subject of this sketch. 

Thomas S. Field was born on the old 
homestead in Middletown township, and 
after receiving a common-school educa- 
tion entered upon the occupation of a 
farmer, which he followed successfully 
all his life, acquiring the reputation of 
being one of the most intelligent and 
thrifty farmers in the county. In his 
later life he also cariied on extensive 
marble and granite works at Red Bank. 
He was an old-line whig, and took an ac- 
tive interest in politics. He was not a 
professor of Christianity, but attended 
the Baptist church for many 3'ears, and 
was always a liberal contributor to its 
necessities. He died Feb. 13, 1891. His 
wife, who was Martha Taylor, died March 
23, 1895. To their mari-ied life were 
born seven children, as follows ; Eleanor, 
deceased ; Thomas, deceased ; Joseph, 
Henry, Susan, Edwin, now a practicing 
physician and surgeon at Red Bank, and 
Martha, married to Dr. Van Marter, and 
since deceased. 

Henry Field, after his graduation from 
the public schools, attended the Free- 
hold Institute for three and one-half 
years, and then pursued a course of study 
in Eastman's Business College at Pough- 
keepsie, from which he graduated in 
1866. He then carried on the manage- 
ment of his father's farming interest, and 
in connection carried on the practice of 
civil engineering and surveying until the 
year 1886, when he became a partner in 
his father's monumental business, and 



488 



Biographical Sketches. 



continued as such until his father's 
death, Feb. 13, 1891, when he bought 
from the other heirs their interest, and 
still carries on the same successful!}', to- 
gether with the farming interest, and 
owns the homestead farm aforesaid. Mr. 
Field is a republican, but has never taken 
any special interest in politics and has 
never sought for office. He is a member 
of no church. He married Ada Brook, 
daughter of Peter Brook, Esq., of New 
York city, and their marriage has been 
blessed with six children : Edwin, Frank, 
deceased ; Thomas and Joseph, deceased, 
twins ; Henry and Chester Arthur. 



WE. OSBORNE, a well-known and 
• successful well-driller, of Perth 
Amboy, is a son of Samuel and Adaline 
(Sourbeck) Osboi'ne, and was born. May 
24, 1854, at New Brighton, Beaver 
county, Pa. His grandfather, Joseph 
Osborne, was a shoemaker in Perry 
county, Pa., where he died in 1859. 
His father, Samuel Osborne, was a school 
teacher in early life, at New Brighton, 
and was subsequently a successful mer- 
chant at New Brighton. For eight years, 
during the height of the oil excitement 
in Western Virginia and Pennsylvania, 
he was a contractor for drilling wells, 
and attained great success in striking oil. 
For some jeai-s liefore railroads were in- 
troduced he ran a packet-boat between 
New Brighton and New Castle, Pa., and 
afterwards between New Castle, Pa., and 
Youngstown, 0. ; and he had charge of 
the packet that made the last trip be- 
tween those points, railroads destroying 
canal business. He is at present a well- 
known citizen of Fort Worth, Texas, 
where he is engaged in the plumbing 
business. He is a staunch republican in 



politics. His children are : John P., 
Winnie, Avife of William Pittenger, one 
of the surviving members of the famous 
Andrews railroad raiders during the 
war ; David, Elizabeth, wife of Henry 
Brooks, of Columbus, 0. ; William R., 
Louise, wife of Quinton Anderson, of 
White Hall, 111. ; Joseph, George, and 
Carrie, deceased. 

William R. Osborne received a public- 
school education at New Brighton, which 
he afterwards supplemented by personal 
studies. During late years he has written 
a number of highly complimented articles 
for various papers and periodicals, especi- 
ally the Clay Worker, a journal devoted 
to the clay-working industry of Indian- 
apolis, Ind. After leaving school he was 
clerk in a store at Volcano, W. Va., for 
three years, and was subsequenth' em- 
ployed at Parker City, Pa., for ten years 
as manager for A. P. Tanner, an exten- 
sive oil producer. In 1883 he became 
associated with his brother, David, in the 
manufacture of red brick at New Castle, 
Pa., and in 1884 he built potteries and 
established a business at New Brighton, 
which he conducted successfully for three 
years. In 1888 he entered the oil busi- 
ness in Butler county, Pa., in company 
with his brothers, David and George A., 
and the}' remained associated for four 
years. In 1892 our subject removed to 
Bridgeport, Conn., and established him- 
self in the well-drilling business, which 
he transferred to Perth Amboy in 1894. 
He has been remarkably successful, and 
has three di'illing machines at work all 
the time ; having bored more wells than 
an}^ other man in this section of the 
county. Mr. Osborne is a republican in 
politics, and takes an active interest in 
local matters. On Oct. 16, 1877, he was 
married to Miss Anna Gray, daughter of 



Biographical Sketches. 



489 



James Gray, of Franklin, Pa., who died 
Jan. 2, 1884, having born him three 
children : Ada, Fannie, and Paul. As a 
business man Mr. Osbonie is enterprising 
and industrious, and of untiring energy ; 
while as a citizen he is faithful and 
steadfast to all the demands of good citi- 
zenship. 

GARRETT H. WHITE, a well-known 
fisherman, formerly prominentlj^ 
identified with the United' States life- 
saving service at North Long Branch, 
Monmouth county, New Jersej^, is a son 
of Jesse and Rebecca Mori-is White, 
daughter of Catharine Morris, of Hol- 
land, and was born Feb. 28, 1837, at 
Monmouth Beach, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey. 

The grandfather of Garrett H. White, 
named Jesse, was by occupation a fisher- 
man at Logantown, Ocean county, New 
Jersey, where he lived and died. 

Jesse White (father) was born at Logan- 
town, N. J.; where he attended the com- 
mon schools and acquired a limited educa- 
tion. He subsequently removed to Mon- 
mouth Beach and engaged in the fishing 
business in the offing, which he carried 
on until his death in 1852, at the age of 
forty-four years. His wife, Rebecca Mor- 
ris, deceased at Monmouth Beach in 
1894, on Christmas Day, after passing 
her ninety-first birthday. They were 
the parents of eight children : Anthony 
P., Garrett H., our subject ; Isaac P., 
Jesse, Katharine, who married Theodore 
Davis ; Martha, married to Louis Boul- 
den ; Hannah, who wedded Louis Morris, 
and Mary Ami, wife of William Werts. 

Garrett H. White attended the com- 
mon schools until he was fourteen years 
old, and from that time until he was 
twenty-one was employed in the service 



of Capt. C. H. Valentine, engaged in 
fishing. The next four years of his life 
were spent on a whaler operating in the 
Atlantic and Pacific seas, and his occupa- 
tion has been that of a successful fisher- 
man. Ever since, except during fourteen 
winters, from 1877 to 1891, he was a surf- 
man at No. 1 Life-saving Station, at 
North Long Branch. During this period 
Mr. White was a hero in many exploits 
and effected the rescue of many human 
lives from the angry billows at the im- 
minent risk of his own. One of these, 
the rescue of the brig " Augustina " in 
particular, in which he was engaged on 
the morning of Feb. 3, 1880, evoked for 
himself and companions complimentary 
resolutions adojDted by the legislature of 
New Jersey and a gold medal voted by 
congress, with an accompanying highly- 
eulogistic letter from John Sherman, 
secretary of the treasury at the time. On 
the morning named, and but a few hours 
after, surfman White had been engaged 
in a splendid rescue at the wreck of the 
schooner " E. C. Babcock" and the Span- 
ish brig " Augustina," in the face of one 
of the severest storms ever experienced on 
the Jersey coast. Surfman White, boldly 
running down behind a receding sea, cast 
a line on board Avith vigorous throw of 
the heavy stick. The sailors, regardless 
of the danger of being dashed to pieces 
by the thick wreckage from the " Bab- 
cock," hurled hither and thither by the 
furious breakers, undertook to come 
ashore, hand-over-hand, by the ship-line. 
The first sailor thus venturing was caught 
by the neck between the two parts of the 
whip-line and was being strangled when, 
we quote again from Sherman's letter : 
" He was rescued by surfman White, who 
gallantly rushed into the sea, holding by 
the line, succeeded in disengaging the 



490 



Biographical Sketches. 



sailor, whom lie held on to though swept 
away, and clinging to a piece of drift- 
wood finally by desperate exertion 
brought to land. Surfinan White again 
plunged into the breakers with an- 
other man and rescued surfman Van 
Boeme. There were eight men, includ- 
ing the captain, who had meanwhile shot 
hifiiself, and was found dangerously 
wounded lying in the hold of the brig, 
rescued by the intrepid White and his 
brave fellow-surfmen on this memorable 
occasion." For a more complete account 
of the event the reader is referred to an- 
other page of this work on which appears 
a sketch of Nelson Lockwood. 

Mr. White was married May 6, 1858, 
to Elizabeth West, of Monmouth Beach. 
To their marriage were born ten chil- 
dren : Garrett H., Tucker, Anna Amelia, 
Anna Rebecca, and Alonzo, all deceased ; 
John H., born Feb. 5, 1865, married to 
Jennie Jorolemon ; George S., born Sept. 
17, 1871 ; Dora F., born Oct. 29, 1867, 
married to Hugh Thomas ; Rosella, born 
June 6, 1868, married to Augustus J. 
Wilson, and Lizzie, born Sept. 22, 1874. 



T3ERNARD JAQUART, the affable and 
-*-^ popular superintendent of the Am- 
erican Enameled Brick and Tile Co., a 
man of sturdy physique, clear mind, and 
unquestioned force and probity of char- 
acter, has made his way to the front rank 
in the business life of New Jersey by 
honorable business methods, coupled with 
an unconquerable determination to suc- 
ceed. He is of German birth and par- 
entage, born May 1, 1859, in Luxemburg, 
bordering on Belgium and France, and 
emigrated to America in 1882. His 
scholastic training was limited to a few 
years' study in public schools of his na- 



tive country, and at the early age of 
twelve years he was apprenticed to learn 
the potter trade. As a boy he was atten- 
tive, learned rapidly, and soon became 
quite proficient as a moulder of clay. Li 
order to prepare himself to pursue the 
business on broader lines, he took special 
courses in draughting and designing in 
pottery. Being a thorough potter he en- 
gaged in the City Pottery of Philadelphia, 
Pa., in 1882. Three years later he went 
to Matawan, New Jersey, and held a 
joosition as superintendent of a pottery 
there. In 1892 he was engaged by Wil- 
liam Galloway, of Philadelphia, to make 
goods of Grecian and Egyptian art for 
the World's Fair, Chicago. While with 
Mr. Galloway he made the acquaintance 
of the late W. A. Phingsthorn, of New 
York. This acquaintance led to the in- 
corporation of the present company, with 
a capital of $20,000. Arrangements were 
then made with B. Kreischer & Son, of 
Kreischerville, Staten Island, N. Y , for 
the use of kilns, etc. In order to prove 
that Mr. Jaquart understood the art of 
enameling brick, one year's time was de- 
termined upon as a limit. Before the 
time expired the samples were so fair 
that the stockholders concluded to in- 
crease the capital stock to $100,000, and 
erect a plant to carry on the business. 
South River, New Jersey, was chosen on 
account of being near the clay deposits. 
The plant contains all modern improve- 
ments, and is said to be the finest of its 
class in the country. 

A large addition is now being built to 
the factory for track room, in order to 
give the presses more space. A switch 
enters the Avork on a trestle to allow of 
clay being dumped into the sheds near 
the pans. Another switch, on the oppo- 
site side of the works, allow of loading 



Biographical Sketches. 



491 



finished material. A dock will also be 
built on South river, perhaps one hun- 
dred yards away, to allow of shipping by 
water. The works are supplied with 
water from an artesian well, eighty-five 
feet deep. This well has a flow of 50,000 
to 60,000 gallons per twenty-four hours, 
and the water is of excellent quality. 
The president of this new enterprise is Mr. 
Julius A. Stursberg ; vice-president, Mr. 
J. V. V. Booream ; secretary and treasurer, 
Mr. J. Francis Booream. Mr. Jaquart 
is remarkably energetic, and the estab- 
lishment and the success of the new plant 
is largely due to his energy and foresight. 
He is a careful and methodical business 
man, possesses in a marked degree the 
confidence and esteem of all who are 
brought either into business or social rela- 
tions with him, and is popular alike with 
employers and employees. On Thanks- 
giving-day, in 1878, he married Margaret 
Dietz, of Philadelphia, and to their union 
have been born one child, Charles, a son. 



/n EORGE WASHINGTON ROLFE, one 
^-^ of the most prominent and success- 
ful farmers in the state of New Jersey, 
was born in the city of New Brunswick 
Aug. 14, 1842. He is the son of Isaiah 
Rolfe and Charlotte M. (iVIeade) Rolfe. 
His early education was obtained at a 
private school, which he left at the age 
of nine years to attend the first public 
school erected at New Brunswick, situ- 
ated on Bayard street. Upon his gradua- 
tion from this school he accepted em- 
ployment in his father's saw-mill, and 
remained there until he had reached the 
age of seventeen. He then followed the 
carpenter trade two years. In Septem- 
ber, 1861, he enlisted in the military ser- 
vice of the United States as a private in 



Company M, Ninth regiment. New Jer- 
sey volunteers, and continued in this ser- 
vice for the entire period of his enlist- 
ment, three years. His regiment was 
sent to North Carolina, and he partici- 
pated with it in the battles of Eoanoke 
Island, Newberne, and Trenton, in that 
state, as well as in a number of inferior 
engagements. Subsequently his regiment 
was stationed for a period of six months 
at Newberne, N. C. Upon the expira- 
tion of the term of his enlistment he 
returned to New Brunswick and again 
entered his father's employ, and con- 
tinued therein until the year 1875, 
when he purchased the Garret Van 
Sickle farm of one hundred and twenty 
acres, situated in South Brunswick town- 
ship, two miles from New Brunswick. 

Mr. Rolfe is a republican, and, al- 
though not a politician, has served on 
the board of school commissioners, and 
in 1895 was elected a member of the 
board of commissioners of appeals for a 
term of three years. He takes an active 
interest in religious work, and is a mem- 
ber of the Dutch Reformed church. Mr. 
Rolfe was married Nov. 20, 1867, to 
Catherine A., daughter of Garret G. Van 
Sickle, Esq. They have the following 
children : G. Van Sickle, Bertha J., and 
Garretta J. 



/CHARLES P. McFADDIN, the efficient 
^-^ and popular general ticket-agent of 
the Manhattan Elevated Railroad Co. 
of New York city, residing at Long 
Branch, Monmouth county, New Jersey, 
is a son of Col. Jackson and Catharine 
McFaddin, and was born, August 31, 
1842, at Lewisburg, Union county. Pa. 

Col. Jackson McFaddin was born, 
Oct. 14. 1803, at Lewisburg, Pa. He 
was an extensive and well-known rail- 



492 



Biographical Sketches. 



road contractor in his day, and operated 
for many years a large stcjvc and general 
castings foundry at Lewisburg, Pa. He 
attended the Presbyterian church, and 
was past worshipful master of the ma^ 
sonic fraternity. In politics he was a 
democrat ; was always interested in the 
a.flairs of his party, and held a number 
of local offices in his town. He was a 
useful member of society ; a producer, 
not merely a consumer of wealth, and 
was a large employer of labor ; to whose 
interests he was ever beneficent and kind. 
His death, which occurred at Lewisburg, 
Pa., on June 18, 1851, was deeply de- 
plored by the people of his community, 
by whom he was held in high estimation, 
and his burial was attended with mili- 
tary honors. His wife, Catharine Mc- 
Laughlin, born at Lewisburg, Pa., May 
20, 1799, to whom he was married Jan. 5, 
1828, died, Oct. 15, 1845, after becoming 
the mother of ten children : Nancy, Ellen 
Mary, Margaret, William Cameron, Hugh, 
Andrew Jackson, Theodore H., all de- 
ceased ; Malcolm, Catherine E., and 
Charles P., still living. His son, Hugh, 
having enlisted in Company C, Second 
Pennsylvania volunteers, Col. McFaddin 
pi'esented to the company an American 
flag, and by that company' it was carried 
through the Mexican war, and at the 
close of the war the survivors returned 
the flag to the colonel, with their regrets 
that his son, Hugh, had lost his life in 
the service. The remnants of the flag 
are now under the supervision of the G. 
A. R. Post of Lewisburg, Pa. 

Charles P. McFaddin received his pri- 
mary education in the common schools 
at Lewisburg, Pa., and subsequently at- 
tended the academ3' in that town, now 
known as Bucknell University, until he 
was fifteen years of age. After this 



period he quitted school-life, and clerked 
for a time in a drug store ; later in a gro- 
cery store, remaining in the latt«r busi- 
ness until 1861, when, his patriotism 
breaking forth with the opening of hos- 
tilities between the north and the south, 
he went forth to battle for the cause of 
the North, enlisting in the Fifty-first reg- 
iment of infantry, Pennsylvania volun- 
teers. In October, 1864, he was mustered 
out of service, after achieving a splendid 
record as a brave and gallant soldier. 
He was wounded at the memorable battle 
of Cold Harbor, and participated in the 
engagements of Major-General Burnside's 
expedition, capturing Roanoke Island and 
Newberne, in North Carolma; Pope's re- 
treat from Rapidan river, second battle 
of Bull Run, Chantilty, South Mountain, 
Antietam, where the Fifty-first Pennsyl- 
vania volunteers led the charge, captur- 
ing the bridge, and ending the heavy 
engagements of the year of 1862 with 
Fredericksburg. Detached to re-inforce 
Major-General Grant at the siege of 
Vicksburg, also siege of Jackson, Miss. ; 
thence to Campbell's Station and the siege 
of Knoxville, East Tennesee in 1863 ; 
thence with General Grant's last cam- 
paign, from the Wilderness, Spottsyl- 
vania. Cold Harbor, and the siege of 
Petersburg, Va., in the year 1864, where 
he received an honorable discharge, on 
account of the expiration of his three 

' years' volunteer service. 

I At the expiration of his term of sei^ 
vice, Oct. 15, 1864, Mr. McFaddin re- 

i sumed civil and business life by engaging 

t himself as a bookkeeper for T. G. Evans 
in the grocery business, at the old home 
in Lewisburg. He was subsequently a 
salesman for Rowe, Eustun & Co., Third 

I street, Philadelphia, a wholesale wood 
and willow establishment. From this 





. (yt^^t^''i'^y-Ay\.A^;^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



493 



time on his rise was rapid; and, engaging 
in the railroad and transportation busi- 
ness, he first became freight clerk for the 
New Jersey Southern railroad ; then way 
bill clerk on the steamboat " Old Wyom- 
ing," plying between New York city and 
Port Monmouth, New Jersey; then as 
cashier at the railroad dock in New York 
city; thence as purser of the passenger 
steamboat "Jesse Hoyt," on the Long 
Branch route ; from that to chief clerk 
of the superintendent's department of 
the New Jersey Southern railroad ; hav- 
ing charge also, for three months subse- 
quently, of the clerical part of the general 
ticket and general freight depaxtment in 
addition, until 1872, when he was pro- 
moted to the position of general passenger 
agent of the New Jersey Southern rail- 
road, which he retained until the consol- 
idation of the Southern railroad with the 
Central railroad of New Jersey in the 
fall of 1879, resigning in preference to 
accepting a subordinate position in the 
same branch, as naturally followed with 
all the officers under the circumstances. 

In November, 1879, he was offered and 
accepted the post of general ticket agent 
of the Manhattan Elevated Kailroad 
Co. of New York city, which position of 
dignity and responsibility he is filling 
now. Mr. McFaddin worships in the 
Episcopal church, and in politics is a re- 
publican. In secret order affiliations he 
is a past worshipful master of ~ Long 
Branch Lodge, No. 78, F. and A. M. ; 
past high priest of Standard Chapter, 
No. 35, Royal Arch Masons, of Long 
Branch ; past eminent commander of 
Manhattan Commandery, No. 31, Knights 
Templar, of New York city; a member 
of Mecca Temple, No. 1, Ancient Arabic 
Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, at 
New York ; and a comrade of E. D. Mor- 



gan Post, No. 307, G. A. E., of New 
York. He was chairman of the finance 
committee of the Long Branch commis- 
sion for three years, president of the Long 
Branch board of trade, chairman of the 
committee on paving the streets of the 
city, and was chief promoter of the effi- 
cient system of electric lighting which 
now illuminates the city at nightfall. 

Mr. McFaddin was united in marriage, 
Nov. 30, 1869, to Melissa, daughter of 
Abraham and Eliza Geoutchus, of New- 
burg, N. Y. To their union were born 
two children : Helen Pauline, born Dec. 
29, 1872 ; and Frances W., born July 16, 
1877. 



TTTILLIAM H. DEMAREST, a success- 
' ' ful coal merchant of Woodbridge, 
Middlesex county, New Jersey, is a son 
of H. N. and S. E. Brewster Demarest, 
and was born in that town Dec. 23, 1846. 
His ancestors came to this country from 
Holland in the seventeenth century and 
settled at Hackensack, New Jersey. It 
is a family tradition that they crossed 
the Atlantic in the " Mayflower," a name 
identified so closely with the Pilgrim 
Fathers and Plymouth Rock. 

Mr. Demarest attended, at an early 
age, the high school in Woodbi'idge, and 
pursued his studies until the age of six- 
teen years. He then engaged as clerk 
in the hardware store of G. W. Hall at 
Railway, New Jersey, where he remained 
but a brief while. He went thence to 
New York city where he was employed 
for two years in the service of Brokaw 
Brothers, clothiers. He then returned 
to his native town and opened up a busi- 
ness of his own in coal and building ma- 
terial. This trade he still carries on 
with marked success and ability. He 
was for a long time the express agent of 



494 



Biographical Sketches. 



the New Jersey Company at Woodbridge, 
New Jersey, before it was merged with 
the Adams Express Company, and is still 
in the service of the latter company. 
He was appointed station agent of the 
New Jersey Railroad & Transportation 
Co. at Woodbridge in July, 1867, 
succeeding to the place left vacant by 
the death of his grandfather. Mr. 
Demarest is a republican in politics, and 
has served two terms as town committee- 
man. He was elected treasurer of the 
town committee in 1882-83, without 
solicitation or effort. He has never been 
an office-seeker, but takes an active and 
abiding interest in the municipal affairs 
of Woodbridge. He is a deeply religious 
man, and a member of the Congrega- 
tional church of his town. He was one 
of the projectors of that edifice and 
largely instrumental in its erection. He 
has been one of the trustees ever since 
its organization, and was the first assist- 
ant superintendent of its Sunday-school. 
Mr. Demarest was married Dec. 16, 1869, 
to Agnes B. Van Derveer, daughter of 
Matthias Van Derveer, of Woodbridge, 
New Jersey. They had eight children : 
Charles J., W. Harry, M. Irving, Eugene, 
deceased ; Leon, deceased ; Hattie C, 
Earnest W., and May Brewster, de- 
ceased. Mrs. Demarest died May 18, 
1889, at Woodbridge. Mr. Demarest 
was again married April 16, 1890, his 
second wife being Fannie J. (Cutter) 
Moore. 

The paternal grandfather, David N. 
Demarest, migrated from Hackensack, 
N. Y., where he followed his trade, a 
tailor, to Woodbridge and purchased a 
farm in that vicinity. He became a 
miner of clay, a projector and a large 
stockholder and director of the Perth 
Amboy & Woodbridge railroad. He be- 



came its station agent at Woodbridge, 
and had the distinction of selling the 
first ticket used on that road. In con- 
nection with his other interests he en- 
gaged in the coal business, and in all his 
undertakings was eminently successful. 
He was one of the leading men of his 
county and a public-spirited citizen. He 
was originally a whig in politics, but 
later he became a republican, always tak- 
ing an active part in political affairs. 
He was a member and an elder of the 
Presbyterian church at Woodbridge for 
twenty-five years and a large contributor 
to its support. His patriotism was 
evinced at the outbreak of the war by 
forming a company of volunteers and 
thoroughlj^ drilling them before they were 
sent to the front. He died Jan. 21, 1867, 
his widow, Hannah Wyckoff, in her nine- 
ty-second year, still survives and resides 
at Woodbridge. They had two children : 
H. N. Demarest and Elizabeth. 

H. N. Demarest (father of subject) was 
born May 27, 1822, in New York city. 
He received a common-school education 
at Columbia grammar school, New York 
city, and then went to work on his 
father's farm and assisted him in operat- 
ing the clay mines. After a few years 
he purchased a farm near Woodbridge on 
which he still resides. He is a staunch 
x'epublican in politics, and has alwaj^s 
been an important factor in township af- 
fairs, but refusing to accept office of any 
kind. He is an elder and deacon in the 
Presbyterian church of Woodbridge, and 
is zealously devoted to its interests and 
welfare over forty years. At the begin- 
ning of the war he was a member of the 
Home Guard of Woodbridge. He has 
had boi'n to him four children: Charles 
S., Walter B., William H., and David 
N., deceased. 



Biographical Sketches. 



495 



TTUGH McCLAREN, a well-known and 
popular engineer on the Central 
railroad of New Jersey, is a son of Andrew 
and Mary (Cummings) McClaren, and 
was born April 29, 1836, at Plainfield, 
Union county. New Jersey. 

His father, Andrew McClaren, was 
born at Plainfield, New Jersey. He was 
possessed of a common-school education, 
and cultivated a farm all his life near 
Evona Station, in Union county, New 
Jersey. He was a staunch democrat 
and a man of considerable influence in 
his section during his life. His children 
were : Elizabeth, married to William 
Seuter ; Sarah Ann, deceased at an early 
age; Mary, deceased ; Sarah Ann, named 
in memory of her deceased sister ; Wil- 
liam, a Union soldier during the civil 
war; Andrew, also a soldier, captured 
while fighting under Sherman, carried to 
Andersonville prison, where he died : 
Hugh, John, and Thomas, deceased. 

Hugh McClaren received his education 
at the public schools of Plainfield, and 
was then taught the trade of a black- 
smith, which he followed for three years 
and nine months. He then secured a 
position as fireman with the Central rail- 
road of New Jersey, and from August, 
1853, until January, 1859, faithfully ful- 
filled the duties of this position. He 
was then promoted to engineer, first on 
freight, and later on passenger trains. 
This position he occupies at the present 
time, and has charge of the engine of a 
passenger train running between Somer- 
ville, New Jersey, and New York city. 
Mr. McClaren has an exceptional reputa- 
tion as a careful, conscientious engineer, 
and during his long connection with the 
Central railroad there has never been a 
single charge brought against him for 
any dereliction of duty. He is a mem- 



ber of the Brotherhood of Locomotive 
Engineers, of the Masonic Order, and of 
the Republican party, but the duties of 
his position are too arduous to permit his 
giving much attention to politics. Mr. 
McClaren married Mary E. Moore, 
daughter of Charles E. Moore, of Eliza- 
beth, New Jersey, Oct. 15, 1859, and the 
issue of that marriage was three chil- 
dren : William, a fireman in the employ 
of the Central railroad [of New Jersey, 
and run over and killed by his engine ; 
Charles, now a fireman in the employ of 
the same railroad, and Benjamin, a ma- 
chinist. Mrs. McClaren died Feb. 28, 
1875, and Mr. McClaren married June 
24, 1879, Mrs. Elizabeth Emmons, nee 
HofF. The children born to this mar- 
riage were Anna and Harry, deceased. 



/CHARLES A. HOUSTON, who holds 
^-^ the record of the fastest engineer 
on the Central railroad of New Jersey, 
and is a popular and respected citizen of 
Somerville, is a son of Rodney and Mar- 
garet Pacely Houston, and was born 
April 23, 1843, at Baltimore, Md. 

His father, Rodney Houston, was a 
native of New Hampshire, where he re- 
ceived a common-school education. The 
active portion of his life was spent at 
Mount Savage, Md., in the employ of 
the Baltimore and Ohio railroad and the 
Cumberland and Pennsylvania railroad, 
and he acquired the reputation of being 
one of the best railroad men in the 
country. He began as a carpenter for 
the company ; was successively made 
mail agent and conductor, and finally 
attained the position of chief despatcher 
on the Mount Savage division, which he 
filled with ability and credit until his 
death in 1873. Mr. Houston possessed 



496 



Biographical Sketches. 



a wide reputation in railroad circles for 
uprightness and integrity, and was ex- 
tremely popular among all men Avitli 
whom he came in contact. His wife Avas 
Miss Margaret Pacely, of Frederick 
county, Md., by whom he had five chil- 
dren, Charles A. Houston being the eldest. 

Charles A. Houston attended the pri- 
vate schools at Mount Savage, Md., for 
only eighteen mouths in his boyhood, 
but subsequently educated himself when- 
ever opportunity offered, and is well in- 
formed. When ten years of age, he was 
employed in a fire-brick yard at Mount 
Savage, Md., where he remained for four 
years and a half He then entered the 
employ of the Cumberland and Pennsyl- 
vania railroad, and was first a brakeman, 
and subsequently conductor of a coal 
train until the outbreak of the civil war. 

Owing to the doubtful loyalty of Mary- 
land at the breaking out of hostilities, 
the government refused to accept de- 
fenders from that state. Mr. Houston, 
however, after several enlistments and 
futile attempts to enter the service, on 
June 11, 1861, found admission to the 
Eleventh Indiana Zouave regiment, under 
Gen. Lew Wallace, which had appeared 
at Cumberland from West Virginia, and 
were the first Union troops to enter that 
state. He served under the command of 
Captain Darnall, in Company K, for the 
remainder of the three months, and was 
mustered out at Indianapolis at the expi- 
ration of that time. Here he soon re-en- 
listed in a new regiment raised by Gen- 
eral Wallace, but before he was mustered 
in contracted Ijilious fever, with which 
he was confined to the hospital there for 
several weeks, while his regiment was 
winning laurels at Fort Donelson, Pitts- 
burg Landing and Vicksburg. After 
sufficient recovery he returned home, but 



re-enlisted for three jears in the Second 
Maryland regiment, and served up to 
Oct. 31, 1864. Mr. Houston bears an 
enviable record on the battle-field, and 
enjoys the distinction of having been the 
first Union soldier in the active service 
for the defence of his country from Alle- 
gany county, Md. He was an active 
participant in all the battles in West 
Virginia, his last engagement being with 
McCausland, the confederate leader, who 
invaded Pennsylvania in 1863 and burned 
Chambersburg. At the close of the war, 
Mr. Houston returned to Mount Savage, 
and was emjDloyed as a freight conductor, 
and subsequently as a fireman on three 
divisions of the Baltimore and Ohio rail- 
road. He was promoted to the right side 
of the cab in 1866, and was an engineer 
on the Cumberland and Pennsylvania 
railroad for four years. In 1870 he 
entered the employ of the Central rail- 
road of New Jersey, and has remained 
with that company ever since. He was 
engineer of a freight train for two years, 
and in 1873 was transferred to the pas- 
senger department. When the new 
Bound Brook line was completed be- 
tween New York and Philadelphia in 
1876, Mr. Houston was honored by ap- 
pointment as one of the express engi- 
neers, and has continued to run one of 
these famous fast trains until the present 
day. He has made many wonderful 
runs, and is the holder of the fastest 
record in the world up to that time — a 
mile in thirty-nine and one-half seconds, 
a rate of over ninety miles an hour. 

On Sept. 18, 1867, Mr. Houston was 
married to Miss Salome Wack, daughter 
of Rev. C. P. Wack, of Lebanon, New 
Jerse}', by Avhom he had eight children : 
Edwin, deceased in 1877; Addie, a 
teacher at Skillman, New Jersey; Mar- 



Biographical Sketches. 



497 



garet, deceased; Eodney, Erie E., Wil- 
liam Clark, Muriel and Gladys. 

Mr. Houston is a straight republican in 
politics, takes an active interest in all 
matters of public advancement, and has 
exerted a most beneficial influence in the 
pi'ogress of Somerset county. On March 
24, 1896, he was elected by the legisla- 
ture a member of the state board of 
arbitration. He is warm-hearted and 
genial in disposition, and of wide personal 
popularity among railroad men through- 
out the state. He is recognized as one 
of Somerville's best-known and most use- 
ful citizens. 



nn\R. L. S. BLACKWELL, a prominent 
-'-^ and successful physician and sur- 
geon, who has been in the active practice 
of his profession for more than a quarter 
of a century, is a son of Henry and Re- 
becca Titus Blackwell, and was born 
near Pennington, in Mercer county, New 
Jersey, Jan. 23, 1833. Benjamin Black- 
well, his paternal grandfather, was en- 
gaged during his lifetime in the manu- 
facture and sale of spirituous liquors, and 
in the seventy-sixth year of his age died 
at Hopewell, the village of his birth. 
His marital union with Pamela Drake 
resulted in the birth of eleven children : 
Jacob, Jonathan, Peter, John, Henry, 
David, Thomas, Andrew, Mrs. Hannah 
Drake, Mary Perrine and Uri Polhemus. 
Henry Blackwell (father) was born at 
Hopewell on the fourth day of Nov., 
1793, and died near his native hamlet 
March 27, 1854, having lived a useful 
and successful life. He was a democrat 
and a member of the Baptist church at 
Harbourton, in which organization he 
was a deacon for many years. He mar- 
ried Rebecca Titus, who bore him eight 
children : Woolsey P., Enoch H., Charles 



F., Enos F., Pamela, Almena E., Lewis 
S. and Mary M., the wife of David B. 
PhilUps. Dr. Enos F. and the subject of 
the sketch are the only offspring living. 
Dr. Blackwell obtained a preliminary 
education in the academy at Pennington 
and the New Jersey Conference Semi- 
nary, and then entered the office of his 
brother. Dr. Enos F. Blackwell, of 
Stejjhensburg, New Jersey, under whose 
preceptorship he read medicine three and 
a half years. During this time he took 
one course of lectures in Vermont Medi- 
cal College, at Woodstock, Vt., and sub- 
sequently took two courses of lectures 
in the University of Pennsylvania, in 
Philadelphia, from which institution he 
graduated in 1857. In 1869 and '70 he 
did practical and clinical work in the 
Bellevue Hospital Medical College in New 
York city. He first began to practice in 
1857 at Wertsville, Hunterdon county, 
New Jersey. Here he remained but a 
short time when he removed to Penning- 
ton in this state. In 1872 he located at 
Bound Brook, and in 1874 settled at 
Perth Amboy, where he has since been 
in active and successful practice. On 
April 28, 1859, the nuptials were cele- 
brated which made Dr. Blackwell and 
Miss Charlotte 0. Waters husband and 
wife. For two terms he was represented 
in the board of freeholders of Mercer 
county. Personalljr Dr. Blackwell is a 
man of strong character and great versa- 
tility of mind. He is clear in his con- 
ceptions of right and wrong, and inflexi- 
ble of purpose under such convictions. 
Professionally he is a careful, conscien- 
tious and skillful phj^sician, well-read in 
the most advanced literature of his pro- 
fession, and further fortified for his j)ro- 
fessional duty by long years of experi- 
ence in an extensive and varied practice. 



498 



Biographical Sketches. 



THDWARD V. PATTERSON, the present 
-'-^ popular mayor of Spring Lake, and 
station agent of the New York and Long 
Branch railroad at that place, is a son of 
Kortenius and Rebecca Vernon Patter- 
son, and was born at Keyport, Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, October 20, 
1856. 

At the age of two years his parents 
removed to Farmingdale, where he com- 
pleted his education at the public schools 
of that town. He entered the employ of 
the Pennsylvania Railroad Co. in 1877, 
at Farmingdale and began to learn the 
railroading business. He afterwards came 
into the employ of the Jersey Southern 
railroad, where he remained until 1879, 
when he entered the employ of the New 
York and Long Branch railroad, and lo- 
cated at Spring Lake station as its agent 
at that point, for both passengers and 
freight. He is the representative of the 
Adams Express Co. at this station. He 
is also owner of the local express. He 
is identified also with numerous real- 
estate and building operations in and 
about Spring Lake, and has shown him- 
self a thoroughly active and pushing 
man of business. He owns and occu- 
pies a comfortable residence on Mon- 
mouth avenue, Spring Lake. He is an 
earnest and consistent member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church of Spring 
Lake, and is a member of its board of 
trustees. He is greatly interested in the 
public schools, and is an active member 
of the board of education. He is a 
charter memljer of the fire department, 
treasurer of its relief fund and a trustee 
of the department board. He is a demo- 
crat and active as a politician. He was 
chairman of the township executive 
Committee of Wall township for six 
yeax's. He was one of the incorporators 



of the borough of Spring Lake, and was 
elected its first mayor, in which position 
he has served to the present time, having 
been re-elected on a citizens' ticket, formed 
regardless of party interests. 

Mayor Patterson was married to Miss 
Anna Buckalew, daughter of Enoch and 
Lydia Buckalew, of Howell township, 
Monmouth county, on April 16, 1878, 
and the following children have been 
bom to them : Arden Vernon, Benjamin 
Yard, Edna, Leon Buckalew, Edward V., 
Jr., and one infant unnamed. 

William C. Patterson, grandfather of 
Mayor Patterson, was a carpenter and 
builder by occupation, and a life-long 
resident of near Lower Squankum, How- 
ell township, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey. He was a quiet, unostentatious 
citizen, and withal a man of considerable 
prominence and popularity in his com- 
munity. He was a democrat, and a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
He resided here all his life. 

Kortenius Patterson, one of his sons, and 
father of Edward B., was educated in the 
public schools of Howell township, after 
which he learned the carpenter trade. 
After following that pursuit as apprentice 
and as journeyman for several j^ears, he 
established himself in bridge building 
and contractuig on his own account, oper- 
ating in Monmouth county, until early in 
the fifties, when he located at Dayton, 0., 
for a short time, but in 1854 returned 
to Keyport, Monmouth countj'. New Jer- 
sey, where he has carried on a successful 
and profitable business in bridge-building 
and construction work and resides at the 
present time. Politically he is a staunch 
democrat. His marriage with Reljecca 
Vernon has resulted in the birth of the 
following children : Sarah, Matilda, 
Louise, Susan, Edward V., and Ada. 



Biographical Sketches. 



499 



TOHN AMERMAN, vice-president of the 
^ First National Bank of Somerville, 
and for many years one of the most 
enterprising business men of Somerset 
county, is a son of Henry and Mary 
(Sutphen) Amerman, and was born at 
North Branch, Somerset county, New- 
Jersey, in 1823. The Amerman family 
are of Dutch lineage, and emigrated from 
Holland in the early days of this coun- 
try's settlement. The paternal grand- 
father, Abram Amerman, settled at North 
Branch, where he was engaged in agri- 
cultural pursuits during his entire life. 
He was an active and influential member 
of the Reformed church at that place, 
and gave liberal financial and moral 
support to this cause. To him were 
born six children : Daniel, Cornelius, 
Abraham, Henry, and Catharine, all de- 
ceased. 

Henry Amerman (father of subject) 
was born Dec. 1, 1789. He received a 
common-school education, and followed 
the calling of his father as an agricul- 
turist all his life. Being the possessor 
of a very fine estate of one hundred and 
thirty acres, his skill as a farmer, and his 
devotion to his profession as such, were 
always a subject of remark. The politi- 
cal opinions of our subject's father iden- 
tified him very closely with the Whig 
party, and he earnestly upheld the prin- 
ciples advocated by the great leader, 
Henry Clay. Reared under the religious 
influences, and being early imbued with 
the doctrines and tenets of the Reformed 
church, he early in life became actively 
identified with the workings and interests 
of the Reformed church at Readington, 
and filled with honor the important of- 
fices of deacon, elder, etc., and to the 
day of his death was one of the most 
highly respected and substantial mem- 



bers of the congregation. Henry Amer- 
man married Mary Sutphen, daughter 
of Gilbert Sutphen, and reared a family 
of nine children : Abraham, deceased ; 
Gilbert S., deceased; George V., de- 
ceased ; Daniel, deceased ; John, our sub- 
ject; Mary E., deceased; Mary E., wife 
of D. K. Craig ; Wm. H., and Cornelius. 
Mr. Amerman died Oct. 29, 1871, at the 
age of eighty-two years, and Mrs. Amer- 
man passed away Dec. 13, 1851, in the 
sixtieth year of her age. 

John Amerman received his education 
in the common schools of his native place, 
and at the age of seventeen started out 
to fight the battle of life. He first ob- 
tained a situation with a mercantile house 
in New York city, and remained there 
for five years, diligently mastering the 
details of the trade, and laying the 
foundation for the success that was to 
crown his future career. In 1846 he 
engaged in the mercantile business at 
South Branch, and carried on the same 
for a period of forty successive years. 
Among other interests our subject was 
also engaged in extensive milling operar 
tions, and after many years of constant 
and energetic devotion to both of the 
above interests, he retired from further 
business affairs, but is still an active 
and influential citizen, and fills several 
honorable and trustworthy positions, 
among which are the vice-presidency of 
the First National Bank of Somerville, 
and the vice-presidency of the Dime 
Savings Bank. He has always been an 
earnest republican. Following the tra- 
ditions of the family, Mr. Amerman iden- 
tified himself with the church of his fore- 
fathers, and in the earlier days of his 
connection with the church work, took 
an active part in the very important 
work of the Sunday-school. That he is 



500 



Biographical Sketches. 



considered honorable and trustworthy by 
his fellow church members is clearly 
evinced by the fact of his being elected 
to the various offices of deacon, el- 
der, etc. 

Mr. Amerman has been twice married. 
His first wife was Hettie Morehead, 
daughter of John Morehead. This esti- 
mable and highly-respected lady died 
Nov. 5, 1871. Some years later he was 
joined in marriage to Miss Jennie Lewis, 
daughter of Mr. Lewis. Our subject was 
again unfortunate in the death of his 
second wife, who died Aug. 11, 1883. 
The children of the first marriage, two 
in number, were : May E., deceased, and 
Joanna, deceased. The second marriage 
was blessed with one child, Elizabeth, 
deceased. Mr. Amerman has long been 
recognized as a man of marked aljility, is 
broad and liberal in his views, and to- 
day commands the hearty respect of all 
who know him. 



TAMES WAIT, doing business at No. 23 
^ Smith street, is one of the oldest and 
most progressive and successful citizens 
of Perth Am boy, New Jersey, where he 
was born July 6, 1824. He is the son of 
John 0. and Elizabeth Crow Wait. His 
paternal grandfather, David Wait, was a 
native of Scotland. He was born in 1754 
and came to the colonies a pressed soldier 
at the time of the Revolutionary war, 
being then just twenty-one years of age. 
He took part in an engagement at Man- 
hattan Island, New York, was taken 
prisoner hy the Americans, and retained 
as a prisoner of war at Jamestown, Va., 
until peace was proclaimed. He then 
went to Sussex, E.ssex county. New Jer- 
sey, and finally to Perth Amboj-. Here 
he worked for James Parker as carpenter 



in the building known as the " Old Cas- 
tle " on Water street, said to be the most 
ancient building now in Perth Amboy. 
Later he began business on his own ac- 
count and was successful. David Wait 
was a man of good education, and held 
in high esteem by all who came into so- 
cial or other relations with him. Politi- 
cally he was an old-line whig, and both 
he and his wife, who was a Miss Irene 
Bell, Avere actively engaged in the work 
of the Presbyterian church, which church 
he built. They reared a family of eleven 
children : David, Margaret, Agnes, Ma- 
tilda, Katharine, Joseph, John, Isaac, 
James, William and Philip. David 
Wait, Sr., died Nov. 11, 1810, and his 
wife May 31, 1804. They are both 
buried at Perth Amboy, New Jersey. 

John 0. Wait (father) was born at 
Perth Amboy, New Jersey, Jan. 10, 
1787, and upon leaving school worked 
with his father as carpenter. In 1834 he 
engaged in the baking business, and con- 
tinued successfully in it until his death. 
He was democratic in his political views 
and paid considerable attention to party 
affairs and public matters. Among the 
various offices he held were overseer of 
the poor and of roads. He was a be- 
liever in the doctrines of the Presbyterian 
church, and on Nov. 28, 1810, married 
Miss Elizabeth Crow, daughter of Ellis 
Crow, of Woodbridge, New Jersey, who 
was a son of Colonel Crow, of the Revo- 
lutionary war. They had seven sons and 
four daughters : Thompson, Marguerett, 
Matilda, Francis, Samuel, James, Philip, 
Mary Amanda, Martha and John 0. 
John 0. Wait, Sr., died Nov. 23, 1876, and 
his wife, Elizabeth, passed away in May, 
1863, both being interred at Perth Am- 
boy, New Jersey. 

James Wait was enrolled as a pupil in 





<c^^^,^>^^/^.^S 



Biographical Sketches. 



503 



the common schools of Perth Amboy 
until he reached the age of twelve years. 
He then began to learn the baking-busi- 
ness with his father, and at the age of 
twenty-one was given an interest in the 
establishment. He continued with his 
father until three years had passed, and 
then withdrew and established himself at 
No. 24 Smith street, where he remained 
until 1852, and then erected his present 
place of business at No. 23 Smith street. 
Mr. Wait's career as a manufacturer of 
bread, fine cakes, ice-cream and confec- 
tions has been successful, and during the 
course of his successful and well-managed 
life as a business man he has accumu- 
lated a competence, and takes much 
pleasure in looking over his fine farm of 
one hundred and thirty acres, situated in 
Woodbridge township, a rich agricultural 
district. Mr. Wait is a democrat, and 
has served his community as constable 
and as a member of council. On Sept. 
21, 1848, he was united in marriage to 
Miss Emma Hughes, daughter of James 
and Hannah Hughes, of North Truro, 
Mass. Eight children were born to this 
union : Emma (Mrs. Edward Best), 
James, Bessie, deceased ; Anna Francis, 
George, Leon and Jennie, the latter three 
deceased ; and Frank. 



y\R. RICHARD F. BORDEN, a leading 
-*-^ and successful dentist at Red Bank, 
Monmouth county, is a son of Richard 
and Alice (White) Borden, and was born 
March 13, 1844, at Little Silver, Mon- 
mouth county. The name is of English 
origin, and the American branch of the 
Borden family trace their ancestry to 
four brothers, Benjamin, John, Andrew, 
and Richard, who came from England 
ajjout 1600, and settled on Long Island. 

26 



Richard Borden, the paternal great- 
grandfather, was a captain of a vessel 
plying between New York and Philadel- 
phia, which occupation was also followed 
by his son, Richard Borden, the grand- 
father. The latter was a quaker, and 
was the first of the family to reside at 
Little Silver. His children were : John, 
who was captain of a vessel on the Nave- 
sink river ; Richard, William, Sarah, wife 
of Seth White, of Rumson ; Caroline, wife 
of Joseph Hance ; and Joseph. 

Richard Borden (father) received a 
common-school education at Little Sil- 
ver, but subsequently acquired a good 
stock of genei-al learning by pursuing 
studies on his own account. For many 
years he was captain of a coasting vessel 
between New York and Philadelphia. 
Later in life he gave up the sea, and be- 
came an architect of considerable repute 
at Little Silver, where he resided upon 
the farm where he was born. He was 
an old-line whig in politics, and a de- 
voted member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church at Little Silver. He died in 
1845. He was married to Miss Alice 
White, daughter of Timothy White, of 
Little Silver, by whom he had four chil- 
dren : Francis, deceased at twelve years 
of age ; Sarah E., wife of George W. 
Van Derveer, of Jersey Cityj William, 
and Richard F. 

Dr. Richard F. Borden received a com- 
mon-school education at Little Silver, 
and afterwards prepared for college at 
Freehold, New Jersey. He then took a 
partial course at the Cincinnati Dental 
College. He immediately entered upon 
the practice of his profession at Red 
Bank, and has been the leading dentist 
of this section of Monmouth county for 
over a quarter of a century. He has 
been highly successful, and has built up 



504 



Biographical Sketches. 



a wide clientage. In addition to his 
handsome residence at Red Bank he also 
owns the homestead at Little Silver, pre- 
viously operated by his father and grand- 
father. Dr. Borden is a strong republican 
in politics, but is independent in the mat- 
ter of voting at local elections. He was 
educated in the tenets of the Presbyterian 
church, but is at present not attached to 
any religious faith. He is a member of 
Lodge No. 73, Knights of Pythias. 

On May 13, 1874, Dr. Borden was 
married to Miss Emma Butler, daughter 
of William Butler, of New York, and they 
have one child, Marion R. Dr. Borden is a 
hard and conscientious worker in his pro- 
fession, is genial and courteous in his man- 
ners, and is popular and respected. He 
is a man of wide learning and a close stu- 
dent of his profession. 



TTTILLIAM J. McCURDY, treasurer of 
' ' the Neverslip Manufacturing Co., 
and ex-pi-esident of the board of trade, 
is one of the most successful and sub- 
stantial business men of New Bruns- 
wick and Middlesex county. He is a 
son of Daniel and Jane (Dunbar) Mc- 
Curdy and was born July 30, 1862, at 
New Brunswick. He received his edu- 
cation in various institutions. He grad- 
uated from the public schools of New 
Brunswick in 1878, Rutgers College gram- 
mar school in 1879, and then entered 
upon tlie regular college course, pursuing 
the same into the freshman year. He 
left college to prepare for business, and in 
1880 graduated from the New Jersey 
Business College at Newark. He then 
became associated with his father as a 
clerk until 1889 in his store at New 
Brunswick, at which time lie was 
admitted to partnership under the style 



of D. McCurdy & Son, wholesale and re- 
tail dealers in cigars, and soon built up 
in the latter branch of their business the 
largest trade in the state. Meanwhile 
he became a director in the New Bruns- 
wick Fire Insurance Company and presi- 
dent of the board of- trade. To this lat- 
ter jDosition Mr. McCurdy was elected in 
1890, and during his term, which lasted 
fiv^e years, many new and substantial en- 
terprises were added to the town under 
his skillful leadership. In the spring of 
1893, two years after he purchased his 
father's interest in the store at No. 10 
Somerset street, he sold out and removed 
to the corner of George and Washington 
streets. He increased his volume of bus- 
iness $35,000 during the first year, and 
during the next two years their increases 
aggregated $45,000 per annum. Mr. 
McCurdy continued this successful busi- 
ness until Feb., 1896, when he was of- 
fered and accepted the position of treas- 
urer of the Neverslip Manufacturing Co., 
of New Brunswick, one of the companies 
controlled by the Johnson & Johnson 
corporation, organized in 1896 for the 
manufacture of metal specialties, and is 
a consolidation of various companies 
hitherto engaged in the same business. 
The company occupies a large plant em- 
ploying sixty-five men, and their sales, 
showing a large annual increase, extended 
all over the United States and also 
throughout Europe. Mr. McCurdy has 
entire charge of this department of the 
business in his capacity of treasurer, the 
other officers being R. W. Johnson, pres- 
ident ; J. W. Johnson, secretary ; and 
Richard Whittaker, superintendent. Mr. 
McCurdy is a member of the following 
named societies : Union Lodge, No. 11, 
F. and A. Masons ; NeAV Brunswick 
Lodge, No. 324, B. P. 0. E.; Adelphia 



Biographical Sketches. 



505 



Council, No. 1105, Royal Arcanum ; and 
the New Brunswick Boat Club. He is 
also a member and trustee of the First 
Presbyterian church and a member of 
the Young Men's Christian Association. 
He was united in marriage April 25, 
1889, to May H., daughter of Arnold F. 
and Augusta (Boyd) Farmer, who re- 
sided at George's Road, a suburb of New 
Brunswick. To their union have been 
born two children : Ogden Ralston, aged 
six years, and Doretha Howard, aged 
four. The maternal grandfather, Robert 
Dunbar, was a native of Scotland, where 
he resided all his life, engaged in agricul- 
ture. 

From the foregoing epitome of the 
life of Mr. McCurdy, it will be seen that 
he has attained a prominent position in 
the business and social circles of New 
Brunswick ; that he has been a success- 
ful man of indomitable energy in his 
own business and is now ably puttingforth 
his strong mental resources in a business 
chiefly owned by others, and that as a 
public-spirited and progressive citizen he 
has contributed a large share to the thrift 
of that city. 

Daniel McCurdy (father) was a son of 
John McCurdy, and was born in Scotland, 
in 1821. He came to America twenty 
years later, with Robert, an older brother, 
and located in Philadelphia for three 
years. He afterwards came to New 
Brunswick to accept a responsible posi- 
tion as superintendent of a new enter- 
prise just starting. He remained in that 
service for a score of years, when he en- 
gaged in the grocery business for himself, 
which he conducted alone until 1888. 
In that year he admitted his son, William 
J., into the business, and the house of D. 
McCurdy & Son continued until 1891. 
He sold out to his son in that year ; re- 



tired from business with a handsome 
competence and with the reputation 
of being the most successful merchant of 
NeAv Brunswick. His enjoyment of the 
fruits of his labor was of brief duration, 
however, for he deceased in 1892 at the 
venerable age of seventy-one years. In 
political associations he was a member 
of the Democratic party, and in religious 
devotion he worshiped at the First Pres- 
byterian church of New Brunswick. His 
marriage. May 23, 1856, to Jane Dunbar, 
who is surviving and residing with her 
daughter, Mrs. J. T. Lippincott, at New- 
ark, New Jersey, resulted in the birth of 
three daughters and one son : Mary, wife 
of N. D. Runyon, residing at Stelton, 
New Jersey ; Catharine, married to Fred- 
erick Weigle, an attorney-al^law and at 
present city attorney of New Brunswick ; 
William J., our subject ; and Emma D., 
wife of Dr. J. D. Lippincott, who is con- 
nected with St. Michael's Hospital, of 
Newark, New Jersey. 



TT7ILLIAM A. SEAMANS, an enter- 
' ' prising boat and yacht builder of 
Long Branch, is a typical self-made man. 
He was born at Long Branch, New Jer- 
sey, December 2, 1854, and is a son of 
Walter A. and Mary A. (Corstor) Sea- 
mans. 

The grandfather of our subject, Isaac 
Seamans, was a native of Jersey City, 
New Jersey, and was a large land-holder, 
having owned the greater part of the 
present site of that city. He was en- 
gaged in boating and shad-fishing, and in 
both of these lines of business was very 
successful. Politically he was an active 
democrat, and was one of the leading 
public-spirited citizens of Jersey City, in 
his day. He was also deeply interested 



606 



Biographical Sketches. 



in the building of racing-boats, and on 
one occasion, while going to Boston, to 
enter his boat in a !|5U00-a-side contest, 
was caught between the cars and killed. 
Isaac Seamans married Miss Sara Crane, 
daughter of Daniel Crane, of Jersey City, 
and they reared a family of six children : 
Sarah Jane (Mrs. McLeehan) ; Mary (Mrs. 
Hicks) ; Hannah (Mrs. Lear) ; Adelia 
(Mrs. Hornier) ; Alfred, and Walter A. 

Walter A. Seamans (father) was born 
in Jersey City, New Jersey, and attended 
the common schools of that place. His 
occupations were respectively those of a 
carpenter, surfman, and fisherman. He 
was captain of the old Excelsior Guards 
of Long Branch, and when the civil war 
was in progress served during the entire 
four years, and was a member of General 
Banks' expedition in the southwest. He 
was a member of the Democratic party, 
and married Miss Mary A. Corstor, 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William Corstor, 
of Jersey City, and to them were born 
seven children, all of whom are deceased, 
except the subject of this sketch. They 
were as follows : Isaac, Alfred, Sarah A., 
Adelia, Elmira, Joanna Ede, and William 
A. The mother of the above family died 
in 1861, and the father died at Trenton, 
New Jersey, July 18, 1896. 

William A. Seamans (subject) attended 
school but two years at odd times, as 
chance permitted, and when eight or nine 
years of age was engaged in selling 
papers and blacking boots around the 
Courtland street ferry, Jersey City. He 
then worked two years for Messrs. Rich- 
ard & Seamans, sash, door and blind man- 
ufacturers, at Jersey City ; while here he 
learned the trade of pattern-making. 
His next employment was for one year 
with Charles 11. Hall & Dr. Walker, man- 
ufacturers of vinegar bitters. During 



the next few years he was engaged in 
fishing at Long Branch, and employed by 
R. V. Breese, of Carpenter, as a carpen- 
ter, and worked at his trade for six or 
seven years during the winter and fishing 
in summer. In 1879 Mr. Seamans located 
permanentl}' in Long Branch, and there 
married Miss Elizabeth Brindley, daugh- 
ter of John P. and Margaret Brindley. 
He then followed fishing during the 
most profitable seasons of the year, 
and devoted the remainder of his time 
to carpentering and building boats ; and 
to the latter business gives his entire ai^ 
tention, and does a thriving trade as 
a boat and yacht designer and builder. 
With no capital Mr. Seamans built his 
house on leased ground, and to-day by 
thrift, industry, and rare business ability 
has not only secured his home, but has 
accumulated a goodly amount of stocks 
and real estate. In political views he is 
a democrat. Mr. Seamans is a bright, 
thrifty business man, and has one son, 
Howard Leon Seamans. 



/^OKNELIUS D. TAYLOR, the gentle- 
^ manly manager of Taylor's Hotel, 
at Dunellen, New Jersey, is a son of Wil- 
liam H. and Mary (Doremus) Taylor, 
formerly of Morris county. New Jersey, 
but latterly of Dunellen, where the father 
has established himself as the popular 
and well-known proprietor of the hotel 
which bears his name. Mr. Taylor was 
born in Morris county. New Jersey, June 
26, 1861 ; and when his parents removed 
to Dunellen came with them, and has 
ever since been engaged in assisting his 
father in the management of the hotel 
at the latter place. Calvin Taylor (grand- 
father) was a native of Montclair, in 
Essex county, New Jersey, where he re- 



Biographical Sketches. 



.507 



sided for many years. He was by occu- 
pation a shoemaker, and pursued this 
calling industriously and with much suc- 
cess until a short time prior to his death, 
in 1893, when he retired from active 
business. He left the following descend- 
ants : George W., Wesley, Alfred, Louise 
B., Susan, and William H. 

William H. Taylor (father) was born 
at Newark, Essex county, on April 12, 
1833, and received his education in the 
common schools of the vicinity. He 
learned the father's trade, that of shoe- 
making, and for a time fqllowed that oc- 
cupation in his native place. He subse- 
quently entered into the livery business 
at Boonton, Morris county, and from 
there to Metuchen in the same business, 
in which he continued until 1882. He 
then removed to Dunellen, New Jersey, 
and became the proprietor of the hotel 
now known as Taylor's Hotel, and has 
remained at its head continuously since. 
He is most ably assisted in it by his son 
(the subject), and the hotel enjoys an ex- 
cellent reputation with the traveling 
public, as well as with the resident com- 
munity. Connected with the hotel may 
be found all the appliances for recre- 
ation and exercise, usually appertaining 
to a first-class hostelry, such as bowling 
alleys, and pool and billiard tables, and 
these are well patronized and appreciated 
by the lovers of athletics and sports. 
The father of Mr. Taylor is an ardent 
democrat in politics, and a somewhat 
active party worker. He married Mary 
Doremus, daughter of Hon. C. B. Dore- 
mus, of Morris county, on May 30, 1855, 
and as the fruit of said union has three 
children : George W., Edward P., and 
Cornelius D. 

Cornelius D. Taylor attended the com- 
mon schools of Boonton, New Jersey, 



until he attained the age of twelve years, 
after which he entered the office of his 
father, at that time engaged in the livery 
business at Boonton, and assisted him 
therein up to the time his father disposed 
of the same. He then came to Dunellen 
with his father, and has since assisted 
him in the management of the hotel at 
the latter place. He is also an ardent 
democrat in politics, and is identified 
with the Junior Order of United Ameri- 
can Mechanics. He married, in 1885, 
Miss Sarah B. Demarest, daughter of 
William Demarest, of Paterson, New 
Jersey, and they have had one child, 
Eliza. 



DAVID C. ENGLISH, M. D., a leading 
practitioner of New Brunswick, 
and one of the foremost physicians in the 
state of New Jersey, comes from a family 
of medical men ; his father and grand- 
father having been physicians before him. 
He is the son of Dr. David C. English, 
and was born in New Brunswick in 1842. 
His grandfather was Dr. James English, 
whose ancestors were among the first 
settlers of the state. 

Dr. David C. English studied medicine 
with the eminent Dr. Clifford T. Morrogh, 
who was also one of the oldest as well as 
ablest surgeons in the state. In 1868 
he graduated from the College of Phys- 
icians and Surgeons, of New York city 
(Columbia College), after a three years' 
course of study. Upon the final com- 
pletion of his studies he settled in New 
Brunswick, and entered upon the prac- 
tice of his profession, in which he has 
achieved an enviably eminent position. 
He has been the treasurer of the Middle- 
sex County Medical Society since 1876, 
and has served as president of that organi- 
zation. He is a member of the State Medi- 



508 



Biographical Sketches. 



cal Society, and was on the standing com- 
mittee of that society for four years; three 
years of which time he served as chair- 
man. In 189-4 he was elected third vice- 
president of the State Medical Society, in 
the following year, second vice-president, 
and this year, in June, 1896, was elected 
to the first vice-presidency. Following 
the usual custom, this will bring him to 
the presidency in 1897. 

Dr. English is a prominent member of 
the American Medical Association, at the 
annual meetings of which he has often 
represented the State Medical Society. 
In 1893 he was elected a delegate to the 
Pan-American Medical Congress. He 
has been successively secretary, chairman 
of the executive council, and vice-presi- 
dent of the New Jersey State Sanitary 
Association, and was president of that 
body in 1895-6. He served for two years 
as a member of the executive council of 
the American Public Health Association. 
He is secretary of the medical staff of the 
Wells Memorial Hospital, at New Bruns- 
wick. He has served his native city as 
an alderman for a term of two years, 
1866-8, and his influence and votes were 
so strongly in favor of reform and against 
the open saloon, that, greatly to his re- 
lief, the politicians did not urge a re-elec- 
tion. He has held no other important 
public office. 

Dr. English has been equally active in 
religious matters. In 1871 and again in 
1881, he was president of the New Jer- 
sey State Young Men's Christian Asso- 
ciation Convention. From 1870 to 1894, 
he was continuously a member of the 
state executive committee, and for many 
years was president of the New Bruns- 
wick Young Men's Christian Association. 
In 1873 he was elected an elder in the 
First Presbyterian church of New Bruns- 



wick, and has been re-elected four times 
since. He was twice elected by the 
Presbytery of New Brunswick as com- 
missioner to the general assembly of the 
church. Dr. English has labored untir- 
ingly and zealously for the advancement 
of the medical profession, and the up- 
lifting of mankind through religious and 
benevolent organizations. He is a gentle- 
man of marked ability and high charac- 
ter. As a physician he is recognized by 
the medical profession as being one of the 
foremost practitioners in the state. He 
was married in 1870, to Susan C. Blake, 
daughter of Hon. Harrison Blake, of 
Maine, and has one son, GrenfiU H., who 
resides in New Brunswick. 



/CHARLES FISHER, a prosperous whole- 
^-^ sale and retail coal-dealer at New 
Brunswick, Middlesex county. New Jer- 
sey, is a son of Joseph and Adeline (Hock- 
mon) Fisher, and was born in the above 
city Oct. 6, 1846. 

Charles Fisher acquired an average 
education in the grammar school of his 
native city, and started out in the battle 
of life while j^et a lad. He was com- 
pelled by force of circumstances to fight 
his way unaided and alone, but by dint 
of energy, courage, and ambition, and 
withal a high sense of honor, with strict 
adherence to principle, ever hewing to 
the line, letting the chips fall where they 
may, he won and has taken a prominent 
place in the commercial life of New 
Brunswick. After leaving school his 
first employment was a ten years' en- 
gagement as a clerk in a dry-goods store. 
At the expiration of this time he spent 
two years in the soap business in Brook- 
lyn, NeAv York, six years in the clothing 
trade, and two years as clerk in the office 



Biographical Sketches. 



509 



of a surrogate. His varied experience 
afforded him an excellent training for 
mercantile life and thoroughly equipped 
him to enter into business for himself 
He accordingly opened his present large 
establishment in New Brunswick, wh^re 
he conducts an extensive trade as a whole- 
sale and retail dealer in coal. This un- 
dertaking prospered from its inception 
until now, his coal yard being one of the 
best known in the city. Mr. Fisher 
evinces just pride in his satisfactory and 
growing business, as well as in the nu- 
merous friendships he has created and 
maintained. He takes an active interest 
in religious, social, and public affairs. 
He is an honored member of the Second 
Reformed church of New Brunswick, 
takes a leading part in all philanthropic 
and charitable work, and in political 
affairs is a devotee of Republican princi- 
ples. In secret societies he holds mem- 
bership as follows : Union Lodge, No. 19, 
F. and A. M.; Scott Chapter, No. 4, R. 
A. M.; Scott Council, No. 1, Royal Ar- 
canum, and the Legion of Honor, all of 
New Brunswick. 

Mr. Fisher was married July 2, 1877, 
to Ella De Hart, a daughter of Gen. 
Uriah De Hart, of New Brunswick, and 
their marriage has been blessed with 
four children : Mary Louise, Bessie Mad- 
eline, Clara N., and Eloise. 



n^ D. BAZLEY, ex-chief of the fire de- 
-L • partment, and senior member of 
the firm of Bazley & Burns, plumbers, 
of Long Branch, New Jersey, is a son of 
Harman and Freelove Bazley, and was 
born in New York city, Oct. 5, 1848. 
He attended the public schools of New 
York until he was thirteen years of age, 
when he was employed in a candy store 



one year, and then in the office of S. S. 
Shortland. Some time later he became 
interested in the plumbing business, and 
worked at that for eight years in the em- 
ploy of Martin Laloe, at No. 387 Bow- 
ery, and two years on Sixth avenue. In 
1873, Mr. Bazley removed to Long 
Branch, and continued in the same busi- 
ness, taking into partnership with him- 
self Mr. Joseph Burns, and since that 
time they have been doing a very suc- 
cessful trade under the firm name of 
Bazley & Burns. In political affairs and 
public concerns, he takes a keen and 
active interest and labors hard for the 
success of his party and the common 
welfare and progress of his city. He is 
a democrat and has held the following 
offices : commissioner of Long Branch 
for two vears, and chief of the fire de- 
partment for a like term. 

Mr. Bazley is well known in secret 
society circles, being a member of Ma- 
sonic Lodge, No. 78 ; Standard Chapter, 
No. 35; Knights of Pythias, Ocean 
Lodge, No. 83 ; Empire Lodge, No. 174, 
I. 0. 0. F. ; and Long Branch Council, 
No. 429, Royal Arcanum; all of Long 
Branch. In religious belief and hold- 
ings, Mr. Bazley is a staunch Presby- 
terian, and is actively engaged in manag- 
ing the official concerns of the church, 
being a member of the board of trustees. 
On May 7, 1874, Mr. Bazley wedded 
Miss Mary Herbert, daughter of John 
and Catherine Herbert, of Long Branch, 
and to them have been born a family of 
eight children : Mary Isabel, Elizabeth, 
Albert, Raymond, Forrest, Helen, Paul, 
and Thomas Dixon, deceased. 

Thomas D. Bazley (grandfather) was 
born in New York city, and for some 
years attended the public schools at that 
place. He then learned the meat busi- 



510 



Biographical Sketches. 



ness, established a trade for himself, and 
was thus engaged in the city of New 
York up to the time of his death, which 
occurred Feb. 22, 1842. Politically, 
grandfather Bazley was an old-line whig, 
and an earnest member of the Baptist 
church, in which he was an energetic 
worker. Thomas D. Bazley's wife's 
maiden name was Elizabeth, and their 
marriage was blessed by the birth of 
nine children, four sons and five daugh- 
ters : Thomas D., Harman, John, Mrs. 
David M. Tier, William, Henrietta, Mrs. 
Jacob Reed, Charlotte and Ellen. 

Harman Bazley (father) was born in 
New York city, Aug. 13, 1816, and after 
attending the public schools of that 
place, learned the trade of his father, and 
followed that business at Clinton market. 
New York city, all his life. He was a 
man of good judgment and full of en- 
ergy, a combination of qualities well 
fitting him for the successful business 
career he realized. He was an adherent 
of the Democratic party in his day, and 
an attendant of the Baptist church. 
Fraternally, Mr. Bazley, Sr., was con- 
nected with the order of Free Masons 
and the I. 0. 0. F. On Dec. 31, 1840, 
he married Miss Freelove Benedict, 
daughter of Stephen and Abigail Bene- 
dict, and they reared the following fam- 
ily of children : T. D., the subject ; 
John, William, Stephen, ]\Irs. John E. 
Pardee, and Elizabeth. The father died 
in New York, on Sept. 6, 1855, aged 
thirty-seven years. The mother still 
survives at the age of seventy-seven 
years, and resides in Brooklyn, N. Y. 



TXT C. MARTIN is a son of Jacob W. 

'^' • and Katherin Deyeo Martin, and 

was born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, 

March 20, 1859. He comes from French 



ancestry ; his ancestors coming to Amer- 
ica at an early period and were known as 
Martins. In course of time the name 
was slightly abbreviated by the dropping 
of the final letter. Zariah Martin, his 
grandfather, was a native of Raritan, New 
Jersey, where he lived as a thrifty farmer 
all his life. He was a democrat in poli- 
tics and a communicant of the Baptist 
church. He had two children, a son and 
a daughter : Rachel and Jacob W. 

Jacob W. Martin (father) received but 
a common-school education, and was 
early put to work on a farm. He de- 
voted his nights to study, however, and 
thus acquired a fair education, which 
stood him well in after years. Upon 
leaving the farm he started the carting of 
clay, and continued in the business for 
five years. He next clerked in a grocery 
store in Perth Amboy for three years, 
after which he started a grocery of his 
own, and contmued therein until 1888, 
when he sold out the business to his son. 
He was a democrat in politics ; was a 
freeholder in Perth Amboy, and for 
twelve years an overseer of the poor. He 
had four children : W. C, A. D., Annie, 
wife of Philip Wood, and Ella, wife of 0. 
Wood. He was also an active and zeal- 
ous member of the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows, having served on its build- 
ing committee and as trustee and treas- 
urer. 

W. C. Martin received a common- 
school education, and in 1876 attended a 
private school at Railway, New Jersey, 
for nine months. He then entered his 
father's store as a clerk, and for twelve 
years he remained and assisted in con- 
ducting his father's business. In 1888 
he purchased his father's interest, and 
since then, in connection with his part- 
ner, under the firm name of Martin & 



Biographical Sketches. 



511 



Voorhees, has continued to do a very suc- 
cessful and lucrative business. In poli- 
tics he affiliates with the Democratic 
party. 

Mr. Martin has been conspicuously ac- 
tive in the fire department of Perth Am- 
boy since Dec. 29, 1881, and materially 
aided in the organization of that depart- 
ment. He was a member for three years 
when he was elected first assistant fore- 
man. The ensuing year he was elected 
foreman and president. After this he 
became assistant-chief, and in May, 1895, 
was elected chief He is a member of 
the Exempt Firemen's Association, which 
was organized March 19, 1889 ; has 
served two years as president of the or- 
ganization, and at present is its treasurer. 
He is also an active member of the Jr. 
0. U. A. M., and was a trustee of his 
council for two years. 

On April 30, 1884, Mr. Martin married 
Miss Jennie Foster, a daughter of the 
late George Foster, and by this union 
has two children : Kenneth and Ger- 
trude. In his social and domestic rela- 
tions Mr. Martin is greatly esteemed for 
his affability, geniality and kindness of 
heart. In business circles he ranks pre- 
eminently high and commands the re- 
spect of the entire community. As a 
citizen he is exemplary and earnestly de- 
voted to the interests and welfare of his 
native heath. 



nr\E. HENRY G. WAGONER, one of 
-*-^ the most prominent physicians of 
Somerset county. New Jersey, now asso- 
ciate judge of the inferior court of com- 
mon pleas of that county, residing at 
Somerville, New Jersey, is a son of 
William and Elizabeth (Gatzmer) Wago- 
ner, and was born Aug. 16, 1829, in 



Hunterdon county, New Jersey. Both 
parents were natives of New Jersey, and 
were of German and Holland-Dutch 
ancestry. They were among the early 
pioneers who effected a settlement in 
New Jersey. 

William Wagoner was a farmer, also a 
harness-maker and saddler at Stanton. 
He was a plain, unassuming man, and an 
able and influential person in his com- 
munity, in which he could have received 
any office for the asking. He passed 
away in May, 1870, aged sixty-nine 
years, and his relict followed him in 
April, 1877, in her seventy-fifth year. 
They were the parents of four children : 
Peter, who died in infancy ; Dr. Henry 
G., William G., and John A. G. 

Dr. Henry Wagoner attended the com- 
mon schools and academies of New Jer- 
sey until he was nineteen years of age, 
and afterwards taught school one and a 
half years. He studied medicine with 
Dr. John Manners, a noted physician of 
those days in Hunterdon county. Re- 
maining with Dr. Manners three years, 
Mr. Wagoner entered the University of 
Pennsylvania in 1850, and was graduated 
therefrom in the spring of 1853. He 
entered into active practice at once in 
Stanton, Hunterdon county, New Jersey, 
remaining until 1859, when he removed 
to Somerville, Somerset county, New 
Jersey, where he began a successful 
career as a physician, that has in no 
wise abated after the lapse of thirty-six 
years. Dr. Wagoner is now the oldest 
medical practitioner in his county. He 
is an ex-member of the Hunterdon, and a 
member of the Somerset county medical 
societies, served as president of the latter 
society, and for the past four years has 
been a delegate to the State Medical So- 
ciety of New Jersey, Dr. Wagoner was 



512 



Biographical Sketches. 



a member of the board of pension ex- 
aminers during President Arthur's ad- 
ministration. He has also served as a 
member of the state board of medical 
examiners for two terms, by appointment 
of Gov. Abbett, and was its president for 
one year. He was at one time local 
surgeon for the Jersey Central railroad, 
and for several years has been medical 
examiner for the Washington Life In- 
surance Company ; the New York Life ; 
the New York Mutual Life ; the Equil^ 
able Life of New York city; the Ger- 
mania of New York ; the jEtna of Hart- 
ford, Conn. ; the Mutual Benefit of New- 
ard ; the Provident and the Penn Mutual, 
both of Philadelphia; the Northwestern 
of Minnesota, and for the Northwestern 
Masonic Aid Association of Chicago. He 
is also medical nominator for the Equit- 
able Life, and is medical referee for the 
Mutual Benefit, above named. Dr. 
Wagoner has frequently acted as coroner 
in Somerset county, and served three 
terms of three years each as count}^ phy- 
sician of his county, and is now an in- 
cumbent of that office, and a term of two 
years on the board of street commis- 
sioners. He has been identified with the 
Somerville Water Company as vice-presi- 
dent ever since it was projected. The 
doctor is a member of the Somerville 
Cemetery Association ; is now its secre- 
tary'^ and treasurei", also has been its 
president ; he is a director in the Citi- 
zens' Mutual Fire Insurance Company of 
New Jersey, its principal office being at 
Somerville, and he is a member of the 
board of education of that town. In 
1894 Dr. Wagoner was appointed by 
Gov. Werts one of the associate judges 
of the Inferior Court of Common Pleas 
of Somerset county, his term expiring in 
1899. Judge Wagoner is a prominent 



man in secret society circles, and is a 
member of these various orders : Solo- 
mon's Lodge, No. 46, F. and A. M., of 
which he was worshipful master from 
1862 to 1864 inclusive, and again in 
1867 ; ex-member of Scott Chapter, No. 4, 
R. A. M., of New Brunswick ; one of the 
charter members of Keystone Chapter, 
No. 25, organized at Somerville in 1870, 
and was its first high priest, serving 
several years; again elected in 189.3 and 
again in 1894 ; created a Knight Temp- 
lar, 1869, in Coeur de Lion Commandery, 
No. 8, New Brunswick, from which he 
dimitted and became a charter member of 
Trinity Commandery, No. 17, of Plain- 
field, New Jersey, where his membership 
remains ; member of Mecca Temple, No. 
1, Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of 
the Mystic Shrine for North America, at 
New York city. Judge Wagoner is the 
present grand high priest of the Grand 
Chapter of Royal Arch Masons of New 
Jersey. He has visited officially all the 
subordinate chapters in the state during 
his official career as an officer of the 
grand body, and consummated a most re- 
markable and an unusual undertaking. 

Judge Wagoner was united in mar- 
riage Sept. 7, 1854, to Rachael L., a 
daughter of Dr. Philip R. and Sarah L. 
Vail Dakin, of Hunterdon county. New 
Jersey, and to their union were born six 
childi'en, three of whom, Willie D., Eliza^ 
beth A., and Sarah C, died in infancy. 
The other children were named in order 
as follows : Henry V., a salesman for 
Marcus Ward & Co., in New York ; Wil- 
liam D., deceased in 1886, aged eighteen 
years ; and P. Dakin, a student at the 
Stevens Institute, Hoboken, New Jersey, 
now graduated as mechanical engineer. 
Their mother deceased July 25, 1876. 
Our subject was married subsequently 




'^t^t^-^^'^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



515 



Aug. 14, 1878, to Achsah C, daughter of 
Elijah T. and Kebecca (Walton) Mott, of 
Chicago, and to their marriage were born, 
Aug. 20, 1883, one child, a daughter 
named Helen A. Judge Wagoner was a 
second time bereaved of the mistress of 
his hearth and home, his second wife 
deceasing March 6, 1895. Both women 
are sleeping peacefully in the family 
cemetery at Somerville, New Jersey. 
Judge Wagoner is a member of the First 
Reformed church of Somerville, enrolled 
in 1876. He has performed for several 
years the functions of deacon and elder, 
and takes a deep and abiding interest in 
all church work. 



TTON. CALVIN CORLE, ex-member of 
-L- L the senate of New Jersey, and one 
of the most progressive farmers and sub- 
stantial business men of Somerset county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Charles and Han- 
nah (Hoagland) Corle, and was born at 
Neshanic, Somerset county, Jan. 22, 1830. 
Inheriting the proverbial thrift and busi- 
ness tact of the Holland Dutch, the Corle 
family has maintained its position among 
the foremost families of Somerset county, 
where they have resided for four or more 
generations. 

Benjamin Corle (paternal grandfather) 
began life in Hunterdon county, and with 
the advantage of a common-school edu- 
cation established himself upon a farm at 
Mt. Airy, and followed that as a life-long 
occupation. His agricultural interests 
grew large, and he accumulated a large 
tract of excellent and highly fertile farm 
land. Politically he was a democrat. His 
wife's maiden name was Miss Elizabeth 
Lambert, daughter of John Lambert, and 
four children were born to them, as fol- 
lows : Katherine (Mrs. WilHam Barber) ; 



Charles, Samuel, and Elizabeth (Mrs. 
William K. Oat), all of whom are now 
dead. Benjamin Corle departed this life 
some years prior to his wife, who passed 
away in April, 1847, aged seventy-two 
years. 

Charles Corle (father) was born at Mt. 
Airy, New Jersey, May 2, 1798, and was 
reared on his father's farm, in the mean- 
time receiving his elementary training in 
the common schools of his native dis- 
trict. He chose farming for his occupa- 
tion, and continued to follow this to the 
end of his days. However, he became 
proprietor of other business interests, 
namely, a store and a grist mill at Ne- 
shanic. Mr. Corle was a public-spirited 
citizen and an active political leader in 
the Democratic party in his district, and 
held the office of justice of the peace for 
the remarkable term of twenty years. 
He attended the Dutch Reformed church, 
and married Miss Hannah Hoagland, 
daughter of Derrick Hoagland, of Mt. 
Airy, Hunterdon county. This union 
resulted in the birth of three children, 
two sons and one daughter : Calvin, Ben- 
jamin, deceased, and Ellen E., deceased. 
Charles Corle died Nov. 5, 1855, and 
Hannah, his wife, Nov. 1, 1857. 

Calvin Corle, subject of this sketch, 
received only a common-school education, 
but is naturally endowed with a taste for 
extended observation and a master mind 
for details, so that he is well informed 
and able to grasp the problems of the day 
in an intelligent and comprehensive man- 
ner. He first began business as a farmer 
near Neshanic, Somerset county. New 
Jersey, and has to-day one of the finest 
tracts of cultivated land in the state. 
Mr. Corle has demonstrated the fact that 
he possesses a large amount of business 
ability, and has filled many positions of 



516 



Biographical Sketches. 



trust and responsibility during his life- 
time. He has paid considerable attention 
to settling up of estates, in which he has 
proved himself entirely capable and satis- 
factory. He was for fourteen years presi- 
dent of the Somerset County Bank, of 
Somerville, from 1879 to 1893. Mr. 
Corle has had an active and honorable 
career in the political affairs of his county 
and state. His ability as an organ- 
izer, his tireless energy, and comprehen- 
sion of the needs of timeh^ and wise 
legislation led to his selection by the 
Democratic party as a member of the 
state senate of New Jersey in 1870-72, 
during which time he did his utmost to 
further the welfare of both his constitu- 
ents and the commonwealth. From his 
youth up he attended the Dutch Re- 
formed church at Neshanic, Somerset 
county, New Jei'sey. 

On Oct. 20, 1852, Calvin Corle mar- 
ried Miss Hannah Van Camp, daughter 
of Gilbert Van Camp, of Somerset county. 
This estimable lady died March 21, 1869. 
Mr. Corle has since re-married, his second 
wife being Miss Anna Han kins, daughter 
of James Hankins, of Allentown, New 
Jersey. Mr. Cole is a man of unassail- 
able integrity and probity, and has al- 
Avays made many friends in his business 
transactions. And throughout a large 
circle of acquaintances and friends he is 
held up as an example of honest and true 
manhood. 



/CAROLINE HEMPSTEAD MARSH, a 
^^ physician and surgeon of New 
Brunswick, is the daughter of Riverius 
and Julia Douglas Hempstead Marsh, and 
was born in Litchfield, Conn., July 27, 
1866. 

Dr. Marsh comes from two illustrious 
New England families. Her mother is 



a lineal descendant of Sir Robert 
Hempstead (legal adviser of John Wiu- 
throp), to whom was given the grant 
of land where New London, Conn., now 
stands, and the old Hempstead home- 
stead, which was first built in 1640 by 
Sir Robert, and afterwards rebuilt by his 
son, Joshua, in 1678, is one of the old 
landmarks still remaining in New Lon- 
don, and very much honored by the des- 
cendants of the Hempstead family, and 
residents of the town. 

On the paternal side she is a descend- 
ant of John Marsh, of Hartford, Conn., 
who came to this country in the " Plain 
John," in 16-35, and mai'ried Anne, daugh- 
ter of Governor John Webster, settling 
in Hartford, 1636. 

Riverius Marsh, the father of Miss 
Marsh, was the son of a farmer, Chauncey 
Marsh. His early education was obtained 
in the district schools of his native town, 
supplemented by a term at a boarding- 
school. He started in business in Litch- 
field, Conn., later receiving the appoint- 
ment of postmaster, which office he held 
until two years after his marriage with 
Julia Hempstead, of Litchfield, when he 
accepted a position with the uncle of his 
wife, Richard Douglas, in his large whole- 
sale lamp and glass house in New York 
city. Later he became a member of the 
Ives Patent Lamp Co., New York city, 
which position he held until the failure 
of the firm in 1876. In October, 1879, 
he moved with his family to New Bruns- 
wick, for the purpose of establishing the 
Bronze works. Later he obtained a more 
lucrative position with the American En- 
caustic Tiling Co., and is now traveling 
salesman for Gleason & Co., New York. 
Mr. Marsh is quite an inventor, and has 
a number of inventions in the market, 
among which is a patent frame for tiles, 



Biographical Sketches. 



517 



several styles of faucets for oil cans and 
tops for chimneys and globes. The 
Marsh Manufacturing Co., of New Bruns- 
wick, make several of Mr. Marsh's patents, 
and nothing else. 

Caroline Hempstead Marsh attended 
the New Brunswick high school, and 
afterwards studied under private tutors 
for three years. In the fall of 1886, she 
entered the Woman's Medical College of 
Pennsylvania, at Philadelphia, graduating 
in 1890. She spent the following year 
in the Philadelphia Polyclinic and Lying- 
in-Charity Hospitals. In the fall of 1891, 
she passed a very successful examination 
before the State Medical Examining 
Board of New Jersey, and opened her 
office soon after at 363 George street. 
New Brunswick. The following winter 
she took another hospital course in the 
posi^graduate, of New York city. 

In the spring of 1894 she went to 
Colorado, remaining until the fall of 
1895, when she returned to New Bruns- 
wick and resumed her practice. While 
in Pueblo, Col., Dr. Marsh was appointed 
obstetrician to the Pueblo Hospital, and 
also made one of the board of directors. 

In New Brunswick she was physician 
in charge of the Children's Home for six 
months. 

She is a member of the New Jersey 
State Microscopical Society, and the 
Daughters of the Eastern Star, which is 
an order of the freemasons, to which 
organization her father belongs. 

In addition to her school and college 
education, Dr. Marsh has had a thorough 
course in vocal and instrumental music, 
as well as in art. Next to her profes- 
sional work she is interested in art. 

Dr. Marsh is thoroughly practical and 
industrious in all of woman's employ- 
ments. She does not agree that higher 



education should interfere with woman's 
interest in domestic and household duties, 
and she is familiar with and takes pride 
in all of the same. 



TTARVEY B. GROVE, a prominent re- 
-*— '- tired citizen of New Brunswick, 
and the late popular head of the general 
grocery and meat market at 274 Suydam 
street, is a son of Charles and Elizabeth 
(Hughes) Grove, of Dayton, New Jersey, 
and was born, Oct. 13, 1851, at that 
place. Charles Grove was born at Day- 
ton, Middlesex county, New Jersey, in 
1829, and lived in that town all his life, 
dying in 1889. He received the advan- 
tage of an education in the common 
schools of that period, adopted the life 
of a farmer, and devoted himself actively 
to the cultivation and management of 
the farm upon which he resided for so 
many years. He was a communicant of 
the Presbyterian church at Dayton, and 
an active church member. In politics 
he was an affiliant of the Republican 
party, but not an active partisan. He 
married early in life Miss Elizabeth 
Hughes, and they had the following chil- 
dren : Mary Louise, married to Isaac B. 
Rowland ; Charles Calvin ; Harvey B. ; 
and N. Edgar. 

Harvey B. Grove spent his early life 
upon his father's farm at Dayton, receiv- 
ing his education in the common schools, 
until he reached the age of sixteen, when 
he attended the Brainerd Institute at 
Cranberry for one year, and next the 
Peddie Institute at Hightstown, New 
Jersey, for one year and six months. 
After abandoning school he returned 
home and assisted his father on the farm 
until he had attained his majority, when 
he went to New York city and engaged 



518 



Biographical Sketches. 



in the express business, remaining there 
three years. After this he came to Mon- 
mouth Junction, New Jersey, where he 
opened a general mercantile business, 
which he continued for the next four 
3'ears. Disposing of this, he engaged, at 
Chester, Pa., in the grocery business for 
the next three j'ears, when he sold out his 
interest and went to Reading, Pa., where 
he entered into the wholesale trade with 
two partners, under the firm name of 
Kurtz, Grove & Mayer, and continued 
for the ensuing four years. Disposing of 
his interest in this firm, he returned to 
Chester, Pa., and opened a wholesale 
grocery establishment in that city, and 
continued the same for three yeai's and 
a half He then went to New Bruns- 
wick, where he entered into the whole- 
sale grocery business with the Runyon 
Brothers, with whom he remained until 
1894, when he sold his interest. Subse- 
quently he became engaged in the manu- 
facture of flavoring extracts at New York 
city, in which he continued for one year; 
then sold out and returned to New Bruns- 
wick once more, where he opened the 
grocery and provision store at No. 274 
Suydam street. This he carried on until 
the spring of 1896, when he transferred 
the stock and the business to his two 
sons, Charles Andrew and Harvey Ray- 
mond, who now conduct the establish- 
ment under the firm name of Grove 
Brothers. The frequent business changes 
of Mr. Grove were caused by the pre- 
carious health which attended his later 
years, compelling him to seek rest at dif- 
ferent times in retirement. Recupera- 
tion following each time to a certain ex- 
tent, his energetic, impatient tempera- 
ment would not permit him to remain 
long inactive, and hence he would return 
again to business, only to find himself 



after a time once more a sufferer in bodily 
health. These experiences at length 
convinced him of the absolute necessity 
of freedom from all pressing and depres- 
sing cares of business, and led him to 
place these upon the shoulders of younger 
and more robust men, his active and en- 
terprising sons. 

Mr. Grove married Miss S. Libbie Row- 
land, daughter of Andrew Rowland, of 
Dayton, New Jersey, Jan. 25, 1873, and 
has had the following children : Charles 
Andrew ; Harvey Raymond ; Addie May, 
who died in infancy ; and Clarence. He 
is a member of the Livingston Baptist 
church of New" Brunswick, New Jersey, 
and a liberal supporter of the various 
divisions of church work. He is a repub- 
lican, but has never taken an active part 
in politics. He never sought or held office, 
except when a resident of Chester, Pa., 
when he served a term as an alderman. 
He is a member of the Royal Arcanum, 
and the Independent Order of American 
Mechanics, of New Brunswick, in both 
of which organizations he is greatly es- 
teemed and highly respected. 



WILLITT DENIKE, dealer in agri- 
cultural implements at Wood- 
bridge, New Jersey, is a son of Willitt 
and Annie B. (Melick) Deuike, and was 
born in Woodbridge, Oct. 30, 1874. The 
ancestry from the paternal side is of 
Dutch extraction, being a direct descen- 
dant of Coerties Denike, while upon the 
maternal side it emanates from the Eng- 
lish ; descent being claimed from the 
respective houses of Sir General Car- 
teret and Lord Berckley, two of the most 
noted families of England. Willitt 
Denike (grandfather) was a native of 
New York city. He married Miss Emma 



Biographical Sketches. 



519 



L. Gwyer, daughter of Clias. H. Gwyer, 
of Birmingham, England, in 1841, and 
they had born to them tlie following 
children : Emma, WilHtt H., Chas. R., 
"Willitt, Jr., Van Alstyne, Ellen, Mar- 
garet, Frederick, and Annie. 

Willitt Denike (father) was born at 
Peekskill, N. Y., Nov. 30, 1848, and re- 
ceived his education first in the common 
schools of his native place, and then at 
Rutgers College, from which he graduated 
with honors in the class of 1872. He 
then entered upon the study of law in 
the office of Alfred Ely, Esq., of New 
York, and was admitted to the bar in 
1872. He soon attained prominence in 
his profession, and in 1873 was appointed 
assistant district attorney for the south- 
ern district of New York. This position 
he filled with great credit to himself for 
one year, when death removed him in 
1874, in the twenty-sixth year of his age. 
He was a strong republican, and took a 
very active part in politics, being among 
the number of eloquent speakers that 
stumped the state of New York for Gen- 
eral Grant. He was a consistent mem- 
ber of the Episcopal church at Rahway, 
New Jersey, through his lifetime, and 
was ever actively interested in all church 
affairs. He was a vestryman of said 
church, and much esteemed for his liber- 
ality and kindness of heart by all who 
intimately knew him. He was married 
in 1873 to Miss Annie B. Melick, daugh- 
ter of J. Mattison Melick, Esq., of Wood- 
bridge, New Jersey, and to them was 
born one child — Willitt. 

Willitt Denike attended the private 
schools of Woodbridge, and of Dr. Pin- 
grey's, of Elizabeth, New Jersey, and 
subsequently went to the Davis Business 
College at Toledo, 0. Later, he spent 
one year at the State Agricultural Col- 



lege at Lake City, Fla. After leaving 
school, he entered a law office in Wood- 
bridge, but in a short time abandoned the 
idea of entering the profession of his 
father. He then engaged as a salesman 
for about three months, after which he 
resolved to start in business for himself 
On March 30, 1896, he opened out in 
Woodbridge with a full line of agri- 
cultural implements. He is devoting 
strict attention to every detail of his 
business, and has already established a 
fair trade. He is an active young repub- 
lican in politics, and is an attendant of 
the Episcopal church. He is a single 
man, with good, steady habits, of courtly 
and gentle deportment, and in spirit, 
active and energetic. 



rpHEODORE R. D. LESTER, a well- 
-L known wall-paper hand printer of 
New Brunswick, and an influential and 
respected citizen of that city, is a son of 
William and Sarah Moffet Lester, and 
was born March 5, 1833, at Millstone, 
Somerset county. New Jersey. 

His father, William Lester, was a pros- 
perous tailor and well-known citizen of 
New Brunswick for a number of years. 
He was a leading member of the Presby- 
terian church thei'e, and a prominent 
figure in local politics on the whig side. 
His wife was Miss Sarah Moffet, of Mar- 
tinville. New Jersey, and they had nine 
children : four of whom are deceased, 
Mrs. Louise Letts, Mrs. Harriet La Forge, 
Mrs. Charolotte Kirk and Mrs. Emma 
French. The surviving members are 
Mrs. Jane Letts, Mrs. Susan Hollenbeck, 
John H., who was a member of Company 
F., First New Jersey volunteers, wounded 
in the battle of Gaines' Mills, and lost his 
left leg ; William and Theodore. Mr. 



520 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



Lester's father died in 1834, his mother 
in 1847. 

Theodore R. D. Lester enjoyed the 
benefits of a good common-school educa- 
tion at New Brunswick. Upon the com- 
pletion of his studies he entered the 
employ of Martin A. Howell, at New 
Brunswick, and spent five years with 
him learning the printer's trade. 

His wife was Miss Annie Boens, of 
New Brunswick, and they had ten chil- 
dren : George D., Sarah M., John H., 
Annie E., Emma A., Theodore R., Mary 
L., William A., Agnes E., deceased, and 
Walter E. 

In 189:2 he retired from business, and 
has since resided at New Brunswick, 
where he has a pleasant home and an 
interesting family. 

He is a democrat in politics, but inde- 
pendent in his suffrages, casting his ballot 
for the best interest of the county. He 
is an active attendant of the First Meth- 
odist Episcopal church of New Bruns- 
wick, is an exemplary and consistent 
christian, and a liberal and cheerful sup- 
porter of that organization. 

Mr. Lester was one of the charter 
members of Engine Company, No. 6, of 
the New Brunswick Fire Department, 
and a member of the Exempt Fireman's 
Association. 

Mr. Lester is a public-spirited, enter- 
prising citizen, and has done much to 
advance the interests of New Brunswick. 
He has always taken especial interest in 
the fire department affairs, and has con- 
tributed very largely to the success of 
that important branch of the munici- 
pality. He possesses wide popularit}', is 
well known and respected, and has util- 
ized the fruits of a long and successful 
business career in aiding the progress of 
his adopted city. 



J. 



N. HARRIS, who since 1884 has been 
one of New Brunswick's dentists, 
and one of her citizens, was born at Hud- 
son, Mass., on June 15, 1844, and is a 
son of Benjamin M. and Lucy Brown 
Harris. He descended from good old 
American ancestry, and came from a 
family noted for its loyalty to American 
institutions. His paternal grandsire was 
the Rev. Benjamin Harris, a Baptist 
preacher. This good man had but one 
son, the father of the subject of this 
sketch. 

Benjamin M. Harris (father) was given 
a good common-school education. Then 
he entered a medical college in Boston, 
from which he graduated with honor. 
He located in Boston, where he practiced 
for some time. In later years he gave al- 
most his whole attention to dentistry, 
and moved to Maine, where he enjoyed 
a large practice. He also owned and 
worked a large farm. He married Lucy 
A. Brown in 1835, and the following 
children were born to them : Mary B., 
deceased ; Susan P., who married Seldon 
K. Fuller; John N., the subject; Sarah 
W., wife of John Fry ; Charles S., de- 
ceased; William J., Benjamin F., de- 
ceased, and Lucy B., v/ife of W. Frank 
Brown. He died in Feb., 1892, and his 
wife in 1857. 

J. N. Harris received a common-school 
education. He took a course in the 
Philadelphia Dental College, graduating 
in 1883. His studies wei'c interrupted 
by the civil war, and he took an active 
part in the closing scenes of that bloody 
strife. He entered the service as a vol- 
unteer in the Eleventh Maine Infantry, 
and served eighteen months. His regi- 
ment was attached to the Army of the 
James river, and took part in many ba1> 
ties, notably that of Petersburg and the 



Biographical Sketches. 



521 



capture and surrender of Lee. Return- 
ing to Richmond, Va., he was discharged 
on June 3d, when he returned to Maine, 
where he resumed his studies as an as- 
sistant to his father, and afterward to Dr. 
W. M. Bates, of Salem, Mass. He started 
in to practice for himself in 1872, in 
Waldo county. Me. 

In 1884 Dr. Harris came to New 
Rrunswick, where he has remained ever 
since in active business. He has always 
taken an active interest in the welfare 
and progress of the community. He is 
a member of the board of trade and is 
ever ready to do his share of the work of 
that important adjunct to good govern- 
ment and enterprise. Politically he is a 
firm believer in the principles of prohibi- 
tion, but at general elections he takes 
pride in selecting the best men for his 
vote. 

Dr. Harris is also prominent in the fra- 
ternal world. He is a member of the 
Masonic Order, the Grand Army of the 
Republic, the Sons of Temperance and 
the Ancient Order of United Workmen. 
He is also a member of the Central Dental 
Society. As a member of Livingston 
Avenue Baptist church Dr. Harris is a 
consistant and active christian worker, 
and has for several years been an officer 
of that congregation. Dr. Harris has 
been married twice. His first wife was 
Miss Maria J. Lloyd, who died in 1887. 
Two children, Jennie F. and Harry L., 
were born to this union. On April 3, 
1889, he married Anna M., daughter of 
Thomas Greenwood. 



GEORGE A. WOOLF, postmaster of 
Kingston, New Jersey, under the 
administration of Benjamin Harrison, is 
a son of Jacob S. and Eliza Burd Woolf, 

27 



and was born, Dec, 1849, in that town. 
The paternal grandfather, John Woolf, 
came to New Jersey from the neighbor- 
ing state of Maryland, and carried on 
the trade of a harness-maker at Dean's 
Station. In religion he was of the Bap- 
tist persuasion. He was married to 
Catharine Spurling. 

Jacob S. Woolf (father) is a shoemaker, 
and still carries on that trade at Kings- 
ton. His opportunities for acquiring an 
education were extremely limited, but 
he was more than compensated for this 
lack of early training by nature, which 
gave him a thirst for reading and study. 
He is a presbyterian in religious belief, 
and was trustee of the chui'ch of that 
denomination in Kingston during many 
years. Politically he is a republican. 
He belonged to the Home Guards of 
Kingston for a number of years, and was 
one of the most active members of that 
organization. He and his wife are still 
living; he being seventy-six years of 
age and she in her eighty-second year. 
They are the parents of six children : 
Catharine, married to William Hart, of 
Monmouth Junction ; Jerry D., living in 
Princeton, New Jersey ; Eurydice, wife 
of Frederick Farr, of Philadelphia ; George 
A., Charles B., and Maiy, now Mrs. Ed- 
ward Stout, of Princeton. 

George A. Woolf received his educa- 
tion in the public schools of Kingston ; 
after quitting school he, for a short time, 
worked on a farm. At the age of fifteen 
years he engaged himself to learn the 
trade of a shoemaker with his father. 
He has worked at that trade ever 
since with occasional variations in other 
pui'suits. He is at present a very suc- 
cessful meat dealer in his native town. 
He is a member and one of the trustees 
of the Presbyterian church of Kingston. 



522 



Biographical Sketches. 



Politicals, lie is an exceedingly active 
member of the Rejjublican pai'ty and is 
constantly working for its success. His 
popularity and part}' prominence in 
Kingston require no further proof than 
to here repeat the record of the fact that 
he served as the postmaster of that town 
during the eivtire administration of Ben- 
jamin Harrison. He has been one of the 
overseers of the poor at Kingston and 
served ten consecutive years as justice 
of the peace in that town. Mr. Woolf 
was married in 1872 to Margaret Farr, a 
daughter of Reuben Farr, who resides in 
Princeton. They are the parents of four 
children : William, Eliza, Charles and 
Francis. 



"DALPH W. BOOTH, the competent 
-*-*' manager of the New Jersey Lamp 
and Bronze Works, of New Brunswick, 
Middlesex county, New Jersey, is a son 
of Ralph W. and Julia Dailey Booth, 
and was born Feb. 26, 1848, at Cincin- 
nati, 0. The emigrant ancestor of this 
family left England about the jear 1750, 
and settled at New Britain, Conn. 

George Booth, the paternal grandfather, 
was a native of New Britain, Conn , where 
he was born, received a common-school 
education, became and remained a farmer 
all his life, and deceased in 1851. He 
and his wife, Olive Wilcox, whom he 
mari-ied in 1798, were devout members 
of the Presbyterian church, and exceed- 
ingly active in christian work and enter- 
prise. Grandmother Booth deceased in 
1849, after rearing two sons and one 
daughter : Ralph W., father of our sub- 
ject, Horace L., and Leucetta B. Phelps. 
Ralph W. Booth, the father of the sub- 
ject of this sketch, was born in 1811, at 
New Britain, Conn., and, after acquiring 
a common English education, engaged at 



quite an early age in the hardware business 
at New York and Cincinnati, 0., which 
he conducted successfully despite the 
mutations of half a century, from 1829 
to 1879, and, from the condition of a 
pioneer in that trade at Cincinnati, 0., he 
assumed eventually the role of a veteran. 
By his contemporaries he was regarded 
as a shi'ewd, sagacious business man, as 
well as a man of unusual general ability. 
He served as president of the Consoli- 
dated Fruit Jar Co. for ten years, and 
was largely interested in the American 
Hoe Co. at Winsted, Conn. In political 
matters he was a whig, during the exist- 
ence of that part}', and upon its dissolu- 
tion he joined the ranks of the democ- 
racy. In religion his belief in the 
divinity only of God, the Father, caused 
him to seek fellowship in the Unitarian 
church, of which he became a zealous 
member. He was married in 1843 to 
Julia Dailey, and deceased in 1884. 
They were the parents of eight children : 
Lucy D., Ralph W., our subject ; Julia, 
married to Robert Hay, of New York 
city ; Dr. J. Arthur, Lizzie A., Thomas. 
Charlton, Olive and Louise, who married 
George Fairchild, of New York city. 

Ralph W. Booth attended Anthon's 
private school of New York tor several 
years, and subsequently took a course of 
three years at Columbia College mining 
school. After completing his education 
he engaged in the hardware business at 
New York city for several years ; after 
which he changed the scene of his oper- 
ations, in the same line, to Cincinnati, 0., 
where he remained until 1880. In that 
year he returned to the east and located 
at New Brunswick, New Jersey. He 
was there but a short while when he was 
asked to take charge of the New Jersey 
Lamp and Bronze Works, one of the 



Biographical Sketches. 



623 



leading industrial establishments of the 
town. He accepted the proflfered trust, 
and for sixteen years he has remained in 
the successful management of the affairs 
of that company. His qualities of head 
and heart, a happy combination of good 
business ability and sound judgment, 
with those sterling traits of honesty and 
loyal devotion to the company's inter- 
ests, have made him an invaluable con- 
tributor to its prosperity; and that he is 
successful in concealing his true force of 
character behind a modest and unassum- 
ing demeanor in no wise detracts from 
his merit. Mr. Booth is a democrat in 
political faith ; in fraternity he is a mem- 
ber of New Brunswick Lodge, No. 324, 
B. P. 0. Elks, of New Brunswick, and 
in spiritual matters he worships at the 
Christ's Episcopal church, in that city. 
He was married Nov. 26, 1876, to Mary 
J. Conklin, a daughter of Alfred Conklin, 
of New York city. Their marriage has 
been blessed with one son, Ralph W., Jr., 
born in New York city, 1878. 



OAMUEL C. COEIELL, proprietor of 
^ one of the most extensive retail and 
wholesale boot and shoe houses in New 
Brunswick, and a prominent business 
man of that city, is a son of Abner and 
Margaret Giles Coriell, and was born 
Sept. 18, 1844, near New Market, Fiscal^ 
away township, Middlesex county. He 
received a good common-school education 
at New Market. When eighteen years 
old he removed to New Brunswick, and 
worked in the grocery store of Peter 
Coriell for eight years. In 1871 he en- 
tered the wholesale shoe business at New 
York city, remaining there until 1884, 
when he returned to New Brunswick, 
and established his present wholesale and 



retail shoe business. He has an elegantly 
furnished and well-equipped store on 
George street, caters to the best class of 
trade, and has been highly successful. 

Mr. Coriell is a republican in politics, 
but has never taken an active part in 
public affairs. He is a member of the 
First Baptist church of New Brunswick ; 
is church clerk, and also trustee for sev- 
eral years, and was the first president of 
the Christian Endeavor Society of the 
church. He is a progressive member of 
the New Brunswick Board of Trade, of 
the Merchants' Protective Association, 
the Royal Arcanum, and has been share- 
holder and director in several building 
and loan associations. In 1875 he was 
married to Miss Mary E. Vail, daughter 
of Daniel M. Vail, president of the New 
Brunswick Savings Bank of New Bruns- 
wick, and they have two sons : William 
A. and Charles V. 

Mr. Coriell is regarded as one of New 
Brunswick's most progressive and influ- 
ential business men. He is possessed of 
the energy and tact that bring success, is 
cultivated in his tastes, indefatigable in 
church work, and equable in his business 
relations. 

Mr. Coriell's family is of French de- 
scent, and the original American ancestors 
settled near Lambertville, New Jersey. 
His paternal grandfather, Richard Coriell, 
was a prosperous farmer, an old-line whig 
in politics, and a member of the Presby- 
terian church at Bound Brook. His wife 
was Miss Elizabeth Smalley, by whom he 
had four children : Ira, Andrew, Richard, 
and Abner. 

Abner S. Coriell (father) was born on 
the family homestead, near New Market, 
was a farmer in Piscataway township 
during early life, and subsequently kept 
a thriving general store at New Market. 



524 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



He was a republican in politics, and was 
postmaster at Newmarket for twenty-one 
years, being first appointed b}' President 
Lincoln, and subsequently re-appointed 
by President Harrison. He was elected 
assessor of Piscataway township in 1877, 
and served for eighteen years continu- 
ously. He is a member of the Presby- 
terian church at New Market. He was 
twice married. By his first wife. Miss 
Margaret Giles, he had two children : 
Andrew S. and Samuel G. By his second 
wile, Miss Catherine Blue, he had four 
children : Charles A., George W., Abner 
S. J., and William. Mr. Coriell's father is 
still living, but his mother died in 1848. 



OS. ATKINSON, one of the proprietors 
• of the Daily and Weekly Fredonian, 
a leading New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
paper, was born at Sjoringfield, Mass., 
Sept. 10, 1865. At the age of two years 
he went with his parents to White Plains, 
N. Y., and later removed to Philadel- 
phia. 

When eleven years of age he made his 
home with an uncle, Robert Atkinson, 
manager of the Bloomfield Mills Co., near 
Spotswood, Middlesex county, New Jer 
sey. He entered a school conducted by 
the Rev. Ralph Willis, and finished his 
schooling at the Rutgers College Pre- 
paratory School, of New Brunswick, New 
Jersey. When fourteen 3-ears of age 
Mr. Atkinson entered the employ of the 
Bloomfield Mills Co., and soon mastered 
the details of the drug manufacturing 
business. At the youthful age of eighteen ,' 
years he was entrusted with the responsi- 
ble duties of the assistant superintendent 
of this establishment upon the death of 
his uncle. He remained with the above 
company until Oct. 18, 188-7, when he 
resigned to accept a position as assistant 



superintendent of the Prudential Insur- 
ance Co., of Newark, New Jersey, in 
charge of the New Brunswick district, 
with whom he remained until May 15, 

1888, and thereafter became bookkeeper 
for the National Iron Works, of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey. On Jan. 5, 

1889, Mr. Atkinson accepted the posi- 
tion of cashier with Messrs. Weaver & 
Storry, limited, importers. No. 79 Pine 
street, New York city, and filled said 
position until Oct. 1, 1892, when he be- 
came assistant superintendent of the 
Raritan River Railroad Co. He began 
to develop a taste for newspaper work at 
an early age, and became a regular cor- 
respondent for the New Brunswick Times 
from Old Bridge and Spotswood, Middle- 
sex count}^ New Jersey, for more than a 
year. After coming to New Brunswick 
he did both reportorial and editorial 
work for two of the local papers, adding 
greatly to his exjjerience and knowledge 
in journalism. While at Asbury Park 
in the summer of 1891 Mr. Atkinson cor- 
responded regularly for the New Bruns- 
wick Home News, of New Brunswick, 
New Jei'sey. In 1892 he began to report 
for New York papers, and for some of 
the Philadelphia journals in 1893. Mr. 
Atkinson's proprietary interest in the 
Fredonian dates from Oct. 5, 1895, when, 
in company with E. P. Massonneau, a 
New York newspaper man, the paper 
was purchased by them on equal terms 
of ownership. This progressive journal 
is one of the leading newspapers of east- 
ern New Jersey, and its infiuence and 
popularity have been greatly enhanced 
under the management of its new own- 
ers. The Weekly Fredonian Avas founded 
in 1811, and the Daily in the early 
fifties. When the paper was purchased 
by Messrs. Atkinson and Massonneau it 




!rrj 



Biographical Sketches. 



527 



had lost much of its influence, and was 
not well supported by the reading public. 
Since they have had it the paper has 
been enlarged to eight pages, and its cir- 
culation has more than trebled, while it 
is now the recognized leading republican 
paper in the county. In political faith 
Mr. Atkinson is a republican and an en- 
ergetic party worker in Raritan town- 
ship, where he resides Mr. Atkinson is 
a member of the republican county ex- 
ecutive committee of Middlesex county. 
In December, 1895, he accepted a posi- 
tion as private secretary to Congressman 
Benjamin F. Howell, of the Third Con- 
gressional district of New Jersey, and 
served in that capacity during the first 
term of the Fifty-fourth Congress. While 
in Washington Mr. Atkinson continued 
his connection with the Fredonian, and 
supplied the paper with daily gossip from 
the capital. He is an attendant of the 
Baptist church, and in April, 1891, was 
elected clerk of the Livingston Avenue 
Baptist church, and served for four years. 
In fraternal circles Mr. Atkinson is one 
of the best-known men in the state, and 
in this relation is connected with the fol- 
lowing orders : Palestine Lodge, F. and 
A. M., of New Brunswick; Goodwill 
Council, Jr. 0. U. A. M., of New Bruns- 
wick ; Adelphic Council, Royal Arca- 
num, of New Brunswick, and Osage 
Tribe, Improved Order of Red Men, of 
Spotswood, New Jersey. In connection 
with other important services in fra- 
ternal affairs Mr. Atkinson was secretary 
to National Councilor H. A. Kibbe, Jr. 
0. U. A. M., in the years 1894-95. He 
is also a member of Company D, Third 
regiment, National Guards of New Jer- 
sey. On Sept. 10, 1889, Mr. Atkinson 
was united in marriage with Miss Mary J. 
Morris, of New Brunswick, New Jersey. 



TAMES FRANKLIN ACKERMAN, M.D., 
^ a leading physician of Asbury Park, 
is a son of Joseph and Susan Reed Ack- 
erman, and was born Dec. 29, 1864, at 
Nashua, N. H. The name is of English 
origin, and the family was famous in New 
England throughout the Colonial and 
Revolutionary periods, some members of 
it participating in the famous Boston 
tea-party in 1774. 

Dr. Ackerman received his early edu- 
cation at Francestown Academy, N. H., 
and subsequently attended school at Shel- 
burne Falls, Mass., after which he took 
the classical course at Amherst College. 
He entered upon the study of medicine 
at the New York Homoeopathic Medical 
College, New York city, in 1887, and 
graduated in the class of 1890. After a 
short course of post-graduate work in the 
Flower Hospital at New York city, he 
removed to Asbury Park in the winter 
of 1890, and entered upon the practice 
of his profession. In 1892 he built his 
present handsome residence and office at 
No. 905 Grand avenue, smce which time 
he has built up a large and lucrative 
practice. He is a member of the New 
Jersey State Medical Society, of the New 
York Materia Medica Society, the Hahne- 
mann Club and Monmouth Club, and of 
the American Institute of Homoeopathy. 
In politics he is a republican, but is too 
deeply engrossed in his professional work 
to devote active attention to public 
aflfairs. He is , a prominent member of 
Trinity Protestant Episcopal church, and 
takes a deep interest in Sunday-school 
work. He is a member of Asbury 
Lodge, No. 142, F. and A. M., and is 
president of the local Republic Savings, 
Building and Loan Association. In 
1892 he was married to Adeline A. Had- 
den, who died in the same year. In 



528 



Biographical Sketches. 



1896 he was married to Miss Anna Rouse, 
daughter of ^fartin Rouse, of Jersey 
City. Dr. Ackerman has had a remark- 
ably successful career, and is now con- 
sidered one of the leading practitioners 
of Monmouth county. He is thoroughly 
versed in all the elements of his profes- 
sion, and keeps himself constantly in 
touch with every advance in the theory 
and practice of medicine. He has culti- 
vated literary tastes, has acquired a large 
and well-selected library, and is univer- 
sally esteemed for his high intellectual as 
well as fine social qualities. 



EEV. WILLIAM MANSFIELD TRUM- 
BOWER, pastor of the Methodist 
Episcopal church at Perth Amboy, Mid- 
dlesex county. New Jersey, and an orator 
of more than local distinction, is a son of 
Henry and Sophia (Lott) Trumbower, 
and was born. May 12, 1855, at Mays 
Landing, this state. He is of Dutch ex- 
traction, and an offshoot from an ances- 
tral tree planted hundreds of years ago 
in Holland. At an early age he attended 
the public schools of the towns to which 
his father was appointed as minister of 
the gospel, according to the polity of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, and was 
known as an apt and a more than ordina- 
rily bright pupil. He then took a prepar- 
atory course of training at Pennington 
Seminary, New Jersey, in 1872, and 
from there went to the Centennary Col- 
legiate Institute at Hackettstown, New 
Jersey, graduating in the fii'st class, 
where he prepared for Syracuse Univer- 
sity, which he entered in 1877, where 
he pursued a classical course. He was 
ordained to the ministry in 1883, and 
joined the Newark conference, with 
which he is still connected. His itiner- 



acy as a pastor and his term of service in 
the several churches which he has had 
charge of, ai'e as follows : Phillipsburg, 
New Jersey, two years ; Denville, Morris 
county, New Jersey, three years ; Som- 
erville, New Jersey, three years ; Ruth- 
erford, New Jersey, one year ; Dover, 
New Jersey, two years. From the latter 
place he came to Perth Amboy in the 
spring-time of 1896, where he assumed 
charge of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
one of the largest and most influential in 
the cit}^ His administrations in these 
different churches have been greatly 
blessed, and his eloquent preaching, under 
the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, has 
wrought increased spirituality among bis 
parishioners, and has brought a higher 
degree of prosperity to their churches. 
He has already endeared himself to the 
membei's and congregation of his charge 
in Perth Amboy, and his ministerial 
career there is destined, beyond a doubt, 
to be crowned with success. He is fluent 
and pleasing in deliver}", and a born 
orator. His reputation has traveled be- 
yond the scenes of his pastorates, and he 
is in frequent demand as a lecturer and 
orator, especially on Memorial and other 
national holidays. Rev. Trumbower is 
a member of the Sons of Temperance 
and also a member of Montana Lodge, 
No. 23, Knights of Pythias, of Phillips- 
burg, New Jersey ; at college he received 
an election to Psi Upsilon fraternity. 
He was joined in the bonds of matrimony, 
May 12, 1885, with Armina Creveling, a 
daughter of P. G. Creveling, M. D. To 
their union have been born three chil- 
dren : William C, Helen S., and Don- 
ald M. 

The paternal grandfather, Jacob Trum- 
bower, was born in 1780. After receiv- 
ing a common-school education he be- 



Biographical Sketches. 



529 



came a farmer, and followed that occupa- 
tion in Bucks county, Pa., during his 
entire life. He was a member of the 
Evangelical Lutheran church, and died 
in 1828. His wife was Sarah Maria 
Hinkle, who died at seventy-five years of 
age. 

Rev. Henrj^ Trumbower (father) was 
born, in 1822, at Quakertown, Bucks 
county. Pa. His early education was de- 
rived from the common schools. He 
subsequently entered a Lutheran sem- 
inary with the view to preparation for 
the ministry in the church of that denom- 
ination. He changed his religious opin- 
ions before completing his course in that 
institution, and thenceforth devoted his 
mind to the doctrines taught by the 
church of which Wesley was founder. 
He joined the New Jersey conference of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1844, 
and was ordained a deacon and elder by 
Bishop Janes. Several church edifices 
are now standing as monuments of his 
industry and skill, and in every charge 
where he labored souls may be found 
claiming him as their spiritual father. 
He died at Glen Gardner, Hunterdon 
county. New Jersey, Jan. 2, 1870. His 
wife, Sophia Trumbower {nee Lott) is still 
living. There were five children : Annie 
R., married to Amos McLean, of Hack- 
ettstown. New Jersey; Frederick B., 
deceased; Mary E., now Mrs. John H. 
Fergurson, and residing in Brooklyn, N. 
Y.; Ella C, deceased; and Rev. Wil- 
liam M. 



TAMES T. KEENAHAN, ESQ., a prac- 
^ ticing young lawyer at South Am- 
boy, Middlesex county, New Jersey, is a 
son of Patrick and Mary Mullvane Kee- 
nahan, and was born July 7, 1860, in 
New York city. John Keenahan, the 



paternal great-grandfather, was born at 
Clara, Kings county, Leinster province, 
Ireland, in 1750, and occupied for a great 
many years the position under the Brit- 
ish Crown of territorial commissioner of 
Kings county, Ireland. His wife, Jane 
Murphy, who he mari'ied in 1775, bore 
him two children, James and Margaret, 
and died in 1790. He deceased in 1792. 

James Keenahan (grandfather) was 
also a native of Kings county, where he 
was born March 9, 1780. He was an 
extensive contractor and builder in his 
day, and ei'ected many costly public 
buildings in various parts of Europe. For 
a decade he was engaged also in the 
manufacture of carriages at Dublin, and 
eventually retired to Clara to enjoy the 
fruits of his labor. In 1835 he deceased. 
His union in 1820 to Margaret Stone, 
who survived him until 1872, resulted in 
the birth of two children, Patrick and 
William. 

Patrick Keenahan (father) was born 
March 14, 1824, in Kings county, Ire- 
land. After receiving a sound English 
education he took up his father's busi- 
ness upon the latter' s retirement, which 
he conducted successfully for fourteen 
years. In 1846 he left the home of his 
birth, crossed the Atlantic, settled in New 
York city, and resumed business as an 
extensive builder and contractor. While 
thus engaged he constructed many hand- 
some church edifices and other public and 
private buildings ; among them may be 
mentioned : St. Mary's church, Brooklyn, 
N. Y.; St. Bridget's church. New York 
city ; the frame-work of the noted Have- 
meyer building in Brooklyn. He subse- 
quently purchased a farm on Long Island, 
where he resided a short time, and then 
removed to Huntingdon, where he resided 
one year, at the expiration of which time 



530 



Biographical Sketches. 



he returned to Brooklyn and resumed his 
building operations. These he carried 
on until 1868, when he removed to Madi- 
son township, Middlesex county, New 
Jersey, and engaged in agricultural pur- 
suits on a farm he had purchased. He 
died in 1891 after a successful career. In 
jjolitics he was a democrat, and in religion 
a member of the Roman Catholic clmrch. 
He was also a member of St. Vincent's 
Aid Association, of Brooklyn, and the 
Sixty-ninth regiment of the New York 
State National Guards. His wife died in 
1890. Their children were four in num- 
ber : Margaret and William, both de- 
ceased ; Father John Keenahan, assist- 
ant rector of St. Michael's church, at New- 
ark, and James T. 

James T. Keenahan, upon arriving at 
the eligible age, was sent to the public 
schools in New York city. At eight 
years of age he removed with his parents 
to Madison township, Middlesex county. 
New Jersey, and there attended the pub- 
lic schools until his thirteenth year. His 
subsequent five years were passed at 
Glenwood Institute, from which he -was 
graduated in 1878. Two years of college 
life at St. Francis Xavier's (Jollege, New 
York city, completed his classical educa- 
tion. This was followed by a course of 
two years in Columbia College, same city, 
where he was grounded in the principles 
of law. After leaving Columbia College 
he was engaged in the profession of school 
teaching for two years at South Amboy. 
In 1886 he entered the office of Aaron E. 
Johnson, Esq., a well-known legal practi- 
tioner at Freehold, New Jersej^ under 
whom he was engaged in reading law for 
four years. On Feb. 20, 1890, he was 
admitted to the bar, and entered upon ac- 
tive practice with offices at South Am- 
boy. He was appointed master in chan- 



cery, April 8, 1890 ; commissioned a 
notary public by Governor Abbett on 
March 5, 1890, and was appointed for- 
eign commissioner of deeds for the state 
of New Jersey in 1890. His practice is 
a successful one, and he enjoys a large 
and influential clientage. To his real- 
estate business he gives special attention. 
He is a shrewd, keen and versatile law- 
yer, and of genial and accommodating 
disposition. In I'eligious matters Mr. 
Keenahan is a Roman Catholic and a 
member of the Catholic Benevolent Le- 
gion. In party affairs he is a democrat, 
an active worker, a pleasing political 
speaker, resourceful in argument and of 
strong indiction. During the campaigns 
of the last seven years he has mounted 
the stump and the rostrum, ably ex- 
pounding the doctrine and principles of 
sound democracy. 



TnSEK WHITE, collector of Shrews- 
-*— ^ bury township. Red Bank, Mon- 
mouth count}'. New Jersey, is a son of 
Henry and Sarah Ann (Borden) White, 
and was born April 1, 1825, near that 
town. 

Henry White (father) was born near 
Red Bank. He received his education 
in the public schools of that place, and he 
subsequently became a clerk in a store at 
New York. After acquiring a good 
knowledge of business he opened a store 
of his own in Elmtown, New Jersey, and 
continued there the greater part of his 
life. Politicallj' he was a whig, and in 
religion he was a quaker. There were 
born to him and his wife, Sarah, two 
children : Esek, the sulycct, and John, 
deceased. He died in 1835. 

Esek White, after receiving a common 
education in the county schools of Mon- 



Biographical Sketches. 



531 



mouth county, took up a trade at the age 
of fifteen years. He learned the busi- 
ness of making lead sash and blinds with 
his uncle, and continued in that employ- 
ment until 1856. In that year his 
friends elected him collector of Shrews- 
bury township, and he has held that re- 
sposible office ever since. He is not en- 
gaged in any other pursuit or business, 
and he devotes his entire time to the 
public service. In politics Mr. White is 
an active and prominent republican. He 
was a member of the Navesink Rifle 
Company, of New Jersey, in which he 
became an excellent marksman. He is 
in affiliation with several secret societies : 
a member of the Lodge of F. and A. M. ; 
the Lodge of I. 0. 0. F. ; and the Lodge 
of K. of P. ; all of Red Bank. 

Mr. White was united in marriage to 
Henrietta Conroe. To this union were 
born nine children : John B. and Mar- 
garetta, both deceased; Henry, Sarah 
Ann, Caroline ; James, Emily and May 
Etta, all three deceased ; and Adaline. 
Mr. White is a highly respected citizen 
of Red Bank, and his services of forty 
years as collector furnish all the testi- 
mony to the fact that he is a capable 
business man, and a public official of 
strict integrity. 



WILLIAM H. POTTER, proprietor of a 
large general store at North Spring 
Lake, Monmouth county, and one of the 
leading citizens of that town, is a son of 
Jonathan and Caroline (Crater) Potter, 
and was born July 3, 1859, at Potters- 
ville, Hunterdon county. New Jersey. 
The Potter family were among the pio- 
neer settlers of Hunterdon county, and 
for generations have been born and flour- 
ished in Tewkesbury township ; Potters- 
ville being named for them. 



Sering Potter, the paternal grandfather, 
was a large land-owner in Hunterdon 
county ; also proprietor of extensive flour 
and feed mills and machine »hops at 
Pottersville. His sou, Jonathan Potter 
(father), has been a merchant and expert 
bookkeeper all his life ; first at Potters- 
ville and subsequently at Asbury Park. 
In 1891 he became manager of the sub- 
ject's store at North Spring Lake, and 
still occupies that position. He is an 
active presbyterian in his religious affilia- 
tions, and was an elder in the First Pres- 
byterian church at Asbury Park for five 
years. In politics he is a staunch demo- 
crat, and has served as township officer 
of Pottersville. His wife was Miss Caro- 
line Crater, of Peapack, Somerset county, 
and they reared a family of four chil- 
dren : Allie C, wife of Rev. D. W. Skel- 
lenger, of Washington, D. C. ; William 
H., Annie E., and M. Ella, wife of W. 
D. Bachelor, of Nutley, New Jersey. 

William H. Potter, subject of this 
sketch, passed his early life at Potters- 
ville, and was educated in the public 
schools there. He subsequently attended 
the Somerville preparatory school from 
1875 to 1877. His first ejitry into mer- 
cantile life was made at the age of eigh- 
teen years, when he became clerk in a 
general store at Pottersville. In the 
spring of 1878 he accepted a position 
with Steinbach Brothers, general mer- 
chants at Asbury Park, and remained 
with them six years, finally becoming 
cashier for the firm, and manager of a 
branch store. In the spring of 1884 Mr. 
Potter removed to North Spring Lake, 
and established his present general store 
on Third avenue. Under his skillful 
management the business developed very 
rapidly. In the summer of 1885 he 
added a prosperous real-estate business 



532 



Biographical Sketches. 



to his other interests, and in 1887 estab- 
lished an insurance agency, with fire in- 
surance as a specialty. In all of these 
various enterprises he has been singularly 
successful. Mr. Potter is a democrat in 
politics, and is a patriotic and enterpris- 
ing citizen. He is a member of the bor- 
ough council, and invariably has the best 
interests of the community at heart. He 
was borough collector for five years, from 
1884 to 1889. He was one of the organ- 
izers of the North Spring Lake water 
works, and is a leading stockholder in 
that corporation. He took an active 
part in the introduction of an improved 
sewerage system into the town in 1893. 
He has also been very influential in the 
advancement of local school interests, 
and has effected many notable improve- 
ments in the town. He has been a trus- 
tee of the Presbyterian church of Spring 
Lake since 1894, and was superintendent 
of the Sundaj'-school at Asbury Park for 
two years, while living there. Mr. Pot- 
ter is possessed with unbounded energy, 
perseverance and determination. His 
increasing labors for the progress of North 
Spring Lake have made him well known, 
and he ranks as one of the leading busi- 
ness men and enterprising citizens of this 
county. 

TTON. A. H. SLOVER, a prominent 
-* — "- grocer of South Amboy, and ex- 
chairman of the ways and means com- 
mittee of the New Jersey legislature, is a 
son of Samuel and Rebecca Hoft' Slover, 
and was born Oct. 13, 1851, at Sayre- 
ville, township of South Amboy, Middle- 
sex county. New Jersey. He attended 
the common schools of Sayreville until 
he arrived at the age of thirteen years, 
when he became a cabin boy on his | 
father's vessel, plying between Sayreville | 



and New York city. He continued a 
maritime occupation for six years, and 
then became a clerk for Ward C. Perrine, 
a grocer in South Amboy, New Jersey, 
with whom he remained ten years. In 
1879 Mr. Slover embarked in the grocery 
trade on his own account at South Am- 
boy. He has continued for seventeen 
years, and enjoys a large and remunera^ 
five business. He has also been engaged 
for the past three years in brick manu- 
facturing at South Amboy, which has 
developed into a very profitable enter- 
prise. He has been no less successful in 
his political career. He was thrice elected 
to the state legislature fi'om the Third 
District, Middlesex county, and served 
three years with distinction to himself 
and in an acceptable manner to his con- 
stituents. He occupied the foremost 
rank in that bod}^, and was a member of 
several of its most important committees, 
such as "municipal corporations," "town 
and township treasurers' accounts," " re- 
formed school for boys," " unfinished 
business," and "ways and means." Of 
some of these committees he was the 
chairman. Mr. Slover is a member of 
the Methodist church. He belongs to 
Good Samaritan Lodge, No. 52, Knights 
of Pythias, of South Ambo}^ and to Joel 
Parker Council, No. 69, Jr. 0. U. A. M. 
He at one time was a member of the 
I. 0. 0. F., but has dimitted from that 
order. 

Mr. Slover was married, Feb. 14, 1874, 
to Margaret Ann McDowell, of South 
Amboy, Middlesex county. New Jersey. 
They have had nine children : Irvin and 
Walter, both of whom are engaged in 
business with their father; Bertha, de- 
ceased ; Lula, residing at home ; Katha- 
rine, deceased : Lillie, Clarence, Maggie 
and Andrew H., all residing at home. 



Biographical Sketches. 



533 



The paternal grandfather, Andrew H. 
Slover, was born near South Amboy, and 
devoted the greater part of his Hfe to 
farming. He ran a steamboat packet 
from South River to New York city for 
several years, and became a prosperous 
man. He was a member of the Metho- 
dist church, and in politics was a demo- 
crat. His death was occasioned by a 
boom knocking him overboard while he 
was making one of his periodical trips on 
his steamer, and he was drowned. His 
widow, who was Ann Slover, of South 
River, New Jersey, survived him until 
1866. There children were Sarah Ann, 
Mary and Samuel. 

Samuel Slover (father) was born at 
South River, New Jersey, and received 
his education in the public schools of that 
town. He became captain of a ship 
carrying freight between Sayreville, 
South River, and New York city. He 
was also a carter in Sayreville, and was 
very successful in both these occupations. 
He acquired large possessions of real 
estate. In politics he became a repub- 
lican in his latter days, and in spiritual 
concerns was an active methodist. His 
death, which occurred in 1892, was the 
result of a fall from his wagon. His 
widow is yet living, and resides at South 
Amboy. Their children were Andrew 
H. and William. 



"pOBERT N. SENTER, vice-principal of 
-*-»' the Freehold public school, and a 
citizen of the progressive town of Free- 
hold, is a splendid example of the possi- 
bilities open to industry, energy, perse- 
verance and ability. Mr. Senter is of 
Scotch descent, a fact which accounts 
to some extent for the vigor and thrift 
which his life story reveals. He is a son 



of Alexander and Abigail (Nelligar) 
Senter, and was born Sept. 18, 1850, in 
New York city. He received his early 
education, partly in the public schools of 
Brooklyn, where he lived during his boy- 
hood, and partly in Monmouth county, 
New Jersey. He then proceeded to bet- 
ter qualify himself for the profession of 
teaching, and accordingly entered the 
State Normal School at Trenton. His 
first school was near Blawenburg, New 
Jersey, where" he remained two years, 
after which one year was spent at North 
Farmingdale. He then took charge of a 
school at West Freehold, and during 
eight years of arduous service there, so 
developed himself that his reputation as 
a man of progressive ideas became wide- 
spread, and in Sept., 1882, he was elected 
vice-principal of the Freehold public 
school. Mr. Senter is a republican in 
politics, takes an active interest in the 
affairs of the party, and has been ap- 
pointed to the position of assessor of 
Freehold annually for five years. He is 
a man who stands high in public estima- 
tion. He is a member of the Freehold 
Baptist church, the county board of ex- 
aminers, Tennent Lodge, No. 69, Knights 
of Pythias ; Monmouth Council, No. 25, 
Junior Order of American Mechanics ; 
Freehold Lodge, No. 41, Ancient Order 
United Workmen ; and the Freehold 
Camp, No. 41, Grand Fraternity. 



A BRAHAM FEIHLE, an active and 
-^-^ prominent freeholder of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Stephen and Catherine Feihle, and was 
born in Rottenacker-on-the-Ehingen, 
Wurtemburg, Germany, April 23, 1856. 
His grandfather, Andrew. Feihle, was 
born and died there. His father, Stephen 



634 



Biographical Sketches. 



Feihle, was born there also, and died 
in 1861. He was a weaver bj' trade 
and followed that occupation all his life. 

Abraham Feihle was educated in the 
public schools of his native town, and 
when 3'et a mere youth, being an orphan 
and without brother or sister, determined 
to go to the United States, and in pur- 
suance of that determination crossed the 
ocean and landed in New York in 1869. 
Without tarrying in that city long, he 
removed to Saj^eville, New Jersey, and 
immediately entered into the employ 
of the Sayre & Fisher Brick Manufactur- 
ing Co. He remained with this concern 
for several years, and then spent three ! 
years in the occupation of farming. For 
the next three vears he was in charge of 
Sarah T. Martin's farm at South River. 
He then re-entered the employ of the 
Sayre & Fisher Brick Manufacturing Co., 
remaining with it on this occasion for two 
years. Leaving their employ once more, 
he accepted a position with George Such, 
Sayreville, with whom he remained for 
four years. Mr. Feihle then removed 
his residence to New Brunswick and 
entered the employ of Joseph Schneider, 
brewer, with whom he continued five 
years. In 1889 he entered into the busi- 
ness of bottling beer on his own account, 
which he has since carried on successfully. 

Mr. Feihle is a very active member of 
the Republican party, and in 1895 was 
elected to represent the Third ward of 
New Brunswick in the board of free- 
holders for a term of two years. The 
energy and ability which he has shown 
in fulfilling the duties of his office prove 
that the confidence placed in him by his [ 
party associates was a wise one. He is a 
member of Helvetia Lodge, No. 71, 1. 0.0. 
F., and is a past district deputy, apastgrand 
patriarch of the encampment, and a past j 



grand in the Rebecca degree. He be- 
longs to the Aurora Singing Society, the 
New Brunswick Turn Verein, and is a 
member of the Reformed church. Mr. 
Feihle married Maria Anna Allgeier, 
daughter of Alois Allgeier, of Sayre- 
ville, New Jersey, Sept. 2.3, 1877, and to 
their marriage have been born seven chil- 
dren : Catherine Henrietta, Theresia, 
Maria Anna, Alois, May, Herold, and 
Leonora, who died at the age of two 
years. 



TACOB KLINE, Jr., a prominent furni- 
^ ture dealer and influential citizen of 
Somerville, Somerset county, is a son of 
Jacob and Mary I. Kline, and was born 
June 19, 1853, at Kline's Mills, Somerset 
county. The name is of German origin, 
and the family has been well-known in 
this country for several generations. 

Jacob Kline (the grandfather) was 
state treasurer of New Jersey for a num- 
ber of years, and was president of the 
State Bank, of Trenton. He was an 
active democrat in politics. His children 
were : Nevius, Alletta, Tunis Q., Phoebe 
B., and Jacob. 

Jacob Kline (father) was a clerk in a 
store at Trenton in early life, and subse- 
quently conducted a profitable general 
store at Kline's Mills for several j-ears. 
But the greater part of his active career 
was passed as a miller and farmer at 
Kline's Mills, where he amassed a com- 
fortable fortune. He was a staunch dem- 
ocrat in politics, and was influential to a 
large degree in local affairs, his judgment 
being consulted upon all important occar 
sions. He died in 1895, having been 
the father of six children : Jacob, Jr., 
Elizabeth I., deceased ; Orion, Eric B., 
Theodore B., deceased; and Mary I. 

Jacob Kline, Jr., subject of this sketch, 



Biographical Sketches. 



535 



received his early education at Kline's 
Mills, and attended the Lawrenceville 
high school for one year. Upon com- 
pleting his studies he went to New York 
city and became a clerk in the dry-goods 
store of James McCreery & Co., for two 
years. He then returned home and 
spent five years as clerk in a country 
store near Kline's Mills. In 1877 he 
entered mercantile business at Bound 
Brook, where he remained three years. 
Upon retiring from this he spent a short 
time in Philadelphia, and then returned 
to Kline's Mills and entered into part> 
nership with his father in the milling 
business and continued with him there 
for three years. In 1884 Mr. Kline re- 
moved to Somerville, and entered the 
employ of John Maxwell, proprietor of 
an old-established and prosperous furni- 
ture store in that place, and upon the 
latter's death in 1889, succeeded him in 
the business. He has a handsome and 
well-equipped store on Main street, and 
has built up a large trade throughout the 
surrounding country. Mr. Kline is a 
democrat in politics, and is a staunch 
churchman; being one of the building 
committee, a deacon and the treasurer of 
the First Reformed church of Somer- 
ville. as also the librarian of its Sunday- 
school. He is a staunch member of Cas- 
tle No. 82, Knights of Pythias, and 
Martinique Lodge No. 3653, Knights of 
Honor, both of Somerville. He was 
married on Feb. 6, 1878, to Miss Isabella 
B. Van Arsdale, daughter of Abram and 
Jane Van Arsdale, of Somerset county, 
by whom he has had three children : 
Chauncey F., deceased; Bessie, deceased; 
and Jennie V. A. 

Mr. Kline is popular and influential. 
He is an active, progressive business man, 
an enterprising citizen and a staunch 



supporter of the best interests of the 
community in which his ancestors have 
been prominent for so many years. 



TOHN S. HINDS, a prominent hotel- 
^ keeper and a dealer in wagons in the 
city of Perth Amboy, Middlesex county, is 
a son of George and Eva (Spooi'e) Hinds, 
and was born Sept. 21, 1833, in Scoharie 
county, N. Y. The name is of German 
origin. Henry Hinds, the pioneer settler 
of the family in this country, was a na- 
tive of Germany, and came to this coun- 
try in 1766. He was a blacksmith by 
trade, and set up his shop at Hindsville, 
N. Y, where he lived and prospered for 
many years. He served with gallantry 
in the American army during the Kevo- 
lutionary war, and was a sturdy patriot. 
In politics he was an old-line whig. 

George Hinds, only son of the forego- 
ing, and father of subject, was born and 
educated in Scoharie county, New York, 
and was a thriving farmer near there 
during early manhood. In 1839 he re- 
moved to Pennsylvania, and located on a 
farm in Susquehanna county, which he 
operated for five years. In 1844 he 
settled in Conyngham township, Luzerne 
county, Pa., where he resided until his 
death, in 1864. He was a man of ex- 
emplary character and was universally 
respected. In early life he was a Jack- 
sonian democrat, but subsequently be- 
came a whig, and was a republican during 
his later years. In 1824 he married 
Miss Eva Spoore, a daughter of Henry 
Spoore, of Scoharie county, by whom he 
had ten children : Alanson, William M., 
deceased ; William, deceased ; Isaac, Su- 
san, widow of Edward Spencer, of Scran- 
ton, Pa.; Elizabeth, widow of Elonz 
Ellis, of Dunmore, Pa.; John S., Anna 



536 



Biographical Sketches. 



M., deceased ; Henry M., and Sarah 
Jane, wife of James Masters, of Dun- 
more, Pa. 

John S. Hinds, subject of this sketch, 
received a brief elementary education 
in the public schools of Pennsylvania. 
While still a lad he engaged in the run- 
ning of a saw-mill on Raritan Brook, and 
remained there for five years. He then 
spent two industrious years as a carpen- 
ter at Dunmore, Pa. In 1856 he re- 
moved to Perth Amboy, and since 1882 
was a well-known and prosperous board- 
ing-house and hotel proprietor in that 
city. In 1896 he retired from the busi- 
ness of hotel-keeping and rented a farm 
near the city of Perth Amboy, where he 
has since spent most of his time in its 
cultivation. He is also agent for the 
Lansing Wagon Co., and does an exten- 
sive trade. Mr. Hinds has been a staunch 
republican ever since the organization of 
the party in 1856. From 1875 to 
1890 he was commissioner of appeals at 
Perth Amboy. He is a popular society 
man, has been a member of the I. 0. 0. 
F. since 1854 ; of the Knights of Pythias 
since 1876, and of the Masons since 
1890. 

Mr. Hinds married Sept. 8, 1855, Miss 
Elizabeth Musgrove, daughter of An- 
drew and Isabelhi Musgrove, of Sterling, 
Wayne county. Pa., by whom he has had 
three children : Warren W., Charles B., 
deceased, and Martha L. 

Mr. Hinds is warm-hearted and genial 
in disposition, and has a wide circle of 
friends throughout Middlesex county. 
He is energetic and thrifty in business, 
and has been successful in nearly every 
important venture of his life. His public 
life has been honorable and upright, and 
liis private career in all respects consist- 
ent and exemplary. 



A B. ROHN, JR., a well-known drug- 
-^-^* gist of Raritan, Somerset county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Amos B. and 
Mary A. (Searfoss) Rohn, and was 
born Jan. 22, 1848, in Easton, Pennsyl- 
vania. 

His father was a native of Pennsyl- 
vania, where he received a common- 
school education. He followed the busi- 
ness of a contractor and builder, which 
he carried on in an extensive way at 
Easton, Pa. In politics he was origin- 
all}' a whig, and upon the dissolution of 
that party in 1856 he joined the Repub- 
lican ranks. He was an active and a 
devout christian, and occupied a leading 
position in the Reformed church at Eas- 
ton, Pa., of which he was a member. He 
was a member of but one secret society : 
the Senior 0. U. A. M. He was one of 
the old land-marks of Easton, and was 
beloved and respected by all men. He 
was offered repeatedly during his life-time 
various positions of a responsible nature, 
but he declined them all, preferring the 
quiet conduct of his own affairs to be- 
coming engrossed Avith the affairs of 
others. He died Dec. 31, 1884, in the 
sixty-fifth year of his age. His consort 
died Oct. 24, 1884. They were the par- 
ents of six children : Caroline, married 
to Rev. J. G. Penney, of New York state ; 
Alice, now Mrs. B. F. Wyker, residing in 
Easton ; M. W. Albert, Amos B., Jr., and 
Olive. 

A. B. Rohn, Jr., attended the public 
schools at Easton for several years, and 
subsequently derived a classical education 
from the Easton high school. He at- 
tended the College of Pharmacy at Phil- 
adelphia in 1872 and 1873, from which 
he graduated in 1873. After spending 
several years in a drug store in New 
York city and Philadelphia he w^ent to 




Ui 9-\*- gUU^ ''W- C&^V^'^'Vx-IJ 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



539 



Somerville, Somerset county, this state, 
where he engaged in the drug business, 
and remained fi'om 1876 to 1882. In 
the latter year he came to Raritan and 
opened a drug store and pharmacy, where 
he still remains in the enjoyment of a 
large trade. Mr. Rohn is an affiliated 
Mason in Somerville, and is a member of 
Solomon's Lodge, No. 46. He is also a 
member and ex-chief of the Somerville 
fire department. In politics he is a re- 
publican, and is conspicuous as an active 
worker for his party in Raritan. He was 
united in marriage Sept. 2, 1874, to Helen 
M. Seip, a daughter of Henry S. Seip, at 
Easton, Pa. Their only son, Paul, died 
in infancy. 

TTON. WOODBRIDGE STRONG, judge 
-LJ- of the Middlesex county courts, 
and a resident of New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, is a son of Theodore and Lucy 
Dix Strong, and was born Feb. 21, 1827, 
at Clinton, Oneida county, N. Y. 

Theodore Strong, his father, was a 
native of South Hadley, Mass., where he 
was born July 26, 1790. He was a 
graduate of Yale College, and subse- 
quently became a tutor in Hamilton Col- 
lege, Clinton, N. Y., from 1812 to 1816. 
In 1816 he accepted the chair of mathe- 
matics in Hamilton College, Clinton, N. 
Y., which heoccupied until 1827, when 
he removed to New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, and held the position of professor 
of mathematics in Rutgers College for 
thirty-five years (1827 to 1862). He 
was a man of marked literary and scien- 
tific attainments, and one of the original 
members of the National Academy of 
Arts and Sciences, and was the author of 
several works on mathematical subjects, 
among which one was known as Strong's 
" Algebra," and another as Strong's " Dif- 



ferential and Integral Calculus." He 
was a prominent member of various sci- 
entific societies in this country and in 
Europe. In politics he was a whig; 
subsequently a republican, and although 
not a communicant of any church, he 
was a christian. He deceased in 1869, 
at the age of seventy-nine years. His 
wife died in 1875 in the seventy-seventh 
year of her age. They were the parents 
of six children : Mary, married to Judge 
John Van Dyke, at one time judge of the 
supreme court of New Jersey ; Sophia, 
wife of Richard Hasluck, a hardware im- 
porter of New York city and Birming- 
ham, England ; Sarah, deceased in her 
sixteenth year; Theodore, deceased in 
the Unioii army in the late civil war; 
Judge Woodbridge, and Lucy, the latter 
deceased in infancy. 

Judge Woodbridge Strong received his 
elementary education in the grammar 
schools of New Brunswick. His col- 
legiate training was acquired at Rutgers 
College, from which he was graduated in 
1847, and for two years thereafter studied 
law in the offices of Judge Van Dyke 
and Abraham V. Schenck. In 1849 he 
joined an expedition to California, by 
way of Cape Horn, on the ship " Pacific." 
He remained in that country two years 
prospecting and mining for gold, at the 
expiration of which time he returned to 
New Brunswick, where he accepted the 
position of deputy clerk of Middlesex 
county, and in two years thereafter be- 
came teller and discount clerk in the Bank 
of New Jersey at New Brunswick. Upon 
the failure of the bank in 1857, he de- 
voted himself to the practice of his pro- 
fession, and also held the office, for a 
short time, of clerk of the common coun- 
cil of New Brunswick. He was licensed 
as an attorney-at-law and a solicitor in 



640 



Biographical Sketches. 



chancery, Nov. 4, 1852, and admitted 
as a counsellor-at^law, Nov. 25, 1872. 
Judge Strong received his first appoint- 
ment as law judge of the Middlesex 
county courts, from joint meeting of the 
legislature, his commission being signed 
by Joel Parker, then governor of New 
Jersey, on April 17, 1874. His five 
years occupation of the bench was 
marked by his thorough knowledge of 
the law, by his suj^erior judgment, and by 
his fidelity to the jDeople. His re-ap- 
pointment to the same oflBce by Governor 
Grigg.s, on April 1, 1896, for a like term 
of five years, is a fitting testimonial to 
Judge Strong's eminent capabilities as a 
jurist. On Feb. 14, 1881, he was ap- 
pointed special master in chancery, and 
his commission as a notary public dates 
from Jan. 1, 1864. During the period of 
the war, he was a member of the Mid- 
dlesex county board of freeholders, and 
was in active service on the finance com- 
mittee of that body. He was for several 
years the solicitor of the common coun- 
cil, an office now known as city attorne}', 
and he has been the counsel for the 
National Bank of New Jersey since its 
organization in 1864. Judge Strong 
owns a farm of one hundred and thirty 
acres near Dayton, Middlesex county, as 
well as considerable valuable land near 
New Brunswick. On these properties he 
makes horticulture a divei'sion from his 
mental and legal operations. He culti- 
vates a variety of fruits, and has origi- 
nated several new and valuable varieties 
of pears. He also farms generally, and 
derives no inconsiderable pleasure from 
these recreations. In religious faith. 
Judge Strong is a presbjterian of a very 
liberal cast ; a member, and formerly a 
trustee, of tlie Second church of that de- 
nomination in New Brunswick. In 



political matters he is an active adherent 
to Republican principles, and ever evinces 
the liveliest interest in the welfai'e of his 
party. In his college days at Rutgers, 
he was a useful member of the old-time 
fraternity, the Phi Sigma, and the 
Peithessophian Literary Society. Judge 
Strong, as a lawyer, as well as a jurist, 
has been eminently successful, and he 
has been engaged in many important 
cases befor the bar. Until his recent 
return to the bench of Middlesex county, 
he has been in a law partnership with 
his two sons, Alan H., and Theodore 
Strong, for a number of years, under the 
style of Woodbridge Strong & Sons. 
Theii' business will henceforth be con- 
ducted under the name of Alan H. & 
Theodore Strong, with offices at 268 
George street. Judge Strong's office 
is in the Free Library building, and he 
practiced in the courts of which he is 
now judge. 

He was united in man'iage, Aug. 4, 
1852, to Hariiet A. Hartwell, a daughter 
of Hon. Jonathan Hartwell, a prominent 
farmer. Democratic politician, and state 
legislator, of Littleton, Mass. To this 
union were born five children : Edward 
Woodbridge, educated at Rutgers Col- 
lege, studied law, and was for a time 
associated in practice with his father, 
and later located in Cincinnati, 0., where 
he makes a specialty of corporation law, 
and is counsel for the Baltimore and 
Ohio Southwestern railroad ; Alan H., a 
graduate of Rutgers College, a practicing 
lawyer at New Brunswick, and counsel 
for the Pennsylvania railroad in that 
city; Elizabeth B., residing at home; 
Theodore, in the practice of law as 
hitherto stated, and counsel for the free- 
holders of Middlesex county ; and Joseph 
M., who was deceased in infancy. 



Biographical Sketches. 



541 



"DROF. JOHN S. HAYNES, supervising 
-*- principal of the public schools of 
Soraerville, New Jersey, belongs to one 
of the oldest families in this country, his 
ancestors having landed in Boston in 
1638. For five generations they have 
resided in Rensselaer county, N. Y., and 
he was born in that county Sept. 16, 
1832. He is a son of Helan and Jane 
(Shields) Haynes. His mother was of 
Scotch-Irish Presbyterian ancestry. 

The father of Prof Haynes was a life- 
long farmer in Rensselaer county, and an 
officer in the national guard, state of 
New York, for many years. To his 
marriage were born six children : John 
S. ; William L. ; Jane S., married to 
Warren Eldred, of Grafton, and since 
deceased ; Adam S. ; Charles E. ; and 
Francis D. The father and mother of 
Prof Haynes died in 1870, and are buried 
at Potter Hill, New York. 

Prof. Haynes attended the common 
schools of his native place during his 
early youth, and, at the age of seven- 
teen, entered Ball Seminary at Hoosick 
Falls. He afterward taught school for a 
few months, and then became a student 
in the State Normal School at Albany, 
N. Y., and graduated therefrom Feb. 10, 
1853. For a short time he taught school 
in the towns of Grafton and Pittstown, 
and then removed to the state of New 
Jersey. He first located at Harmony 
Plains, and taught there for ten and a 
half years. In the spring of 1864 he 
removed to Millstone, and was a teacher 
in that town for three and a half years. 
Removing to Raritan in the fall of 1867, 
he continued there as principal of the 
Raritan public schools for eighteen years. 
At the close of this loiig term of success- 
ful teaching he was presented, by his 
friends in Raritan, with a beautiful gold 

28 



watch and chain, as a token of their ap- 
preciation of his ability as a teacher, and 
as a mark of their esteem for him as a 
man. In 1885 Prof Haynes settled at 
Somerville as supervising principal of the 
public schools, and has successfully la- 
bored there to the present time. He has 
seventeen assistant teachers, and six 
hundred and eighty pupils in daily aver- 
age attendance, out of a total of seven 
hundred and fifty enrolled, distributed 
in three school buildings. Prof Haynes 
gives his entire time to the work of 
supervision. He is a member of the 
Somerset County Teachers' Association, 
and of the New Jersey State Teachers' 
Association. He holds a first-grade state 
teacher's certificate, and an extension 
course certificate from Rutgers College 
for proficiency in electricity. For four- 
teen years he served as county examiner, 
and was county superintendent of schools 
in Somerset county for six years. For nine- 
teen years he served as treasurer of the 
Raritan Building and Loan Association, 
and is now president of the People's 
Building and Loan Association of Somer- 
ville. For fourteen years' he was treas- 
urer of the Raritan fire department, and 
now holds a certificate of membership in 
the Exempt Firemen's corps 

Prof. Haynes was married, Oct. 23, 
1862, to Sarah, daughter of John I. and 
Sarah M. (Vandeventer) Smith, of Fin- 
derne. New Jersey, and their marriage 
has been blessed with two sous : the eldest, 
William L., being a graduate of Stevens 
Institute, and a mechanical enghieer in 
Philadelphia ; and the other, Lathrop C, 
is a clerk in the Chase National Bank, 
New York city. 

Prof Haynes has been an active mem- 
ber of the Dutch Reformed church for 
more than thirty years, and is now one 



542 



Biographical Sketches. 



of the elders of that church in Somer- 
ville. He has done practical educational 
■work all his life, and, for his brilliant 
qualities as a teacher and his high char- 
acter as a man, he is held in the highest 
esteem bv all who know him. 



JC. THATCHER, the prominent drug- 
• gist of East Millstone, New Jersey, 
was born June 16, 1853, and is the son 
of William and Mary De Remer Thal^ 
cher. His paternal grandfather, John 
Thatcher, was especially interested in 
educational matters, and followed the oc- 
cupation of teaching school all his life. 
He was a man of upright and unsullied 
character, an esteemed member of the 
Presbyterian church, and an active 
laborer in all departments of christian 
work which came within the limits of his 
environment. 

The ftither of the subject of this sketch 
was a native of Warren county. New 
Jersey, and after receiving his education 
at the public schools, learned the trade of 
a mechanic, which he followed all his 
life. He was possessed of an inventive 
turn of mind, and all lovers of sympa- 
thetic music owe a debt of gratitude to 
him, for he it was who first manufactured 
the beautifully expressive tremolo stop, 
now universally used in all organs. An 
ardent and sincere christian, a member 
of the Presbj'terian church, he led a sim- 
ple, humble but useful life. Of his mar- 
riage there was an issue of eight children, 
five sons and three daughters : Cathe- 
rine, married to Joseph H. Thorpe; Peter, 
Samuel, J. C, Sarah, married to Jacob 
Sharer ; William, Margaret, married to 
William Oaks, and Joseph. 

J. C. Thatcher received all the educa- 
tional advantages which the common 



schools could afford him, and afterwards 
entered the drug business in the employ 
of William H. Seip, at Washington, re- 
maining with him four years. After 
clerking a few more years he became a 
partner in a drug store in Shickshiuny, 
Pa., which was continued till January, 
1876, when he removed to East Mill- 
stone and estabUshed himself in the drug 
business there. Through his industry, 
attention to business and courtesj- he has 
succeeded in buildmg up a successful and 
profitable business, of which he is the 
sole proprietor. The close confinement 
to business which its nature entails upon 
him does not permit of his giving much 
time to political work, but he is a strong 
republican and a firm believer in and fol- 
lower of its political faith. He has paid 
a great deal of attention to church work, 
being a member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church, one of its trustees and treas- 
urer, which honorable office he has held 
for nineteen years. He is also treasurer 
of the local building and loan association. 
He is married, and with his wife and son, 
Millard E., aged ten years, lives in their 
own home, corner of Livingston avenue 
and William street. 



TTTILLrAM WATT, a well-known and 
' ' prosperous butcher and fish-dealer 
at Somerville, Somerset county. New Jer- 
sey, is a son of Samuel and Jane (Graham) 
Watt, and was born Dec. 26, 1861, at 
Somerville. His grandftather, John Watt, 
was a native of Ireland, where he was 
a thriving farmer of the better class. 
Samuel Watt, his father, is now supervisor 
of roads at Somerville. He is an active 
democrat in politics, and is widely known 
throughout the county. His children 
were : Mary, John, deceased ; Susan, de- 



BlOGRAPHICAI. SkkTCHES. 



543 



ceased ; William, Samuel, Thomas, and 
George. 

William Watt received his early educa- 
tion in the public schools of Somerville, 
and subsequently learned the butcher's 
trade in that town. He then went to 
New York city and entered a butcher's 
shop, where he remained for several 
years, perfecting himself in his knowledge 
of all branches of the business. In 1889 
he returned to Somerville, and established 
a butcher's shop in connection with his 
brother Thomas, under the firm name 
of Watt Brothers, which co-partnership 
lasted for two years and a half. His 
brother then withdrew, and Mr. Watt 
has since conducted the business inde- 
pendently. He has an extensive trade 
among the best families of Somerville 
and vicinity, and has built up an envi- 
able reputation for handling high-grade 
stock. He has a handsome, well-equipped 
store, which is invariably maintained in 
the best condition, and he is an expert in 
the handling of meats and fish. 

Wr. Watt is energetic, enterprising and 
progressive, with a clear head for bus- 
iness, and a sharp eye for all the essential 
details of his profession. He has built 
up a large and constantly growing trade, 
and is regarded as one of Somerville's 
most industrious and pushing citizens. 



A B. LAEE, a prominent insurance 
-^--*-' agent and well-known citizen, late 
of Somerville, Somerset county, now re- 
siding at Flemington, New Jersey, is a 
son of William B. and Sarah (Smith) 
Lare, and was born May 5, 1848, at 
Sunnyside P. 0., Hunterdon county, New 
Jersey. His grandfather, Andrew Lare, 
was a thriving farmer all his life near 
Sunnyside, was a staunch democrat in 



politics, and a member of the Presby- 
terian church. His children were : Eliza- 
beth, Mary, William B., Garret, and 
Philip. 

William B. Lare (father) was a pros- 
perous farmer of Hunterdon county until 
1877, when he entered the insurance 
business with his son, our subject, and 
remained connected with him till the 
time of his death in 1891. He was 
active in politics on the Democratic side 
during early life, and was a devout ad- 
herent and elder of the Reformed church. 
His children were : A. B. ; Anna, born 
1850, wife of Samuel Van Sickel, of 
Milford, New Jersey ; J. W., born 1852 ; 
Peter, born 1854; Louis, born 1856; 
Sarah, born 1859, wife of William Aiken, 
of Newark, New Jersey ; Mary, born 
1862; Ellen, born 1866, wife of David 
Krymer, of Annandale, New Jersey; 
and Emma, born 1868, wife of E. C. 
Vanderbeck, of North Branch, New 
Jersey. 

A. B. Lare, subject of this sketch, 
was educated in the common schools of 
Sunnyside, in Hunterdon county, and 
spent his boyhood on his father's farm at 
that place. His first business venture 
was the establishment of a stationery 
and music store at Frenchtown, Hunter- 
don county, in October, 1871. In July, 
1873, he entered the sewing machine 
business at Easton, Pa., and in Decem- 
ber, 1874, became agent at Pittstown, 
New Jersey, for the Mutual Benefit Life 
Insurance Co., of Newark, New Jersey, 
and the Girard Fire Insurance Co., of 
Philadelphia. In 1876 he transferred 
his office to Annandale, did a large fire 
insurance business, moved to Clinton in 
1886, and in 1892 to Plainfield, finally 
removing to Somerville in January, 1894, 
where he remained as special agent of 



544 



Biographical Sketches. 



the Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Co., 
of Newark, in connection with the Tren- 
ton district. His territory covers a large 
portion of West Jersey, and he has been 
successful in jjlacing many thousands of 
dollars' worth of insurance among the 
well-to-do residents of that section of the 
state. Mr. Lare is a democrat in poli- 
tics, and a member of the Presbyterian 
church. He is an active christian, and 
was for ten years leader of the choir at 
Annandale, New Jerse}^ 

On September 17, 1873, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Amelia Stryker, daughter of 
Peter Stryker, of Pittstown, and they 
have had five children : Edgar, born 
May, 1878 ; WiUiam S , born March, 
1882; Edith, born Sept., 1875, deceased 
in 1877 ; William E., born Aug., 1876, 
deceased in 1877 ; Lottie E., born March, 
1880, deceased in infancy. 

Mr. Lare is a thoroughly-equipped, 
shrewd and energetic business man. He 
is endowed with the distinctively Ameri- 
can qualities of grit and determination, 
and has won success in life through his 
own jjersevering efibrts. He is popular 
and well-known throughout the central 
and western parts of the state. In 1896 
he bought and moved to his uncle's place 
at Flemington, New Jersey, and also be- 
came owner of the farm on which he 
was raised when a boy, then owned by his 
father, but still conducts his insurance 
business. 



TpDWIN R. YOORHEES, M. D. C, a 
-*-^ skillful and successful veterinarian 
of Somei'ville, Somerset county, New 
Jersey, is a son of Disbrow B., and Ann 
C. (Skillman) Voorhees and was born, 
Nov. 29, 1857, at Blawenburg in said 
count3\ His father, who is still living 
at Hopewell, is a native of New Jersey. 



His mother was born in Somerset county 
and his father in Mercer county. 

Disbrow B. Voorhees is a good, honest, 
old-fashioned farmer; a man who cares 
very little about politics, and not at all 
for office. His years have been quietly 
and happily spent with his family, and 
his constant aim and endeavor have been 
to secure the happiness of his wife and 
children. He is a godly man, and for 
several years he has been a member of 
the Reformed church. He is the father 
of seven children; Edwin R., Anna, 
Cornelia B. and Emma, deceased ; Mary, 
Lizzie, and Kate H., deceased. 

Dr. Edwin R. Voorhees acquired his 
elementary education in the common 
schools of Somerset and Mercer counties. 
After leaving school he worked on his 
father's fiirm for several years. He sub- 
sequently purchased a farm in Somerset 
county; on which he resided for three 
years, dividing his time between cultivat- 
ing his lands and pursuing a course of 
preparatory studies in the veterinary 
branch of medicine. He then entered 
the Toronto, Canada, Veterinary College, 
where he took a course in surgery and 
medicine during the fall and Avinter 
terms of 1885 and the spring of 1886. 
He practiced as a veterinary surgeon in 
Somerset county for nearly a year, when 
he entered the Chicago, 111., Veterinary 
College. His progress in that institution 
was rapid and his work eminently satis- 
factory to the faculty. He graduated 
with honors in 1887. He came to Som- 
erville and resumed his practice. This 
has grown and developed until it extends 
throughout New Jersey, and into Penn- 
SAlvania, Delaware, Ncav York and other 
states. He enjoys the patronage of the 
owners of many noted race-horses and of 
fine stock generally : F. P. Olcott, of 



Biographical Sketches. 



547 



New York city ; E. T. H. Talmage, of 
Brooklyn ; Alfred D. Cordova, of North 
Branch, New Jersey ; Grant B. and E. 
H. Schley, of New York ; Judge Dillon 
and James B. Duke, of New Jersey ; all 
well-known owners of valuable stock, are 
the names of a few of his patrons cited 
here to show the estimation in which he 
is held as a veterinary surgeon and phy- 
sician. His professional career, although 
brief as yet, has been crowned with un- 
usual success, and he has undertaken 
many difficult and apparently hopeless 
cases with successful results. Dr. Voor- 
hees holds membership in the United 
States Veterinary Medical Association, 
the New Jersey State Veterinary Society, 
and the Somerset County Medical So- 
ciety. He united himself in marriage, 
Jan. 15, 1878, to Ella, daughter of 
Wyckoflf Hendrickson, of Titusville, 
Mercer county. New Jersey, and to their 
union were born four children : Lizzie 
H., James Garfield, Ethel and Irene. 



'yHOMAS J. EMERY, a skillful archi- 
-*- tect and an extensive real-estate 
operator at Atlantic Highlands, Mon- 
mouth county, is a eon of Charles P. and 
Elizabeth Bennett Emery, and was born 
Feb. 3, 1861, at Cedar Creek, Ocean 
county. New Jersey. The name is of 
French origin. The pioneer members of 
the family in America were prominent 
citizens of Boston in colonial days. 

William Emery (grandfather) was one 
of the early settlers in Middletown town- 
ship, Monmouth county, where he was a 
prosperous farmer. He was an active 
democrat in politics, but never sought 
office. He reared a family of five sons 
and three daughters. 

Charles P. Emery (father) was born 



on the homestead farm in Middletown 
township, educated in the local district 
schools, and spent the early portion of 
his life as a mason and builder, with an 
extensive business at Long Branch. He 
later entered the grocery business at Sea 
Bright, and conducted it successfully for 
several years. He subsequently became 
a contractor for dredging and dock build- 
ing, which he has been engaged in until 
the present time, the most of his time 
and attention being devoted to govern- 
ment work. He is a man of cultivated 
and literary tastes, a member and ex- 
steward of the Methodist Episcopal 
church at Oceanic, and is a prohibitionist 
in politics. His wife was Miss Elizabeth 
Bennett, daughter of Robert Bennett, of 
Long Branch, by whom he has had seven 
children: George W., of Oceanic; Thomas 
J., James M., Susan A., wife of Samuel 
Orbey, of Red Bank; Charles Edward, 
Elizabeth, wife of Rev. Frank Cardova, of 
Mexico ; Sadie, wife of Harry Dudley, of 
Brooklyn, N. Y. 

Thomas J. Emery spent his early life 
at Oceanport and Sea Bright, and was 
educated in the public schools of Long 
Branch. When thirteen years of age he 
became book-keeper for his uncle, Robert 
Emery, an architect at Sea Bright, and at 
the same time applied himself assiduously 
to the study of architecture, a profession 
in which he has always displayed great 
natural ability, and is now considered 
one of the best architects in the state. 
In the spring of 1891 he began to handle 
real estate at Atlantic Highlands, and 
has now become one of the largest handlers 
of sea shore property along this part of the 
coast. He has given particular attention 
to the development and beautification of 
Atlantic Highlands, and has designed 
the new Methodist Episcopal church 



548 



Biographical Sketches. 



and a number of other public and private 
structures, including the First National 
Bank of Atlantic Highlands. Mr. Emery 
is a practical builder, conversant with 
every detail of the trade, and gives his 
personal supervision to all work done 
upon his designs. In the spring of 1896 
he established himself in the bicycle 
business, under the firm name of T. J. 
Emery & Co., and has conducted this 
auxiliary source of profit with success. 

Mr. Emery is an out-and-out prohi- 
bitionist in politics, but independent in 
the disposal of his suffrages. He is a 
steward and trustee of the Methodist 
Episcopal church at Atlantic Highlands, 
and a member of the building committee. 
He was one of the organizers of the 
Atlantic Highlands fire department, but 
has now retired from active participation 
in its affairs. He was a charter member 
of the Lodge of Knights of Pj^thias, and 
active in several of the charities of the 
town ; is agent for the Society for the 
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and 
works to maintain moral interests and 
prosperity in the town. He was married 
in 1890 to Miss Susan I. Tuthill, daughter 
of Rev. Nathaniel S. Tuthill, of the New 
York conference. She died in 1892. 
Mr. Emery resides in a handsome cottage 
on Fourth avenue, Atlantic Highlands, 
with his uncle, Robert Emery, with 
whom he has made his home since boy- 
hood, and is the oldest real-estate opera- 
tor in the vicinity. He is a shrewd, in- 
dustrious business man, active in all that 
concerns the welfare of the communit}^, 
and is thoroughly expert in everything 
appertaining to his profession. His ef- 
forts for the promotion of Atlantic High- 
lands have made him a prominent factor 
hi social and business circles, and he is a 
most enterprising citizen. 



JOHN HANSON, a prominent liquor- 
dealer of Perth Amboy, and an in- 
fluential figure inJi^the political affairs of 
that city, is a son of Jens and Katherine 
Hanson, and was born Aug. 31, 1855, 
at Nykjobing, Falstcr Island, Denmark. 
The name is of Scandinavian origin, and 
means " Sons of Hans," the latter being 
a very common appellation in Northern 
Europe. 

Jens Hanson (father) was one of the 
earliest Scandinavian settlers in East Jer- 
sey. He had a common-school education 
in his native land, and rendered faithful 
service to the Crown in the Danish navy 
during 1847, '48, and '50, becoming a 
ship-carpenter. He saw considerable ac- 
tive service during the war with Germany 
in 1848, '49, and '50. On July 11, 1863, 
he came to the United States, and made 
Perth Amboy his home. He was em- 
ploj^ed there by John Watson as a brick- 
maker until 1865, and subsequently fol- 
lowed the same trade at Utica, N. Y., 
and at Williamstown, N. Y., returning 
to Perth Amboj^ in 1865. He then spent 
fifteen years in the employ of William 
King, cork manufacturer at that city. 
Since 1880 he has been in the Lehigh 
Valley railroad car-shops at Perth Ara- 
bo}', under Andrew Schonover, and is 
well known as a vigorous, industrious 
citizen. He is a staunch republican in 
politics. His wife was Miss Katherine 
Olsen, of Nykjobing, who died Dec. 29, 
1878, after having born him seven chil- 
dren : Peter, deceased ; Annie ; Inge- 
borg, deceased ; Christina, wife of Thor- 
ould Ei'ust, of Perth Amboy ; John ; 
Christian, deceased ; and Anna, wife of 
Gabrial Sorensen, of New York. 

John Hanson accompanied his father 
to this country in 1863. He was a mule- 
driver on the Erie Canal at Utica, N. Y., 



Biographical Sketches. 



549 



in 1865, for some time. He then re- 
moved to Perth Amboy in the spring of 
1866, and with the characteristic energy 
of his race started out to blacken boots 
and sell newspapers on the streets of that 
city. In 1869 he was employed in Pes- 
sure & Buttner's restaurant at Elizabeth, 
New Jersey, and subsequently followed 
the same business at New York city with 
John H. Betts, and with Lane & Thorne. 
In 1875 Mr. Hanson established himself 
in the liquor business at Perth Amboy, 
and had the misfortune to be burned out 
fourteen months after opening. He then 
started his present place on Smith street, 
No. 74, and ' has had a successful career 
there ever since. He is very active in 
politics, and is a local leader in the Re- 
publican party. He was president of the 
first McKinley Club organized in New 
Jersey, in 1892, which club effected such 
good work during the campaign of that 
year that Major McKinley forwarded 
them a highly congratulatory personal 
letter, which Mr. Hanson still jealously 
guards in his possession. Mr. Hanson 
has been a delegate to a number of state 
and city conventions. He is a member 
of the Knights of Pythias, I. 0. 0. F., 
Improved Order of Red Men, the Banner 
Relief Association, and a charter member 
• of Halcyon Castle, Knights of the Golden 
Eagle. On June 6, 1880, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Johanna Pay, daughter of 
John Pay, of Perth Amboy, New Jersey, 
by whom he has had eight children : 
Carrie Agnes, deceased ; Mary Elizabeth, 
John William, Edward Kelly, Thomas 
Laughlin, James McAlinden, Helen, and 
Dorethy. Mr. Hanson is energetic and 
clear-headed in his business, bold and 
fearless in his political convictions, and 
a good type of the self-made American 
citizen. 



IV/rOERIS SLOBODIEN, one of the 
-'-^-*- leading carriage builders and 
wheelwrights, of Perth Amboy, New 
Jersey, is a son of Solomon and Meenyxa 
Slobodien, and was born at Bobryck, 
Russia, March 1, 1858. 

Labo Slobodien (grandfather) was a 
native of Slaboda, Russia, and, after ac- 
quiring the education afforded by the 
school system of that country, chose the 
occupation of a farmer, and, by industry 
and good management, accumulated a 
competence and became the proprietor of 
a farm, which he managed successfully 
at Slaboda, up to his death, in 1845. 
He was a member of the Jewish syna- 
gogue, at Bobryck, Russia, and by his 
marriage became the father of two chil- 
dren : Solomon and Neb anna. 

Solomon Slobodien (father) was born 
at Bobryck, Russia, in 1810, and as a boy 
received his elementary instruction in 
the Jewish schools of his native place. 
He then learned the tailoring trade, and, 
after thoroughly acquainting himself with 
the details and requirements of that 
occupation, began business on his own 
account, and has had a very successful 
mercantile career. Father Slobodien 
possesses a vigorous physical constitution, 
and has long since passed the allotted 
time of man, being fourscore years of 
age, and enjoys the health of a man half 
his years. He is a member of the Jewish 
synagogue, at Bobryck, and is a substan- 
tial supporter of the same. Solomon 
Slobodien married Fayweshovitz, daugh- 
ter of Herman Fayweshovitz, and their 
family of children are as follows : Sophia, 
Freddie, Elizabeth, Balie, Michael, Joseph, 
Morris, Philip, and Jacob. 

Morris Slobodien (subject) attended 
the Jewish schools of Bobryck, Russia, 
and was duly instructed in the elements 



550 



Biographical Sketches. 



of knowledge as prescribed by that sys- 
tem. At the age of fourteen his school 
days terminated, and he began a term of 
service as an apprentice at the trade of 
blacksmithing, and worked at the same 
in Russia for about fifteen years, when 
he emigrated to America, coming to 
Perth Amboy in 1887. Here he was in 
the employ of John H. Kent, Edward 
Applegate, and various other parties 
in South Amboy, until 1893, when he 
started his present business of black- 
smithing, wheelwright and carriage-build- 
ing, on New Brunswick avenue, Perth 
Amboy, and has built up a profitable 
trade, which is continually on the in- 
crease. Politically Mr. Slobodien is a 
republican, and, as a voter and a man of 
business, is deeply interested in the public 
affairs of his community. In religious 
belief and connections, our subject is a 
member of the Jewish synagogue, of 
Perth Amboy. On March 15, 1889, 
Morris Slobodien was united in marriage 
to. Miss Sophia Freefon, daughter of 
Aaron and Bessie Freefon, and this union 
has been blessed by the birth of two sons 
and two daughters : Michael, Benjamin, 
Bessie and Sarah. 



T\ EDGAR ROBERTS, M. D., a success- 
-'-^* ful young practitioner of medicine 
at Keyport, Monmouth county. New Jer- 
sey, is a son of Daniel and Eleanor (Ar- 
rowsmith) Roberts, and was born Oct. 9, 
1861, at Middletown, New Jersey. Dr. 
Roberts is of Welsh extraction. His 
grandfather, Thomas Roberts, was a na- 
tive of Denbiglishire, Wales. He re- 
ceived a thorough classical education and 
became a minister of the Baptist church. 
He emigrated to America in 1803, loc;v 
tiug at Newark, N. J.; was afterward pas- 



tor of churches at Albany, N. Y., Great 
Valley, Pa., Middletown and Holmdel, 
New Jersey. In 1821 he became a mis- 
sionary among the Cherokee Indians. 
He was married to Elizabeth Rutan, May 
25, 1806. They were the parents of 
nine children : Elisha, Thomas, Nathan- 
iel, John, William, Daniel ; Sarah, and 
Mary, both deceased, and Elizabeth. He 
died Sept. 24, 1865. His wife died in 
1842. 

Daniel Roberts (father) was born at 
Holmdel, New Jersev, in 1825. After 
receiving a common-school education he 
began the life of a farmer near Middle- 
town, Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
and continued in that avocation for many 
years. He also for six years was a mer- 
chant at Toms River, New Jersey. He 
is a republican in politics, but was never 
known to be at all active in party 
work. He is a member of the Baptist 
church at Middletown. He is the father 
of three children : Thomas, Cordelia, 
married to Prof. P. H. Smith, of Hamil- 
ton, N. Y., and Dr. D. E., with whom he 
resides. 

Dr. D. E. Roberts obtained his ele- 
mentary education in the public schools 
of Middletown, and later he attended 
Peddie Institute, Hightstown, New Jer- 
sey. He was graduated from the medi- 
cal college of the University of New 
York in 1883. He came to Keyport 
and entered into the active practice of 
medicine. Here he found a good field, 
and Keyport welcomed a physician fully 
equipped to cope with the older prac- 
titioners. He has been eminently suc- 
cessful in his profession, and his patron- 
age, already large, is steadily growing. 
Dr. Roberts is a member of Monmouth 
County Medical Society ; is a charter 
member of Bayside Lodge, I. 0. 0. F. ; 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



551 



Monmouth Encampment, I. 0. 0. F. ; 
Frelinghuysen Council, Jr. 0. U. A. M., 
and Coronal Council, Royal Arcanum. 
He was united in marriage Feb. 20, 
1890, to Mary E. Stillwell, a daughter 
of Obediah Stillwell, of Holradel. Her 
death occurred on Jan. 12, 1893, leaving 
two daughters, Marian and Edna. 

Dr. Roberts is deservedly popular not 
only with his patients, but also with the 
people of Keyport in general, by whom 
he is regarded as a physician of advanced 
ideas. Personally he is a cultivated and 
genial gentleman. 



TpEANK BRUEN CONOVER, the able 
-'- president of the Monmouth Ice 
Co., at Long Branch, Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, is a son of Judge Charles 
H. and Mary Anna Bruen Conover, 
and was born Jan. 14, 1860, at Marl- 
boro, Monmouth county. New Jersey. 
The family, of Dutch origin, has, for at 
least four generations, been closely iden- 
fied, by birth and residence, with the 
county of Monmouth. 

John Edward Conover (grandfather) 
was a graduate of Princeton College and 
a lawyer, but possessing abundant means, 
he chose to lead a life of quiet leisure, 
absorbed in classical studies and the 
gratification of refined and elegant 
tastes. In political matters he was in 
thorough accord and sympathy with the 
policy of the old Whig party, and his 
religious inspiration was drawn from the 
atmosphere within the walls of the old 
" Tennent " church, near Freehold. His 
two sons, William Haight and Charles 
Haight, received a finished education 
under the private tutorship of James 
Patterson, an erudite member of the 
Faculty of the University of Pennsyl- 



vania. The elder Conover was a gentle- 
man of imposing bearing, noble intellect 
and lofty character. He died in 1832, 
his ashes reposing in the Brick Church 
cemetery, at Marlboro. 

Charles H. Conover (father) was born 
March 6, 1818, and for many years sub- 
sequent to the completion of his educa^ 
tion at the hands of Professor Patterson, 
he was engaged in the supervision of the 
homestead farm at Marlboro. His life 
resembled more that of an English gen- 
tleman, and he occupied his leisure hours 
in the cultivation of his naturally keen 
intellect. His mind was well stored with 
knowledge, and in personality, he was a 
gentleman of dignity and refinement. 
He attended divine worship at the Re- 
formed church of Freehold, and in poli- 
tics he became a popular democratic 
leader in his section of the state. In 
1868 he was elevated to the lay bench of 
Monmouth by Governor Parker ; and in 
1873 he enjoyed the honor of a re- 
appointment to the judgeship by Gov- 
ernor Randolph. He was united to Mary 
Ann Bruen in 1841. They were the 
parents of five children : Ellen, married 
to Lafayette Schenck ; Eliza, wife of 
William Fisher ; Matilda, now Mrs. John 
Walker; Mary, deceased, and Frank 
Bruen, our subject. Judge Conover died 
March 7, 1881. His widow is still living. 

Frank B. Conover attended the public 
schools of Freehold until he was prepared 
for a higher course of education. In 
1876 he entered Rutgers College, where 
he remained in systematic study until he 
reached his junior year. At this period 
his business career began ; for quitting 
the college ere reaching the year that 
promised a distinctive graduation, he ac- 
cepted a situation as ticket clerk for the 
New York Central railroad, where he 



552 



Biographical Sketches. 



served six years. He subsequently ex- 
changed his position for one with the 
Jersey Central road, as ticket agent, 
until, with rapid stride, he attained the 
post of superintendent of the Freehold 
division. While thus engaged Mr. Con- 
over organized the Monmouth Ice Co., 
and assumed an active part in its man- 
agement. The quick growth of the com- 
pany's business compelled him to resign 
from his connection with the railroad, in 
order to give his undivided attention to 
the former. Commencing with a modest 
retail trade in Long Branch, that depart- 
ment now extends to all points on the 
New Jerse}^ coast, from Red Bank and 
Atlantic Highlands on the noi'th, to 
Belmar and Spring Lake on the south, 
while the wholesale, or car-load ship- 
ments, cover all points on the Jersey 
Central and the Philadelphia and Atlan- 
tic Cit}^ railroads. This splendid devel- 
opment of the company's bu.siness is due 
entirely to Mr. Conover's careful man- 
agement and his superior executive abil- 
ity. Mr. Conover is a democrat in polit- 
ical life, and though at no time has he 
aspired to public office, he has neverthe- 
less played an important role in party 
affairs, and was chairman and treasurer 
of the county executive committee, and 
leader of the " Abbett ring " for a num- 
ber of years. Li fraternal and social 
matter,s, he is a member of the D. K. E., 
of his Alma Mater ; a member of the 
Holland Society and the Lotos Club, 
both of New York city, and is one of the 
Sons of the Revolution. Mr. Conover 
was united in the bcmds of matrimony 
Jan. 9, 1884, to Blanche Sullivan, a 
daughter of General Peter J. Sullivan, a 
prominent lawver of Cincinnati, 0. To 
their union has been born Dorothy, aged 
five years. 



O V. ARROWSMITH, principal of the 
^* public schools of Keyport, Mon- 
mouth county, and a prominent and in- 
fluential citizen of that town, is a son of 
Thomas and Emma Arrowsmith, and 
was born, April 13, 1842, at Arrowsmith's 
Mills, near Keyport. He is a brother of 
Dr. J. Edgar Arrowsmith, of Kej^port, 
whose biography, will be found to con- 
tain an account of the family ancestral 
record so far as is known. 

Mr. Arrowsmith received a thorough 
elementary education in the common 
schools of Middletown township, and 
subsequently attended Glenwood Insti- 
tute, at Matawan, for two years. . He 
then became a farmer in Middletown 
township, and afterwards pursued the 
same vocation in Holmdel township, suc- 
cessfull}^ cultivating a large tract of 
ground. In 1876 he located at Kej'port, 
and began his career as a school-teacher, 
in which he attained such rapid pre-emi- 
nence that, in 1879, he was made prin- 
cipal of the schools there, which position 
he has held ever since. He has efiected 
many improvements in the equipment 
and methods of the local schools, and is 
now considered one of the best instruct- 
ors in Monmouth county. He is an 
active democrat in politics, has been 
commissioner of Holmdel township, and 
for eight years was assessor of Raritan 
township, besides holding other offices 
during his re,sidence there. He is one of 
the foremost members of the New Jersey 
State Teachers' Association, and is secre- 
tary of the Council of Education of New 
Jersey. He is a past regent of Council 
No. 1456, Royal Arcanum, of Keyport, 
and also a member of the committee 
on laws of the Grand Council of the 
Loyal Additional Benefit Association of 
New Jersey. He is a member of the 



Biographical Sketches. 



553 



Baptist church of Keyport, of which he 
has been a trustee. He was married in 
1868 to Miss Sarah Sprowl, daughter of 
John Sprowl, of Keyport, and they have 
two daughters : Eleanor, and Emma V. 

Mr. Arrowsmith is public-spirited and 
progressive, and has brought the public 
schools of Keyport to a degree of perfec- 
tion surpassed in no other section of the 
state. He is a man of good address and 
pleasing manners, and is widely popular. 
He brings to bear upon his work an ener- 
getic character and a well-stocked mind, 
both of which contributed to his suc- 
cessful career. 



JOSEPH M. WALLING, a well-known 
^ citizen of Keyport, Monmouth coun- 
ty, and ex-president of the board of edu- 
cation of that town, is a son of Capt. 
Thomas M. and Maria (Carhart) Walling, 
and was born June 15, 1852, at Keyport. 
The family name is of English origin, and 
the Wallings were among the first settlers 
of Monmouth county. 

Joseph M. Walling (grandfather), while 
deprived of the advantages of a liberal 
education, was a man of sterling worth 
and acknowledged business integrity. 
Early in life he married Miss Hannah, 
daughter of John Thorn, of what was 
then Middletown township, and settled 
on the shore of Raritan bay near Keans- 
burg. He engaged in what was then 
known as the "slooping business," and was 
among the first to sail a packet between 
Tanner's Landing, now Keansburg, and 
New York city; thus opening up the 
only means of communication with the 
New York markets for the agricultural 
products of Monmouth county. His 
children were Thomas M., Joel, John, 
Rachel, Sarah, Louisa and Samuel, all 



of whom lived to the age of maturity. 
He died in 1879 at the age of ninety, 
having survived all his family except his 
eldest son, Thomas M. 

Capt. Thomas M. Walling (father) was 
born at the old homestead near Keans- 
burg. At an early age he engaged with 
his father in the slooping business. At 
the age of twenty-seven he married Miss 
Maria, daughter of Cornelius Carhart, of 
Keyport. The fruit of this union was 
three sons, namely : an infant son ; 
Joseph M., and Benjamin 0., who died 
in childhood. Shortly after his marriage 
he established his home in Keyport, then 
almost in its infancy, but even at that 
time the principal port of communica- 
tion with New York, for the whole 
county, and transferred his business to 
the above-named town. He continued 
sailing a packet until shortly after the 
organization of the Keyport and New 
York Steamboat Co., when he accepted 
the position of salesman with the above- 
named company. This position he held 
until a few years before his decease, 
when, having by industry and economy 
accumulated a competency, he retired 
from business. He died Aug. 25, 1887, 
at the age of sixty-eight, leaving to his 
son the legacy of an honored memory 
and a spotless name. 

Joseph \r. Walling, subject of this 
sketch, has passed the greater portion of 
his life quietly at Keyport. He acquired 
a common-school education, finishing 
with a course in Keyport Academy. 
Upon leaving school he assisted his 
father in his business. He early mani- 
fested a love for study and a taste for 
literature. He chose the profession of 
medicine as his life work, but was com- 
pelled to desist in consequence of ill- 
health. He had previously, however, 



654 



Biographical Sketches. 



taken a course at Packard's Business ! 
College, New York citj'. 

Mr. Walling is a member of Keyport 
Calvary Methodist Episcopal church, 
and a member of the official board. He 
is a prominent member of the I. 0. 0. F., 
being a past officer of the- subordinate 
encampment and patriarchs militant 
branches of the order, and is at present 
an elective officer of the Grand Encamp- 
ment of New Jersey-. Li politics he is a 
prohibitionist, having been identified with j 
the party since 1880, and is an ardent 
advocate of its principles. He is pos- 
sessed of a strong, energetic character 
and social disposition, and is respected j 
by all his fellow-citizens. Since his 
father's death he has devoted himself to 
the interests of the estate, and the pur- 
suit of his literary tastes. He is well- 
read, and keeps in touch with the ad- 
vancement of the age. 



WASHINGTON WHITE, one of the 
founders and pioneer settlers of 
the world-renowned summer resort As- 
bury Park, and who has ever since been 
prominent in real-estate circles in that 
city, is a son of Britton and Caroline 
(Elmer) White, and was born Jan. 10, j 
1849, on the old White homestead farm, 
which has long since been absorbed 
within the present limits of the cit3^ He 
spent his early boyhood days on his 
father's farm attending irregularly the 
district schools until fourteen years of 
age, remaining with his father until he 
had attained his majority. Soon there- 
after, on July 3, 1870, he married for his 
estimable wife Evlena, a daughter of 
Samuel Brandt, who owned a large tract 
of land upon which the present town of 
North Spritig Lake is built. After his 
marriage Mr. White conducted a country 



general store, located on the Manasquan 
and Long Branch road, at what is now 
the southeast corner of Main street and 
Main avenue, Asbury Park. Here he 
enjoyed a profitable country trade for 
several years. He had already become 
interested in real-estate operations, and 
in 1886 opened an ofiice on Main street, 
where he continued up to 1895, when he 
removed to his present location at No. 
222 Main street. As a real-estate operator 
he has probably contributed more to the 
material development and improvement 
of Asbury Park in the way of building 
and improving real estate than any other 
one man, and is at present the most ex- 
tensive real-estate operator and broker in 
that city. Besides these extensive busi- 
ness interests he owns valuable orange- 
groves in Florida, and in connection with 
his real-estate business conducts an ex- 
tensive insurance and general business 
and collection agencj'. Politically he 
is a staunch democrat, and one of the 
leaders of his party in local affairs. He 
was three times elected a member of the 
board of education, serving continu- 
ously from 1881 to 1889, and has always 
been active in the educational affairs of 
his town. He is a member, and formerly 
a trustee, of the First Baptist church of 
Asbur}' Park ; a member of the Exempt 
Firemen's Association, Good Will Chemi- 
cal Engine Company, and the hose and 
ladder company. He was treasurer and 
fire commissioner of the association in 
1893, and a charter member of the Wes- 
ley Engine Company. Fx-aternally he is 
a member of Lodge No. 141, F. and A. 
M. On July 3, 1870, Mr. White was 
united in marriage to Evlena Brandt, a 
daughter of Samuel Brandt, and they 
have the following children : H. S. K., 
Alpheus M., and Fred J. 




^^^.-^.^^-e^^^P^ ^^L^^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



557 



Mr. White has been eminently success- 
ful in all his real-estate operations as 
well as in all other business enterprises 
undertaken by him and deserves to rank 
as one of the wealthiest citizens of As- 
bury Park. 

The White family is of English origin ; 
the emigrant ancestor by direct line of 
descent was Britton M. White, the sub- 
ject's grandfather, who was born at 
Red Bank, Monmouth county, New Jer- 
sey, and located at the present site of 
Asbury Park, where he became a pioneer 
settler and the proprietor of a large farm 
of two hundred acres and built what is 
known in the family as the present White 
homestead, which constitutes a part of 
the original Drummond grant from the 
English crown. His father came from 
England. Mr. White became one of the 
founders of Asbury Park and one of its 
early benefactors, contributing to its ma- 
terial development and early growth in 
a marked degree. His farm, which con- 
stituted a large part of the present site of 
that city as well as of Ocean Grove, he 
was early engaged in laying out in 
building lots and improving. He mar- 
ried a Miss Woolley, a daughter of Judiah 
Woolley, of Shrewsbury township, and 
their children, nine in number, were as 
follows : George W., J., Betsy, Deborah, 
Abigail, Britton, Judiah, Meribah and 
Drummond. 

Britton White (father of Washington 
White) was born at the old White home- 
stead at Asbury Park, 1807. He re- 
ceived his education in the public school 
of Ocean township and under private 
tutors. He remained with his father on 
the paternal homestead until he left 
home to operate a schooner on the coast 
to New York city, engaged in the pine- 
wood carrying trade, in partnership with 



his brother Judiah as owners of the ves- 
sel. They were also extensively engaged 
in the charcoal-shipping business at As- 
bury Park. Upon the dissolution of this 
partnership later Mr. White became en- 
gaged in farming at Asbury Park up to 
1870. Prom 1870 to 1883 he was en- 
gaged in real-estate speculations, and 
during that time invested in the farms 
which he owns and are now occupied by 
his sons : Eastwall, Pranklyn, B. Romeo 
White. And during the same time he 
sold from the homestead tract a building 
site to Frank G. Burnham, attorney for 
the New York Mutual Life Insurance Co. 
At the time of his death, in 1885, he was 
the owner of seven hundred acres of land 
within a radius of ten miles of Asbury 
Park. While his family was of distinct 
quaker stock and himself originally a 
quaker, he was latterly a member of the 
old Hamilton Methodist Episcopal church. 
He was actively interested in educational 
affairs, and in politics was a democrat. 



/CAPTAIN GEORGE H. GREEN, a pro- 
^-^ minent business man and progressive 
citizen of Long Branch, New Jersey, is a 
son of William and Mary Green, and was 
born at Norwalk, Conn., January 9, 1831. 
The family originated in Holland. 

William Green (father) was born at 
New York in 1809, learned the trade of a 
hatter, and followed that for many years. 
He was an adherent of the Democratic 
party. He married Mary Stout, daughter 
of Wessel T. Stout, and this union was 
blessed by the birth of one son, George H. 
Mr. Green's mother was eligible to mem- 
bership with the Daughters of the Revo- 
lution. The basis of this claim lies in 
the fact that her father, Wessel T. Stout, 
began his military career as a second 



558 



Biographical Sketches. 



lieutenant of the Fourth regiment, New 
Jersey line, Colonel Ephraim Martin ; 
and in 1777 was transferred to the Third 
regiment. New Jerse}- line. Colonel Elias 
Dayton. He was wounded during the 
raid on Long Island, Dec. 10, 1777; was 
appointed lieutenant in the First regi- 
ment. New Jersey line, Colonel Matthias 
Ogden, Nov. 3, 1783, and was discharged 
at the close of the war, a captain by 
brevet. William Green died at Long 
Branch in 1876, two years after the 
death of his wife. 

Captain George H. Green was a pupil 
in the common schools of Long Branch 
until fifteen years of age. During the 
ensuing six years he was engaged in the 
carrying trade, by boats plying between 
New Jersey and New York city and Troy, 
N. Y. When our subject had reached 
his majority he established himself in 
the meat business at Long Branch, and 
has since built up a large and very suc- 
cessful business. Thirteen dajs after 
Fort Sumter had been fired upon by the 
rebels, and Old Glory had been trailed in 
the dust of South Carolina, Mr. Green 
enlisted in Company F, Third regiment 
New Jersey infantry, and was elected 
first lieutenant. He was mustered out 
of service August 1, 1861, and in 1862 
raised a company of ninety-one men in 
forty-eight hours, and was elected its 
captain. Owing to ill health Captain 
Green was obliged to resign his commis- 
sion, Feb. 18, 1863. Our subject is an 
active supporter of the cause of prohibi- 
tion and a zealous worker in that line of 
social and political reforms. His church 
relations are with the Baptist church. 

On June 3, 1852, George H. Green mar- 
ried Miss Mary Jane Wolcott, a daughter 
of Job and Margaret Wolcott, of Long 
Branch, and they have reared the follow- 



ing family : Gi'ace (Mrs. R. Caster), Mar- 
garet (Mrs. H. Wardell), Georgiana (Mrs. 
James McLain), Estella (Mrs. Joe Rob- 
bins), Isabel (Mrs. John Bennett), Forrest, 
Charles C, Edna (deceased), Mary (de- 
ceased), and C. H. Captain Green was 
president of the board of education four- 
teen years, and casts his influence and 
energies on the side of progress and the 
welfare of his fellow-citizens. 



GEORGE W. ABBOTT, the well-known 
supervisor of the New Jersey 
Central railroad, and the efficient chief 
of police of Somerville, New Jersey, is a 
native of Bradford, N. H., where he was 
born on Nov. 17, 1828. His parents 
were Zadoc and Lydia Sargent Abbott. 
His paternal grandfather, Paul Abbott, 
was a farmer, during his life, and an old- 
line whig. He died in 1820. The fruits 
of his marriage were four children : Wind- 
sor, Zadoc, Calvin, and William. Zadoc 
Abbott (fiither) attended the common 
schools of his native town, and after 
graduating therefrom took up the occu- 
pation of farming, in which he was more 
than ordinarily successful, and which he 
followed all his life, accumulating before 
his death in 1882, extensive areas of farm 
lands. Of his marriage there was as 
issue : Harriet, married to Theodore 
Ashby ; Amanda, married to A. J. 
Kendall ; George W., Frederick, Edwin 
and Benjamin. He was a republican in 
politics, and a member of the Christian 
church. 

George W. Abbott was educated in the 
public schools, and passed through all 
their grades. He then began farming, but 
at the end of two years left his native 
place and removed to Massachusetts, 
where he remained several years. In 



Biographical Sketches. 



559 



1862 he came to Somerville, where he 
has smce lived, constantly growing in the 
estimation of his fellow- townsmen, until 
it is but simple justice to say that 
he possesses the absolute confidence and 
respect of all who know him. Perfectly 
straight-forward in all his business affairs, 
courteous in his demeanor to all with 
whom he comes in contact, of a kindly 
and sympathetic nature, he is regarded 
as a model citizen. Since his residence 
in Somerville he has been supervisor of 
the New Jersey Central railroad, and is 
now the chief of police of the town. He 
is a republican in politics and has served 
as town commissioner. He is also a mem- 
ber of the Knights of Honor, and the 
L. 0. R. C. He married Lydia M. Colby, 
daughter of Daniel and Lucy Colby. 
Their marriage has been blessed with 
four children : Addie, married to H. N. 
Amerman ; Edwin, George W., Jr., and 
Blanche V. 



T3EV. JOHN HART, minister of the 
-L I' Reformed church at Neshanic, New 
Jersey, comes from a family whose ances- 
tors were, on the paternal side, among the 
first settlers of Bucks county. Pa., hav- 
ing come from England with William 
Penn, was born July 17, 184.3, and is a 
son of William R. Hart and Mary (Robb) 
Hart, who was born Feb. 29, 1816, the 
daughter of Richard Robb, Esq., of Hunl^ 
ingdon Valley, Montgomery county, Pa.; 
she died August 22, 1877. His grand- 
father, John Hart, was a native of Jack- 
sonville, Bucks county, Pa., and died in 
1841. During his life-time he followed 
the occupations of merchant and farmer. 
William R. Hart (father) was born at 
Jacksonville, Bucks county, Pa., on 
June 5, 1812, and died March 28, 1892. 
During a part of his life he followed the 



occupations of a farmer and merchant, 
and for some years was a school-teacher. 
He was also, for a certain period, in busi- 
ness in Philadelphia. His children were : 
John, Richard R., Sarah D., Anna R., 
deceased ; and Mary W., married to 
Franklin Ware, of Woodbury, New Jer- 
sey. 

Rev. John Hart received his early 
education in both Bucks and Montgomery 
counties at the public schools, and then 
entered Rutgers College, from which he 
graduated in 1869. In the same year 
he entered the Theological Seminary of 
the Reformed church of America at New 
Brunswick, graduating therefrom in 1872. 
Immediately upon his graduation he set- 
tled as pastor of Locust Valley Reformed 
church. Locust Valley, Long Island, N. 
Y., and remained with that church about 
three years. He then, in 1875, went to 
Neshanic, New Jersey, where he became 
associated with the Rev. Gabriel Ludlow, 
D.D., of the Neshanic Reformed church, 
and has officiated in that church from 
that time until the present. In 1873, 
Oct. 23, he married Anna Fish Under- 
bill, daughter of Judge H. B. Underbill, 
late of San Francisco, Cal. ; whose wife 
was Harriet Fish, of Athol, Mass. This 
marriage has been blessed with two sons 
and one daughter : Henry U., born Sept. 
15, 1874, a graduate of Rutgers College, 
and now studying law in the New York 
Law School ; William Reese, born August 
31, 1877, now attending Rutgers College; 
and Helen Raymond, born July 7, 1886. 
All the children make their home with 
the parents. 

Mr. Hart is a devoted churchman and 
a sincere christian. His entire life has 
been devoted to the gospel ministry, and 
his labors, in connection with his church 
at Neshanic, have been indefatigable. 



560 



Biographical Sketches. 



Gentle in his character, sympathetic in 
his feelings, ardent in his church work, 
he has now the sincere resj^ect and esteem 
of all who have come in contact with 
him during his busy life. 



JAMES H. GORDON, of the firm of 
Howell & Gordon, and at one time 
ex-officio mayor of South Amboy, New 
Jersey, is a son of Patrick and Bridget 
(McGuire) Gordon, and was born Aug. 12, 
1855, in that town. The Gordons are 
originally of Scotch extraction, but there 
is a union of Irish and Scotch blood in 
the veins of the subject of this sketch. 
The gi'andfather, James Gordon, was born 
in Scotland, but left that country in 1821, 
and made his home in Ireland. He was 
a dealer and trader in cattle, and carried 
on that business very successfully for 
many years. His most profitable mar- 
kets were the county fairs, wliere exhibits 
of his live stock were always to be seen. 
In religion he was a follower of that 
sturdy old reformer John Knox, a mem- 
ber of the Scotch Presbyterian church. 
His children were : Ann, Mary, and 
Patrick. 

Patrick Gordon (father) was born at 
County Roscommon, Ireland, in 1829. 
He emigrated to this country in 1849, 
and settled in Matawan, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey. He worked on the 
turnpike in that vicinity for several 
years; subsequently removed to South 
Aml)oy, where he took to railroading, 
and finally settled down to his life-occu- 
pation, a driller of cars. This business 
he continues to the present time, in the 
employ of the Pennsylvania railroad. 
He has been very successful, and has 
accumulated some real estate. In poli- 
tics he is a democrat, and in religion a 



member of the Catholic church. His 
children are : Thomas, a grocer in South 
Amboy ; James H., Mary Ann, now Mrs. 
Charles Timmins ; and Patrick, who is 
engaged in mercantile business at Perth 
Amboy, New Jersey . 

James H. Gordon attended the com- 
mon schools of South Amboy until he 
was seventeen j-^U's of age. He then 
became a clerk in a general mercantile 
store, kept by B. T. Howell in South 
Amboy, and his fidelity and devotion to 
his employer's interests soon won him 
repeated promotions, until he reached 
the position of first clerk. In 1881 Mr. 
Howell admitted him into partnership, 
under the firm name of Howell & Gordon. 
It is to-day a substantial and prosperous 
house, with a business that is steadily 
increasing, and which furnishes employ- 
ment for a corps of five salesmen. Mr. 
Gordon invested his surplus earnings in 
real estate, from time to time, and its 
enhancement in value has brought him 
generous returns. He is a democrat in 
political creed, and has held several im- 
portant offices. In 1887 he was elected 
township collector of his native town, 
and served one year, declining another 
term which was proffered him. He be- 
came a member of the town council in 
1889, and remained in that body for six 
consecutive years. He was elected to 
the presidency of council at the beginning 
of his last term, 1894 to 1895, during 
which time he acted as mayor, and was 
invested with all the duties and preroga- 
tives pertaining to that office. He also 
served four years as chairman of the 
financial committee of council. Mr. Gor- 
' don is a catholic in religious belief, and a 
member of that church in South Amboy. 
He was married in Oct., 1884, to Catha- 
rine Bowe, of South Amboy, Middlesex 



BioGRAPHiCAi. Sketches. 



561 



county, New Jersey. They have five 
children : Julia, Francis Henry and The- 
resa, both attending the parochial schools 
of St. Mary's, South Amboy ; Yita, and 
James Edward. Mr. Gordon is an enter- 
prising and progressive man in civic as 
well as in business pfFairs, a fact amply 
attested by the local prominence thrust 
upon him by the people of South Amboy. 



/CHARLES W. BROWER, a well-known 
^^ hotel-keeper and i-espected citizen 
of Farmingdale, Monmouth county, and 
an honorable ex-soldier of the civil war, 
is a son of Gilbert V. and Ann Maria 
(Haskett) Brower,*and was born Jan. 12, 
1840, in Marlboro township, Monmouth 
county. When he was four years old 
his family moved to Holmdel, where he 
was educated. He worked on his father's 
farm, near Holmdel, until he was seven- 
teen years old, and then on the Burnett 
farm, in the same vicinity, until the out- 
break of the war. On Jan. 12, 1862, Mr. 
Brower enlisted in the Fourth Heavy 
artillery of New York, which was con- 
nected with the Second, Fifth, and Sixth 
army corps during various campaigns. 
He was engaged upon the capital de- 
fences near Washington for six or seven 
months, and was located on Hart's Island 
during the early part of 1865. At the 
close of the war he obtained an honor- 
able discharge, signed by regular army 
officers, including Maj.-Gen. John C. Tib- 
ball, and was mustered out on Sept. 26, 
1865. He returned to Freehold, and in 
the spring of 1866 entered the butcher 
business in Eatontown township, in co- 
partnership with W. A. Worthley, where 
he remained for six months. He then 
turned his attention to the hotel business. 
He was connected with the Eatontown 

29 



Hotel for a year, then with the Railroad 
Hotel at Farmingdale from Dec. 1, 1865, 
to May 1, 1871, and subsequently with 
the old Union Hotel at Freehold. On 
April 1, 1872, he located permanently 
in Farmingdale, and established an in- 
dependent hostelry known as Brower' s 
Hotel, which he has conducted success- 
fully ever since. The hotel is situated 
on Railroad avenue, where he has accom- 
modation for forty guests, with livery 
and boarding stables attached with pro- 
visions for twenty-five animals. In po- 
litical convictions Mr. Brower is a demo- 
crat, and served as school trustee in 
district No. 104 for nine years, resigning 
in the spring of 1891. He was one of the 
original members, and is now treasurer 
and a director of the Farmingdale Im- 
provement Co., a stock concern, which 
donated land and buildings for a car- 
riage company's factory. He is a mem- 
ber of Lodge No. 20, I. 0. 0. F., of Free- 
hold, and treasiu'er of Squankum Tribe, 
No. 39, I. 0. R. M., of Farmingdale. 
On March 27, 1872, he was married to 
Miss Martha E. Young, daughter of Jacob 
Young, a well-known citizen of Free- 
hold, by whom he has had three chil- 
di-en: William I., special passenger agent 
with the Central railroad of New Jersey; 
Charles C, in mercantile business at 
Farmingdale, and George P., a student 
at the graded school. 

Mr. Brower possesses a wide degi-ee of 
popularity, and is respected for his posi- 
tion and social talents, as well as his hon- 
orable war record. He is energetic and 
progressive, and has devoted much time 
and thought to the improvement of 
Farmingdale, being regarded as one of 
the leading men of the town. 

Mr. Brower is of Holland-Dutch des- 
cent, his original ancestors in this section 



562 



Biographical Sketches. 



of New Jersey having settled here in 
1GS3. His grandfather, Isaac I. Brower, 
was a carpenter near Colt's Neck, Mon- 
mouth count}, and was a faithful ad- 
herent of the Marlboro Dutch Reformed 
church. Gilbert V. Brower (father) was 
born in 1810, in Marlboro township, 
where he was educated and spent his 
early life as a farmer. He afterwards 
occupied and successfully operated the 
old Crawford farm, in Holmdel township, 
where he was widely and favoraljly 
known. He was an active republican in 
politics, and a member of the Dutch Re- 
formed church. He was twice married ; 
his first wife was Miss Ann Maria Has- 
keth, daughter of William Hasketh, of 
New York, who died in 1857, and by 
whom he had five children : Charles W., 
William H., sailor and master captain on 
coast-trade vessels for a number of 3ears, . 
and was lost at sea in April, 1874 ; 
Amelia, spinster, residing in New York 
city ; Christiana, deceased wife of S. A. 
Van Cleef, of Freehold, and Sarah, de- 
ceased wife of Garret Brower, of Marl- 
boro. By his second wife, Miss Amelia 
Hasketh, he had two children : Alonzo, 
a prominent builder and contractor of 
Freehold, and De Witt C, of Ncav York 
city. j\lr. Gilbert V. Brower (father) 
died in January, 1857. 



county, this state. He acquired such 
mental training as the common schools 
of his day afibi'ded, and then learned the 
carpenter trade. He followed this trade 
as a joui'neyman but a few years, when 
he engaged in contracting and building, 
which he followed successfully all his 
life. He died in New Brunswick in 
1851, aged fiftj'-four j'ears. Politically 
he affiliated with the Republican part}', 
and religiously Avith the Reformed 
church. He married Jennie A. Reed, 
who survives her husband, and resides at 
New Brunswick. 

J. Fred Gibson obtained a good ele- 
mentary education in the high schools of 
New Brunswick, and at the early age of 
sixteen, accepted a position as traveling 
salesman for Goger's silverware company. 
He I'epresented this companj^ about two 
3'ears, when he accepted a position with 
Mathusek & Son, piano manufacturers of 
New York city. This firm takes rank 
with the leading high-grade jjiano manu- 
facturers of the country, and has estab- 
lished warehouses in every large city in 
the United States. They are the sole 
manufacturers of the double sounding- 
board pianos. Mr. Gibson is a republi- 
can, and a member of the German Re- 
formed church. F^raternall}-, he is a 
member of Union Lodge, No. Ill, F. and 
A. M., and Good Will Council, Jr. 0. 
U. A. M. 



T FRED. GIBSON, manager of Mathu- 
^ • sek & Son's branch piano store at 
New Brunswick, New Jeisej^ is a son 
of Jesse and Jennie A. (Reed) Gibson, 
and was born in New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, Feb. 20, 1870. His paternal an- 
cestors were of Holland-Dutch extract- 
tion, and his maternal ancestors were of 
French Huguenot stock. His father, 
Jesse Gibson, was born in Monmouth 



T3)EV. WILLIAM HANSON -BEAN, 
-L^ the popular young rector of St. 
Mary's Protestant Episcopal church at 
Keyport, Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
is a son of William and Emily Hanson- 
Bean, and was born Oct. 10, 18G4, at 
Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. 

His father, William Bean, was a native 
of England, born at York, Eng., and 



Biographical Sketches. 



563 



deceased April 7, 1871, at Oshawa. He 
was the owner of the " Ontario Flour 
Mills," near Toronto. His mind was un- 
usually well stored with useful informa- 
tion; kept himself acquainted, even 
familiar with the happenings of the day, 
and enjoyed a wide friendship both here 
and in England. In religious faith and 
worship he was a member of the Church 
of England, which he regularly attended, 
but was at no time especially active in 
church woi'k. He was married to Emily 
Hanson, at Toronto, who yet survives, 
residing at Keyport with her son. Rev. 
W. Hanson-Bean, and daughter Anna, 
who comprise the issue of her marriage. 
Rev. W. Hanson-Bean received his 
preliminary education from the common 
schools at Oshawa, and subsequently he 
attended a collegiate institute at Whitby, 
until 1883. In that year he became an 
educator, himself teaching school at 
Scarboro, suburbs of Toronto, where his 
acquirements, allied to his strong natural 
ability, paved the way to five years of 
active usefulness in that honorable pro- 
fession. When he subsequently ceased 
teaching to enter college, he carried with 
him strong endorsements as an able, ac- 
complished preceptor, from the minister 
of education for Ontario and the trustees 
of his school. In 1888 Mr. Bean entered 
Trinity College, Toronto, where he made 
a record as an untiring student, and a 
leader in his classes, and from which he 
was graduated with earnest testimonials 
from the faculty in 1891. After leaving 
college, he was a missionary among the 
Indians at Sault Ste. Marie for three 
months, after which he was made assis- 
tant to the present bishop of Alaska, 
remaining two years. After attending a 
course of theological lectures at the 
General Theological Seminary, of New 



York city, Mr. Bean, in 1894, was or- 
dained a deacon of the Protestant Epis- 
copal church in that city, by Bishop 
Potter. He received the orders of priest- 
hood in the Church of the Holy Com- 
munion, of New York city, from the 
hands of Bishop Talbot. In 1894 Rev. 
Bean accepted a call to the rectorship of 
St. Mary's Protestant Episcopal church 
of Keyport, New Jersey, where he still 
remains in pleasant communion with his 
parishioners, and successfully dispensing 
unto them the bread of life. When he 
assumed this charge he discovered the 
church to be not in a very flourishing 
condition ; but his energy and ambition, 
his tact and eloquence, speedily. infused 
new life into the church, and insjiired 
fresh hope in the hearts of its vestry and 
members. His pastorate thus far has 
been more than successful, and he has 
accomplished more for the betterment of 
the spiritual and financial condition of 
his church in two short years than any 
rector who has preceded him. He enjoys 
the respect and confidence of his people, 
and has a host of admiring friends, secta- 
rian and otherwise, throughout Keyport 
and vicinity. Rev. Bean, besides his 
ability as an educator and his present 
success as a minister of the Gospel, is 
also an orator, having occupied by special 
invitation a number of pulpits and plat- 
forms in New York and New Jersey. 
Personally he is a gentleman of splendid 
physique and bearing, genial in manner, 
and an accomplished conversationalist. 
He belongs to Lebanon Lodge, No. 139, 
A. F. and A. M. (G. R. C), Oshawa, 
Ontario, Canada; Mackinac Lodge, No. 
207, I. 0. 0. F., St. Ignace, Mich., and 
Gateway City Lodge, No. 93, K. P., St. 
Ignace, Mich. His only sister, Miss 
Anna Bean, M. E. L., A. T. C. M., is 



564 



Biographical Sketches. 



also a versatile, cultivated personage, 
enjojdng the distinction of being the most 
skillful musician in the state of New 
Jersey, and bearing diplomas for the per- 
fection in her art from the following col- 
leges of music : Conservatory of Music, i 
Toronto, and at examinations for degrees ' 
at Trinity University obtained first-class 
rating ; examiners were : W. H. Long- 
Ilurst, Mus. Doc, organist of Canterbury 
cathedral, England ; E. M. Lott, Mus. 
Doc, organist of St. Sepulchre's church, 
Holburn, London, Eng., and W. A. Bar- 
ett, Mus. Doc, Trinity University. 



~r\R. JOHN S. VANMARTER stands 
-'— ^ among the foremost of the medical 
practitioners of New Brunswick. Born 
in 1831, at Ringoes, Hunterdon county. 
New Jerse}', of Holland-Dutch parentage, 
he has shown in his career the solid, 
sterling qualities of his ancestry. 

His grandfather, William Vanmarter, 
was a native of Holland, and followed 
the occupation of a farmer all his life. 
A member of the Dutch Reformed i 
church, he gave an example of sturdy 
Christianity which has been closely fol- j 
lowed by his descendants to their honor, 
and to the benefit of the communities in 
which they have passed their lives. To 
him were born six children : A. 0., Ben- 
jamin, William, Elizabeth (Mrs. William 
Turner), Rebecca, married to Wm. Ely; 
and Joseph, the father of tlie subject of 
this sketch. His death, March 5, 1860, 
was caused by a kick from a vicious 
horse. 

Joseph Vanmarter (father) contented 
himself with the practical education 
which a public school afforded, followed 
in the footsteps of his father in respect to 
occupation, although on a more exten- 



sive scale, since he cultivated a farm of 
three hundred acres in Hunterdon county. 
New Jersey. He was a life-long demo- 
crat, an active member in the Presby- 
terian church, and a patriot, for he par- 
ticipated in the war of 1812, and lell a 
legacy of soldierly bravery to his chil- 
dren, of" which they have every reason to 
be proud. He married, his wife dying in 
1854, and to their union were born eight 
childi'cn : Martha Maria, who married 
John H. Philips : William, who married 
Maria El}-, deceased ; Elizabeth T., who 
married George Ely ; Amanda Malvina, 
who married Jonathan Blackwell ; Jacob 
S., married Mary C. Stryker ; Theodore 
Y., mari'ied Anna Schauck ; Gertrude 
Vandeveer, who married Cornelius Vree- 
land; and John S., the subject of this 
sketch. 

John S. Vanmarter showed early in 
life that he possessed in an eminent 
degree the qualities of sound common 
sense, energy, and that uprightness of 
conduct which naturally came to him 
with his Holland-Dutch blood. Having 
laid the foundation of a liberal education 
at a common school, he entered Ringoes 
Academy, finished a course there with 
honors, then entered the University of 
Pennsylvania, taking both a literary and 
a medical course, and graduated in medi- 
cine in 1855. Beginning his medical 
practice at Ringoes, he remained there 
two years ; but finding his field too cir- 
cumscribed, wiseh" chose to make New 
Brunswick his permanent home in 1867. 
Since then, through the possession of a 
medical knowledge of more than ordi- 
nary character, and a synipath^' and 
kindness of heart which endears him to 
his patients, he has built up a practice 
which is both extensive and lucrative. 
While the exigencies of his profession 



Biographical Sketches. 



565 



have prevented his taking any active 
part in politics, he has, nevertheless, 
been a life-long democrat, as also a mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church. 

Dr. Vanmarter was first married to 
Sarah J. Holcomb, Oct. 29, 1859, his 
wife dying Dec. 15, 1883. His second 
marriage was to Emma Louisa Voor- 
hees, of Boston, Mass., on Oct. 13, 1885, 
she dying March 1, 1887. His third 
marriage was to Catharine C. Hendi'icks, 
of New Brunswick, New Jersey, on 
March 27, 1889. Dr. Vanmarter pro- 
fessionally is progressive, and stands de- 
servedly high, while as a citizen he is 
faithful to all the demands of good citi- 
zenship. He is universally esteemed by 
all who know him. 



TOHN A. WORTHLEY, a retired busi- 
^ ness man of Red Bank, who by 
close application to business, careful and 
economic habits won success, is a son of 
John and Elizabeth Chandler Worthley, 
and was born near Red Bank, in Shrews- 
bury township, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, March 23, 1824. His paternal 
great-grandfather was of Scotch-English 
stock, and was born on the boundary 
line between England and Ireland. He 
emigrated to the United States when a 
young man, and settled at a place known 
as Little Silver, near Red Bank. Here 
he passed the remainder of his life and 
reared a large family. One of his sons, 
Richard Worthley, grandfather of the 
subject, was born and reared upon the 
homestead farm, and passed his entire life 
near the- place of his birth engaged in 
farming. He was an old-line whig and a 
methodist. He married Elizabeth Chad- 
wick, by whom he had four children, 
three daughters and one son : Polly, 



wedded to J. Chandler ; Hulda, to Cap- 
tain John Doughty; Jane, to John 
Taylor; John, the father of the subject 
of this sketch, and Elizabeth Chandler. 
John Worthley was born near Red Bank 
in the year 1795, and died there in the 
year 1883, having resided in the vicinity 
all his life. He learned the mason trade 
but not being to his taste he abandoned 
it, and engaged in boating and oyster 
fishing, which combined avocations he 
pursued the remainder of his active life. 
Politically he was an old-line whig, and 
served in the war of 1812-14. His 
family consisted of six children : Anna 
M., deceased, who was the wife of J. W. 
King ; Lewis C, residing at Little Silver ; 
John A., Hulda, the relict of Robert 
Brower ; Deborah A., widow of the late 
Jacob Hyer, and Elizabeth, married to J. 
De Witt Fay. He was married the 
second time to Elizabeth Borden, having 
one issue, Mary Melissa, now the wife of 
John Valentine, of Red Bank. 

John A. Worthley' s educational ad- 
vantages were very limited. He attended 
the district schools but a short time, 
having to walk a distance of two miles. 
As soon as he became old enough to as- 
sist his father he was taken on the boat, 
and initiated into oyster fishing. He 
soon learned the business, and at the 
early age of thirteen years, he embarked 
in the oyster-fishing business on his own 
account. He continued this line, gradu- 
ally increasing his business until 1844, 
when he took charge of a market boat, 
running from Red Bank to New York 
city. Subsequently he operated a lumber 
boat, running to Albany, the capital of 
New York. In 1854 he engaged in the 
wholesale and retail coal business at Red 
Bank, and did the largest coal business 
in the state up to when he retired from 



666 



Biographical Sketches. 



business and was succeeded by his son, 
Wm. N. Wortbley. He is a republican 
in political texture, but takes no interest 
in politics, aside from casting his ballot 
for those whom he considers best qualified 
to fill the office. He is not a regular mem- 
ber of any church, but is a liberal sui> 
porter of Grace Methodist Episcopal 
church, at Red Bank. He took an active 
interest in the organization of this church, 
and has served as trustee ever since its 
organization. Fraternally he is a mem- 
ber at Navesink Lodue, No. 39, I. 0. 0. 
F. ; Neptune Encampment, No. 45, and 
Shrewsbury Lodge, No. 72, K. of P. 
On Dec. 20, 1848, Mr. Worthley and 
Miss Catharine M. Norris, a daughter of 
John E. Norris, of Red Bank, were 
united in marriage, and their union has 
been blessed with seven children : George 
G., Ehzabeth, deceased ; John A., Wil- 
liam N., Harry A., Charles, and Freder- 
ick, who died young. 



T lEUT. A. C. HARRISOX, one of the 
-*— ' heroes of the civil Avar, now a 
dealer in wall paper at Red Bank, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, is a son of 
Robert and Cornelia (Dennis) Harrison, 
and was born, April 24, 1844, at Rum- 
son Beach, Monmouth count}'. His orig- 
inal ancestors were natives of England, 
the latest of whom was his paternal 
grandfather. The maternal great-grand- 
father, John G. Dennis, was born in this 
country. He was a shoemaker and a 
farmer at Rumson, and was a member of 
the Dutch Reformed church. The ma- 
ternal grandfather, Anthony Dennis, was 
born at Rum.son, where he received a 
common-school education. He owned a 
small farm of good land near Rumson, 
on which he resided all his life as a shoe- 



maker and a farmer. He was an old- 
line whig, but never occupied public 
office. In religion he was a member of 
the Reformed church at Shrewsbury, 
New Jerse}'. When the British forces 
landed at Town Neck, on the Jersey 
coast, he volunteered to carrj- some dis- 
patches to the headquarters of the Amer- 
ican army, near Jamesburg. He secreted 
the dispatches between the soles of his 
boots, and, throwing two bags of grain 
on his horse, he mounted, and started on 
Ids perilous journey. Intercepted by the 
t<couts of the enemy, as he expected, he 
readily deceived them by his explanation 
that he was going to the mill with his 
grain, and they suffered him to pass 
them. He immediately threw over his 
grain, dashed furiously towards the Amer- 
ican camp, and delivered the dispatches 
in safety. He was the father of eleven 
children : Anthony, Samuel, Newton, 
William, and Jacob, all deceased ; Ben- 
jamin, residing in New York ; Edwin 
residing at Long Branch, New Jersey, in 
his eighty-third year ; Hannah, deceased, 
wife of John Conover; Clementine, de- 
ceased, wife of William Henry Osborne ; 
Sarah, widow of George Lippincott, who 
was a farmer at Little Sih'^er and Cor- 
nelia. 

The paternal grandfather, Charles 
Henry Harrison, was born near London, 
England. He received a common-school 
education, and became a baker by trade. 
He emigrated to this country, and settled 
at Galveston, Texas, where he became a 
farmer, and continued in that occupation 
all his life. In religious matters he was 
a member of the Reformed church in 
Galveston. His two sons were : William, 
a soldier in the confederate army ; and 
Robert, father of subject. 

Robert Harrison (father) was born at 



Biographical Sketches. 



567 



Galveston, Texas. He received a com- 
mon-school education, and afterwards 
learned the trade of a baker, under his 
father's direction. He followed that busi- 
ness for twenty years. Politically he 
was an old-line whig, and in religion was 
a member of the Reformed church, an 
active and an earnest christian. He de- 
ceased off the coast of Florida, en route 
to New York city, in 1847, of yellow 
fever. His widow yet survives him, and 
is residing at Red Bank. They had but 
one son, A. C, the subject of this sketch. 
A. C. Harrison attended the common 
schools at Little Silver, where he re- 
ceived his primary education, and later 
attended, for three years, a New York 
school, and, for two years, the Ocean In- 
stitute, near Ocean Port, New Jersey. 
He then learned the trade of a machin- 
ist. He was subsequently employed in 
various pursuits. On August 14, 1862, 
Mr. Harrison, then eighteen years of age, 
enlisted in the Fourteenth regiment. New 
Jersey infantry. He saw active and 
almost continuous service until the close 
of the civil war. He participated in 
thirty-one engagements with the enemy, 
and was twice wounded, once at the 
battle of Cold Harbor and again before 
Petersburg, Va., but on neither of these 
occasions did he retire from the field. 
He was in the battle of Locust Grove, 
the battle of the Wilderness, Spottsyl- 
vania. Cedar Creek, Petersbui'g, and Win- 
chester, and was with Sheridan in all his 
campaigns. He was promoted at various 
times, from the rank of second sergeant 
to that of first lieutenant. At the close 
of the war he returned to Red Bank, 
where he was occupied for several years 
in different pursuits, among which was 
that of the meat business for four years. 
During six years he was engaged in the 



carpet business in New York city. He 
opened an establishment at Red Bank in 
1882 for the sale and the hanging of wall 
paper, to which he has devoted himself 
ever since. Mr. Harrison has been town 
clerk of Red Bank for the past seven 
years, and, in May, 1896, was elected to an 
additional term of three years. He has like- 
wise for seven years been clerk of Shrews- 
bury township, and was re-elected in 
March, 1896, to another term of three 
years. Politically he is an active mem- 
Iser aiid worker in the Republican party, 
and religiously is a member of the First 
Baptist church of Red Bank, to which 
communion he was admitted in. 1860. 
He is a member of the following orders 
at Red Bank : Navesink Lodge, No. 39, 
I. 0. 0. F. ; and Post No. 61, G. A. R. 
He was married, Sept. 3, 1871, to Lydia 
A. Chadwick, a daughter of L. D. and 
Elizabeth Chadwick. of Fair Haven, New 
Jersey. There have been eight children 
born to this union : John L., May 0., 
married to James Bunell, of Red Bank ; 
Lionel Grant, Albert C, Jr., Joseph S., 
Clinton W., Walter, and Millicent. 

Mr. Harrison, in 1888, admitted his 
son, John L., into partnership with him, 
and the business is conducted under the 
firm name of A. C. Harrison & Son. 
There is no man in Red Bank who more 
thoroughly commands the confidence and 
esteem of his fellow-townsmen "than Mr. 
Harrison, and there is no one more 
worthy. He is a good man and true, a 
successful merchant, who began with 
nothing but sand ; and an ex-soldier, 
loyal and brave. 



T YMAN CRONK, a prominent lumber 
-L^ dealer and manufacturer of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Nathaniel and Abigail (Judson) Cronk, 



568 



Biographical Sketches. 



.and was boru at Koxbury, Delaware j 
county, N. Y., March 12, 1838. His 
great-grandfather, Lawrence Cronk, emi- 
grated from HoUand in about the jear 
1770, and settled in Delaware county, 
N. Y. He served as a jDrivate in the 
Revolutionary war, and died in the ser- 
vice, leaving one son, Lawrence Cronk, 
Jr., who was born in Tarrytown, N. Y., 
in ] 805, and who was the grandfather of 
the subject of this sketch. The grand- 
mother's maiden name was Nancy Crary. 
They had born to them ten children, the 
fourth child, Nathaniel, being the father 
of Mr. Cronk. He followed the occupa- 
tion of a farmer during his life, and died 
in 1872, at the age of sixty-seven years. 
He was in politics a whig until the forma- 
tion of the Republican party, with which 
he united. The mother of Mr. Cronk 
was a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, and died in 1881, at the age of 
eighty-four years. Their children were : 
Harvey B. Volney, Laura, Alvah, Lyman, 
Du Bois, and Martin. 

L^-man Cronk received his education 
at the common schools in his native 
county, and was then empkned on his 
father's farm, until he had arrived at the 
age of fourteen ^ears, after which he 
found employment with diffei'ent formers 
in the neighborhood for the next seven 
years. In March, 1861, he was engaged 
on a stea'mboat at South Amboy, running 
between that city and New York. He 
continued in that service until Nov. 1862, 
when he enlisted in the United States 
navy, and was attached to the ship "Com- 
modore Morris," commanded by Captain 
James Gilles. The special duty of this ves- 
sel consisted in cruising around the James 
and York rivers and Chesapeake bay, and 
doing picket duty in the first-named river, 
watching especially for the appearance of 



the second " Merrimac." He was honor- 
ablv discharged from the service, on Nov. 
7, i863. 

Upon leaving the navy he removed 
to the west, located at Champagne city, 
111., and remained there, as clerk in a 
grocery store, for about one year. Re- 
turning to New Jersey he located in New 
Brunswick, and obtained employment as 
clerk in a grocery store, which he retained 
for six years, when he engaged in manu- 
facturing packing-boxes on his own ac- 
count, on John street, which business he 
has successfully followed ; adding to it 
the making of sash, doors, blinds, mould- 
ings, etc., and dealing in lumber. 

Mr. Cronk is an active and public- 
spirited citizen, and takes an especial in- 
terest in local politics. He has been a 
member of the board of aldermen of New 
Brunswick for one term, and of the county 
executive committee. He is a member 
of the board of trade ; Union Lodge, No. 

19, F. and A. M; New Brunswick Lodge, 
No. 6, I. 0. 0. F. ; and of Robert Boggs 
Post, G. A. R. He is a zealous member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church, one 
of its stewards, and treasurer of its finan- 
cial board. Mr. Cronk was married in 
1866 to Anna A. Clayton, daughter of 
James G. Clayton, of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey. She died on Oct. 28, 1892, 
at the age of forty-nine years. To this 
marriage were born six children, three of 
whom died in early childhood, the others 
being Hubert B., born May 8, 1872, and 
now in his father's employ as book- 
keeper; Sadie L., born Nov. 19, 1875; 
aud Edward Irving, born Nov. 29, 1876, 
and now a student of Hahnemann Medical 
College, of Philadelphia, Pa. On June 

20, 1891, Mr. Cronk married Miss Carrie 
L. Laird, his pi'esent wife, a daughter of 
Alexander and Hannah Laird, of Pleasant 





/-St 




'M^, 



Biographical Sketches. 



571 



Plains, New Jersey. By this marriage 
there has been no issue. 

Mr. Cronk is deeply interested in the 
welfare and prosperity of his native city, 
and is always ready to uphold the prin- 
ciples of municipal and national integrity. 



"TOHN N. PETERSON, an active and 
^ enterprising young business man of 
Perth Ambo}^, Middlesex county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Peter and Inger 
(Larsen) Peterson, and was born June 
27, 1871, in Denmark. His paternal 
grandfather, Peter Peterson, was a Dan- 
ish subject. He spent his days in culti- 
vating the soil of his native country, 
and died a very prosperous man. 

Peter (father) commenced life as a 
farmer in Denmark. He afterward en- 
gaged in the grocery trade, and subse- 
quently became a contractor and builder. 
He had a natural taste for machinery 
which he fostered until he became an in- 
genious mechanic. In all his undertak- 
ings he was more than successful and 
became quite wealthy. He has eight 
children, all of whom are living : Maren, 
Peter, Lars, Christine, Annie, Nels, 
Christian and John N. 

John N. Peterson first found employ- 
ment in a bottling house, where he re- 
mained a year. He then learned the 
trade of tailoring and pursued that busi- 
ness until 1890, when he emigrated to 
the United States, landing in New York 
city on March 25, of that year. He 
came thence to Perth Amboy and re- 
sumed his trade at tailoring for a brief 
period. Quitting that occupation after 
a lapse of a few.months, he obtained em- 
ployment in the terra-cotta works. This 
business proved congenial to his taste, but 
in a short while an opening offering itself 



in Brooklyn, N. Y , at his old trade in the 
clothing business, he removed to that 
city and remained upwards of a year. 
He then returned to Perth Amboy, and 
after a few months opened an establish- 
ment for himself at 205 State street, in 
that town, where he enjoyed a most pro- 
fitable trade for the ensuing four years. 
He then removed to his present location. 
No. 213 State street, where he conducts 
the business of a merchant tailor and a 
general supplier of gentlemen's requis- 
ites. 

Mr. Peterson is energetic and enter- 
prising. He is now also engaged in the 
erection of an extensive plant in Perth 
Amboy, for the brewing of malt liquors. 



PETER A. VOORFIEES, ex-member of 
the legislature, and for many years 
one of the most prominent business men 
of Somerset county, was born at Har- 
lingen. New Jersey, Nov. 6, 1802. He 
received his education in the common 
schools of his native place, and soon after 
attaining his majority removed to Six 
Mile Run, now Franklin Park, New 
Jersey. In connection with his other 
business interests Mr. Voorhees devoted 
some time to the political affairs of his 
district, and in 1831 was elected clerk of 
Franklin township, which office he held 
for two years. In 1833 his fellow-citi- 
zens voted him the office of assessor, 
which position he filled for five suc- 
cessive years. In 1838 he was honored 
with the responsible and important office 
of sherift' of Somerset county, and per- 
formed the functions of said office with 
great zeal and ability. He was elected 
county collector of Somerset county in 
1857 and served until 1862. During his 
term in the general assembly, to which 



572 



Biographical Sketches. 



he was elected in 1867, he showed earn- 
est zeal for the best legislative measures j 
to be had, and valiantlj'' defended and 
asserted the rights and needs of his con- 
stituents and the commonwealth. Mr. 
Voorliees was actively interested in the 
agricultural affairs of his county and 
state ; and among other important posi- 
tions served as president of the State 
Agricultural Society of New Jerse}' dur- 
ing 1863 and 1864, and was for a num- 
ber of years a director of the National 
Bank of New Brunswick. He was a 
member of the Dutch Reformed church 
at Six Mile Run, and filled the import- 
ant offices of elder and deacon. He was 
a liberal contributor to the support of 
the church, and a substantial friend of 
Rutgers College. He was also a member 
of the board of superintendents of the 
New Brunswick Theological Seminaiy, 
aud materially assisted several young 
men to prepare for the ministry. 

Peter A. Voorhees married Maria Suj*- 
dam, Jan. 18, 1825. This estimable 
lady died Jan. 17, 1883, aged sevent^^- 
seven years. Their union resulted in 
the following-named children : Garretta, 
born Jan. 21, 1826, and Mary H., born 
Sept. 21, 1833. 

In 1846 Garretta married Mr. J. Boyd 
Van Doren, and became the mother of 
the following children : Ellen Van Doren, 
who is now the wife of Rev. J. Q. 0. Ful- 
lerton ; Peter A. V. Van Doren, a lawj-er 
of Princeton, and Mary H., married to 
J. Calvin Hoagland, Jan. 8, 1868, whose 
union was blessed with two children : 
Irving and Marie Calvin. Irving Hoag- 
land, born July 24, 1869, was graduated 
from Rutgers College in 1890, and from 
the New York Law School in 1894, 
and is now associated with the firm of 
Booraem & Voorhees, attorneys-at-law. 



at New Brunswick, New Jersey. Marie 
Calvin Hoagland, born Oct. 5, 1874, died 
Dec. 31, 1891, a short time before her 
graduation from college, 

Peter A. Voorhees was accidentally 
killed March 9, 1883, while crossing tlie 
Lehigh Valley railroad on his waj'jin com- 
pany with a neighbor, to attend to some 
business in connection with his church. 
Trul}' it can be affirmed of him that he 
was faithful in doing good to the end. 



TTTILLIAM E. JOHNSON, M. D.,a skill- 
' ' ful and pojjular physician and 
surgeon of Keyport, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Henry A. and 
Eliza (Tifenell) Johnson, and was born 
Oct. 4, 1840, in Toronto, Ontario, Do- 
minion of Canada. 

The paternal grandfather, William 
Johnson, was born in London, England. 
He obtained a very thorough education, 
and was a well-informed man. He be- 
longed to the English regulars, and was 
also an officer with the rank of captain 
in the North Cork militia. He was 
wealth}^ and the owner of considerable 
land. In religion he was a member of 
the church of England. He was a son 
of William Johnson, and his death oc- 
curred in 1830. His children were the 
following: Eliza, born in 1806, married 
to Capt. Frederick Robinson, and still 
living; William, born Sept. 21, 1808, 
since deceased ; Mary Ann, born Oct. 30, 
1809, now deceased ; Henrietta, born 
June 20, 1811, also deceased; Dr. Ed- 
ward, born 1813, and subsequently de- 
ceased; Henry A., born June 1, 1814; 
Emil3% born 1819 ; Righard, living in 
London, and George, born Jan. 2, 1822. 

Henry A. Johnson (father) received 
but a common-school education. He be- 



Biographical Sketches. 



573 



came, however, a well-informed man. 
He was the owner of a fine estate in 
England, which he turned to good account 
and profit so long as he remained in that 
country. He came to North America in 
early life and settled in Canada. He 
crossed over to the United States and 
participated in the war of the rebellion. 
When peace was restored Mr. Johnson 
returned to Canada, where he received 
an appointment as inspector of the post- 
office department at Toronto. He was a 
keen sportsman, and especially was he 
proud of hunting. His sturdy constitu- 
tion succumbed to a severe attack of 
pneumonia, induced by exposure during 
one of his hunting expeditions. He was 
the father of three childi'en : Dr. William, 
Mrs. Charles Hutchinson, and Edward. 
Dr. William E. Johnson received his 
elementary education in the grammar 
schools of Toronto, Ontario. He then 
attended the Upper Canada College. He 
subsequently entered the University of 
Victoria, whence he was graduated in 
1861. He then came to the " States," 
where he enlisted as a soldier in the ser- 
vice, and bore arms until the end of the 
struggle was reached at Appomattox. 
He went to Cincinnati, 0., and entered 
tke College of Physicians and Surgeons of 
that city, from which he was graduated 
in 1866. He entered upon the practice 
of medicine at Brooklyn, N. Y., where 
he remained one year and six months. 
From there he came to his present loca- 
tion in Keyport, and here he has since 
continued in the enjoyment of a large 
and successful practice. His specialty 
lies in the treatment of women's diseases. 
Personally he is a gentleman of pleasing 
address, kindly and sympathetic, and he 
has acquired a host of friends in Mon- 
mouth county. Dr. Johnson was made 



a Master Mason in Canada. He was 
united in mai'riage in 1876 to Lydia M. 
Lester. Her fate was mournful and 
tragic ; she was burned to death May 8, 
1890. 



QARRETT S. JONES, cashier of the 
Keyport Banking Co. of Key- 
port, Monmouth county, New Jersey, is 
a son of Samuel W. and Letty Ann 
(Smock) Jones, and was born May 26, 
1851, at Holmdel, in above-named county 
and state. He is of Welsh descent. 
Three brothers came from Wales to Phila- 
delphia in 1656, and his paternal grand- 
father, William Jones, a descendant from 
one of them, was born at Medford, New 
Jersey, where he received a common- 
school education. He became a farmer, 
and pursued that occupation near Med- 
ford, Burlington county, New Jersey, all 
his life. He was a member of the Quaker 
church. His wife, whose maiden name 
was Sarah Webster, bore him eight chil- 
dren : Hannah, Allen, Sarah Ann, Sam- 
uel W., Meribah, William, Emaline, and 
Lawrence W. 

Samuel W. Jones (father) was born 
April 28, 1807, at Medford, New Jersey, 
and his education was obtained in the 
common schools of that place. He sub- 
sequently engaged in the occupation of 
farming near Medford, New Jersey, which 
he carried on there for several years. 
Removing thence he settled in Atlantic 
township, Monmouth county, New Jer- 
sey, and it became his permanent home. 
Here he resumed the avocation of a 
farmer, and pursued it very successfully 
until his death, January 13, 1888. He 
was a democrat in politics, and for many 
years was an active worker in the ranks 
of that party. He represented Mon- 
mouth county in the legislature of New 



574 



Biographical Sketches. 



Jersey during the term 1851-'53, and 
held other local offices. He was a mem- 
ber of the Reformed church at Holnidel, 
and at various times held the offices of 
trustee, deacon and elder. His wife de- 
ceased July 2.3, 1889. Their children 
wei'e ten in number : Jacob S., William 
L., Daniel, George S., Sarah J., married 
to G. V. Conover, of Holmdel, New 
Jerse}^ ; Eliza Ann, widow of Elisha 
Schanck ; Samuel, Webster, Margaret S., 
and Garrett S. 

Garrett S. Jones received his elemen- 
tary education in the district schools of 
Vanderburg, then Edinburgh, and now 
Holmdel, after which he attended the 
Matawan Institute, in Monmouth countj^, 
for one year. In 1868 he entered Rut- 
gers College Preparatory School, New 
Brunswick, New Jersey. He subse- 
quently passed through the freshman and 
sophomore grades at Rutgers College, and 
was well on his way as a junior when he 
was offered a position in the Farmers 
and Merchants' Bank of Matawan as a 
book-keeper. He retired from college to 
accept this position, and filled it very 
creditably until Aug. 1, 1884. Sept. 1, 
1884, he began his duties as cashier of 
the First National Bank of Keyport, 
New Jersey, now the Keyport Banking 
Co., it being Keyport's first bank and its 
day of commencing business. He brought 
to this new position energy, ambition 
and a large measure of experience, and 
is regarded by the people of Keyport as 
a careful, conscientious and conservative 
financier. Politically he is a democrat, 
although he has never been especially 
active in party work. He served a year 
as a member of the board of commis- 
sioners of Ke3'port, and has been district 
clerk of the board of education at Key- 
port since the year 1892. He is a direc- 



tor in the Keyport Banking Co., in the 
Keyjwi't Building and Loan Association, 
and also in the Matawan and Keyport 
Street Railway Co. He is a member of 
Raritan township committee, and is pres- 
ident of the Keyport board of trade. 

Mr. Jones was married June 13, 1877, 
to Mary Van Mater, daughter of Daniel 
H. Van Mater, of Marlboro, New Jersey. 
They have one child, Charles W. 



TpDWARD E. CONKLIN, proprietor of 
-*-^ a flourishing wholesale and retail 
grocery business at Keyport, Monmouth 
county, and a well-known citizen of that 
town, is a son of David and Helen Mil- 
ler Conklin, and was born Aug. 28, 1858, 
at Boonton, Morris county. His grand- 
father, David Conklin, was a native of 
New York state, but the active part of 
his life was spent near Boonton, New 
Jersey, and he was one of the most 
prominent farmers in that part of Morris 
county. He died in 1872, the father of 
six children : Daniel, Caroline, Edwin, 
David, Louisa, wife of William Smith, of 
Boonton, and Charles. 

David Conklin (father) was born at 
Boonton, Morris county, and was a pros- 
perous mill operator at that place for 
thirty-five years. He is now living in 
retirement at Keyport. He is a staunch 
democrat in politics, and is a member of 
the Keyport Presbyterian church. He 
served during the civil war with the 
Twenty-seventh New Jersey regiment. 
B3' his wife Helen Miller, daughter of 
Lewis and Sarah Miller, of Boonton, he 
had five children : Edwin E., Willard, 
Lewis, Laura, and Henry. 

Edwin E. Conklin, subject of this 
sketch, spent his boyhood at his father's 
place in Boonton, Morris county, where 



Biographical Sketches. 



575 



he received a common-school education. 
Upon leaving school he struck out for 
the great west, and passed five years in 
farming in Warren county, Ind. He 
then returned to his native soil, and was 
clerk in a general store at Boonton, Mor- 
ris county, for two years, subsequently 
occupying a similar position in a store at 
Keyport for seven years. In 1891 he 
formed a co-partnership with Edwin M. 
Beers, under the firm name of Conklin & 
Beers, and established the present grocery 
business at Keyport. They have a hand- 
some well-stocked store, have built uj) an 
extensive wholesale and retail trade, and 
enjoy the friendship and patronage of the 
most substantial people of the town. Mr. 
Conklin is a democrat in politics, but does 
not participate actively in public affairs. 
On Nov. 22, 1881, he was married to 
Miss Elizabeth Peers, daughter of Jacob 
R. Peers, of Boonton, and they have two 
children : Kenneth and Ola. 

Mr. Conklin is one of Keyport' s most 
active and progressive business men. He 
has attained a leading rank among the 
merchants of the town throughhis energy, 
industry and perseverance, and is both 
popular and respected. 



r^ H. VALENTINE, ex-keeper of Life 
^* Saving Station No. 4, of the 
Fourth District, Atlanticville, New Jer- 
sey, and one of the most highly respected 
and esteemed citizens of North Long 
Branch, New Jersey, is another example 
of that class of self-made men, whom 
the American people delight to honor. 
His people are of Scotch descent and his 
parents were George and Kate (Morris) 
Valentine. He was born at Long Branch, 
New Jersey, Jan., 1824. 

George Valentine (father) received a 



common-school education, and after leav- 
ing school engaged in the active pur- 
suit of a business life for many years. 
He married Miss Kate Morris and this 
union was blessed by the birth of one 
son, C. H. Mr. Valentine, Sr., died in 
1824, and with his wife, who passed 
away at a later period, lies buried in the 
church-yard at West Long Branch, New 
Jersey. 

C. H. Valentine (subject) procured his 
early education by attending the public 
schools of Long Branch a few short win- 
ter terms, and then was engaged as a cook 
on a vessel plying between New York 
city and points on the Atlantic coast, 
until he attained the age of twenty-two 
years, when he went into the fishing bus- 
iness at Long Branch, and for many 
years handled large quantities of nets, 
twine, and general fishing supplies, and 
carried on an extensive trade with the 
fishermen of that locality. Later, Mr. 
Valentine entered the life saving depart- 
ment of the United States government, 
and by earnest, faithful, and able service, 
attained the rank of keeper of station 4, 
of the Fourth district, at Atlanticville, 
New Jersey. While engaged in this 
noble but hazardous work, our subject 
performed many deeds of daring and 
rescued many that otherwise would have 
found a waterj^ grave. And Mr. Valentine 
has the great honor of having received the 
seventh medal ever granted by the govern- 
ment to anyone holding the position which 
he so ably filled, and this was but a fitting 
recognition of a man, always noted for 
his bravery, and ready to risk his life for 
his fellow-men in peril. After twenty 
years in service. Keeper Valentine, was 
retired, and from that time on has de- 
voted himself to the various business in- 
terests which he has accumulated during 



576 



Biographical Sketches. 



a long life of successful activity. He is 
a heavy owner of sailing craft, and is a 
stockholder in both the Long Branch 
Banking Co., and the Seventh National 
Bank of the same place. While not an 
aspirant for any political preferment in 
the wa.y of office, Mr. Valentine takes a 
keen interest in the political afiairs of j 
his country and always casts his ballot ; 
as a republican. Fraternally, he is con- I 
nected Avith Arick Lodge, No. 77, I. 0. | 
0. F., of Long Branch, and has been a 
member of the same for forty years ; also j 
is a member of F. and A. M. Lodge, No. 
78, of Long Branch. For forty years, 
Mr. Valentine has led an active christian 
life, and has been a leading and influen- 
tial member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church of Long Branch. He has been a 
class-leader for forty years and a mem- 
ber and president of the board of trus- 
tees for many terms, and is regarded as 
one of the most substantial and consists 
ent of christians. The maiden name of 
Mr. Valentine's wife was Miss Armenia 
WooUey, daughter of Tucker and Mary 
Ann Woolley, and they were married 
Dec. 3, 1846. Mr. Valentine is one of 
the oldest residents of Long Branch, and 
built the second house erected in North 
Long Branch in 1844. 



TpDWARD J. NOON, Ph. G., a leading 
-^-^ and successful pharmacist of Bel- 
mar, near Asbury Park, is a son of Ed- 
ward F. and Louisa (Scholl) Noon, and 
was born Feb. 10, 1873, at Philadelphia. 
His father was of Irish ancestry, and is 
a well-known wholesale and retail dealer 
in gents' furnishings in Philadelphia. 
He is a democrat in politics, and active 
in local affairs in the Sixteenth ward of 
the Quaker city. His wife was Miss 



Louisa Scholl, daughter of Henry Scholl, 
a respected citizen of Philadelphia, of 
German birth, and their children were : 
Edwai'd J. Noon and Henry S. Noon. 

Edward J. Noon (subject) spent his 
early life in Philadelphia. He was edu- 
cated in the public schools of that city, 
took the junior course at the Central 
High school, and subsequently completed 
his studies under a private tutor. He 
then entei'ed the Philadelphia College of 
Pharmacy, and graduated from that fa- 
mous institution in the class of 1891. 
His active career in his pi'ofession began 
in the pharmacy of Louis Genois, north- 
west corner of Twelfth and Chestnut 
streets, Philadelphia, where he spent 
five years and a half as clerk, including 
a period previous to and after his gradu- 
ation from college. Li October, 1893, 
he established a drug-store of his own at 
Franklin street and Susquehanna ave- 
nue, which he conducted successfully for 
over a year. He removed to Belmar, 
near Asbury Park, in the early part of 
1895, and on March 23 of that year 
opened the store of Dr. William L. Kin- 
mouth, which he had acquired by pur- 
chase. He has been located at that 
place ever since, and has built up an 
extensive and lucrative business. After 
one year's occupation he was obliged to 
enlarge both the store and the stock, and 
added all modern improvements. Mr. 
Noon is independent in politics, and 
gives his support to the best qualified 
candidates. He is thoroughly versed in 
his profession, and is energetic and pro- 
gressive in his business. He resides at 
F street and Eighth avenue, Belmar, and 
is well known and deservedly popular 
among all who know him. Though j'oung 
in life, he exemplifies all the character- 
istics tending to a successful career. 



Biographical Sketches. 



579 



y\E. W. S. WHITMORE, a leading phy- 
-L^ sician of Eed Bank, and especially 
distinguished for his skill in the treat- 
ment of diseases of the ear, chest and 
throat, comes from a family of English 
origin, and was born in New York city, 
Oct. 18, 1847. He is a son of John H. 
and Margaret A. (Savage) Whitmore. 
His grandfather, John H. Whitmore, was 
born in Washington county. New York, 
and received a collegiate as well as a 
public school education. His children 
were : John H. and James C. He was 
never an active politician, although al- 
ways identified with the fortunes of the 
old-line whig party. 

John H. Whitmore (father) also re- 
ceived a college education in addition to 
that obtained in the common schools, 
and was a man of high character and 
wide information. For a number of 
years he was clerk of New York city 
prison, and also held the office of deputy 
county clerk of New York county. He 
now lives in retirement at Red Bank. 
He is a democrat, and took a very active 
interest in politics, and was of great ser- 
vice to his party as a public speaker, 
and as such was in frequent demand 
by it. 

For a period he followed the avocation 
of a farmer in Millstone township, but 
more as a matter of sentiment than with 
any expectation of achieving a practical 
business result. He is a member of the 
Episcopal church, and of a Masonic 
lodge in New York city, of which he is 
a past master. He married Margaret 
A. Savage, daughter of John T. Savage, 
of Raleigh, N. C. To their union were 
born four children : Catharine, married 
to William A. Butler, at one time county 
clerk of New York ; Hannah M., de- 
ceased, who was married to Garret Hart- 



man ; Walter S., and Sarah, married to 
Edwin Ackerman. 

Dr. W. S. Whitmore supplemented his 
common-school education by a full course 
of study at the Columbia College, of 
New York city, and New York Medical 
University, from which he graduated 
May 12, 1887. Upon his graduation, he 
began the practice of his profession in 
New York city, where he remained one 
year. He then removed to Red Bank, 
and has continued in the active practice 
of his profession ever since. In addition 
to a general practice, he makes a specialty 
of diseases of the ear, throat and chest, 
giving particular attention to throat sur- 
gery. He is regarded as especially skill- 
ful in the treatment of these diseases, 
and in this branch of his practice has an 
enviable reputation. He resides at Oce- 
anic, near Eed Bank, and is possessed of 
a most charming home. Dr. Whitmoi-e 
is president of the board of health of 
Red Bank, and is also the township 
physician. He is examining physician 
for the New York Life Insurance Co., 
and for the orders of United Workmen 
and Knights of Pythias, as, also, of Hep- 
tasophs and Red Men. He is a member 
of the Order of Red Men ; Knights of 
Pythias, No. 72, of Red Bank; and 
Order of Elks, of Red Bank. He be- 
longs to the Democratic party, takes an 
active interest in politics, is an eloquent 
and effective speaker, and his services 
are frequently employed by his party. 
He has been asked to accept the demo- 
cratic nomination as member of the sen- 
ate, but has always refused to accept 
any ofiice. He is a member of the Epis- 
copal church. 

Dr. Whitmore married, Jan. 18, 1894, 
Mrs. Harriet Hutchinson, daughter of 
James Hume, of New York city. 



580 



Biographical Sketches. 



/CHARLES L. EDWARDS, secretary and 
^ treasurer of the F. M. Taylor Pub- 
lishing Co., Long Brand), New Jersey, is 
a son of Aaron and Mary C. (Riddle) ; 
Edwai'ds, and was born at Ocean Port, 
New Jersey, Nov. 15, 1860. 

Henry D. Edwards, paternal grand- 
father, was educated in the public schools 
and followed the sea for a livelihood. 
This was his occupation till the latter 
part of his life, when he retired to his 
farm, near Ocean Port. He married 
Lydia Cook, and to them were born eight 
children : Aaron, Daniel, Lewis, Charles 
A., Thelbert, Sarah, wife of Mr. T. Mor- 
ris ; Eliza, and Asbury, deceased. Grand- 
father Edwards was a republican, but 
never took an active part in politics. 

Aaron Edwards (father) was born at 
West Long Branch, New Jersey, and 
went to sea and reached the rank of 
captain of a merchant vessel. He organ- 
ized the firm of L. & D. Edwards & Co., 
and engaged in the coal and lumber busi- 
ness, which was continued up to the time 
of his death. His political views allied 
him to the Republican party. He was 
an earnest chi'istian gentleman, and an 
ardent member and supporter of the 
Methodist Episcopal church, in which he 
was an official in high repute. In frar 
ternal circles, Mr. Edwards was connected 
with Arcana Lodge, K. of P., No. 48, 
and Mizpah Lodge, L 0. 0. F., No. 61, 
of Ocean Port, and Long Branch Coun- 
cil, No. 429, Royal Arcanum, of Long 
Branch. He married Mary C, daughter 
of Thomas Riddle, and this marriage was 
blessed with three children : Asbur}^, 
Emily, now Mrs. Lewis R. Williams; 
and Charles L. Mr. EdAvards died March 
19, 1886, but his wife still survives and 
resides at Long Branch. 

Charles L. Edwards attended the pub- 



lic schools, afterwards learning the trade 
of making sashes and blinds. He se- 
cured a position of bookkeeper, which he 
filled for eight years. He has dealt ex- 
tensively in vessel stock, and in this has 
been successful, so much so that it still 
continues to be one item of his line of 
business, which also includes speculation 
in real estate at Long Branch. Li 1895, 
when the F. M. Taylor Publishing Co. 
was incorporated, for the purpose of en- 
larging the business scope of the Long 
Branch Record and other publishing in- 
terests, Mr. Edwards became a member 
of the company, and was chosen for the 
important and responsible positions of 
secretary and treasurer. In the exercise 
of his elective franchise, our subject is 
purely independent, and votes for whom 
he considers the best man for the place 
to be filled. He is a member of the 
Long Branch Lodge, F. and A. M., No. 
78, the Long Branch Council, No. 429, 
Royal Arcanum, and Tackanasse Tribe, 
No. 158, I. 0. R. M., of Long Branch. 
On Sept. 14, 1890, Charles L. Edwards 
was united in marriage to Miss Annie E., 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas B. 
Cubberly, of Long Branch. This happ}'^ 
event has resulted in the birth of one 
son, Raymond. Mr. Edwards' business 
career has been one of activity and de- 
served success, and he is to-day one of 
the substantial, enterprising and useful 
citizens of Long Branch. 



TSAAC L. F. ELKIN, proprietor of the 
-'- Macom Hotel, New Brunswick, one 
of the bes1>known hostelries of that city, 
and a veteran of the late war, is a son of 
Edward and Jane M. Elkin, and was 
born May 15, 1836, at New Brunswick, 
where he received his education in the 



Biographical Sketches. 



581 



private scliools. When sixteen years 
old he entered the employ of Heckscher 
& Co., No. 45 South street, New York 
city, and remained with them until 1860, 
at the outbreak of the civil war. In 
May, 1861, he enlisted in Co. I, First 
regiment, New Jersey volunteers, and 
was in active service for three years, and 
took part in the important engagements 
at Antietam, Gettysburg and Fredericks- 
burg. He was with Kearney's brigade 
in the Army of the Potomac, and was 
engaged in fifteen battles, being wounded 
once. At the time of Lee's surrender he 
was a prisoner, but was exchanged and 
paroled April 10, 1865. When the war 
closed he removed to New Brunswick 
and entered the liquor business with his 
brother-in-law, Joseph Grover, in which 
he continued for twelve years. In 1882 
he became manager of the Macom hotel 
property, at the corner of Richmond and 
Burnett streets. New Brunswick, which he 
has conducted with success ever since. In 
connection with the hotel he has exten- 
sive livery stables at the same place, and 
under his management the house has be- 
come well-known throughout this part of 
the state. 

Mr. Elkin is a staunch Jacksonian 
democrat in politics, but has never sought 
public ofiice. He is a member of Boggs 
Post, No. 67, G. A. R. He has been 
twice married. His first wife was Miss 
Cornelia Strong, daughter of Jefferson 
Strong, of New Brunswick, whom he mar- 
ried June 2, 1858, and who died in 1873, 
after having born him three daughters : 
Jennie, Belle and Addie. In Sept., 1893, 
he was married to Miss Margaret Hard- 
ing, daughter of William Harding, of 
New Brunswick. Mr. Elkin is widely 
known and respected, both for his quali- 
ties as a hospitable, pains-taking host and 

30 



for his gallant war record. He gives 
close personal attention to his business, is 
active and enterprising, has an extensive 
circle of friends and acquaintances, and is 
one of the most popular men in New 
Brunswick. 



Xn R. PIERCE, president of the Perth 
-'-^' Amboy Savings Institution and 
ex-mayor of the city of Perth Amboy, and 
a very prosperous real estate and insur- 
ance broker of the city of Perth Amboy, 
Middlesex county, New Jersey, comes 
from an illustrious family of Reeds of re- 
volutionary fame, being the great grand- 
son of John Reed, of New Market, New 
Jersey, who was a captain in the Revolu- 
tionaiy war ; he is the son of James D. 
Pierce and Rachael (Reed) Pierce, and 
was born Feb. 24, 1842, near Fleming- 
ton, New Jersey. The Pierce family is 
of English origin. Their ancestors down 
to and including the great grandsire were 
natives of that soil. The latter emi- 
grated to this country about the year 
1734, and settled in Hunterdon county, 
New Jersey. Edward Pierce, the pater- 
nal grandfather, lived near Flemington, 
New Jersey. He was a man of fine 
natural ability, and in appearance short 
and of florid complexion. He was a far- 
mer by occupation, a democrat in politics, 
and a Presbyterian in religion. There 
were seven children ; all are deceased ex- 
cept James D., the father of the subject 
of this sketch. 

James D. (father) was born at Somer- 
ville, Hunterdon county. New Jersey, 
and resided there since 1880 in quiet re- 
tirement. He is the father of six chil- 
dren, three sons and three daughters. 

Edward R. Pierce received his educa- 
tion in the public schools of Hunterdon 
county, and also under private tutors at 



582 



Biographical Sketches. 



Roycefield, New Jersej-. He left school 
while in his teens and went with A. T. 
Stewart, of New York, the one-time mer- 
chant prince of New York city, and was 
at one time connected with the Tremont 
Lead and Color Works in New York cit}', 
being the financial bookkeejDer. In 1871 
he fonnded a co-partnership with Samuel 
J. Watson, Avith whom he has been ever 
since. Tliej' have an extensive real-estate 
and fire-insurance business, and represent 
fourteen of the strongest companies in 
existence. Mr. Pierce is a prominent 
man of affairs in Port Amboy. He is 
president of the Perth Amboy Savings 
Institution, a director in the Middlesex 
Count}' Bank, and president of the Citi- 
zens' Building and Loan association. He 
has been a member of the school board, 
superintendent of the public schools, 
and a member of the board of chosen 
freeholders. He is an affiliant of the 
Royal Arcanum. Mr. Pierce is a mem- 
ber of the First Baptist church; he has 
served it in various positions, as treasurer 
during many 3'ears ; superintendent of 
the Sunday-school sixteen years, and a 
member of the board of trustees. Mr. 
Pierce married a daughter of the late 
William B. Watson, Esq. ; two children 
were born to the marriage, William Wat- 
son Pierce and Sadie Conij)ton Pierce. 
Mrs. Pierce was of English origin, and 
was a descendant of the famous John 
Couts faiuil}- of London, England, on her 
grandmother Jackson's side of the family. 
Mrs. Pierce died at an early age. She 
was educated at Balston Seminary, Bal- 
ston, N. Y., graduating with high honors. 
Seven years after the death of Mrs. 
Pierce, Mr. Pierce married her sister, 
Cornelia A.; no children were born to 
tliis union. Mr. Pierce resides in the 
old liome of the late William B. Watson, 



one of the largest and handsomest homes 
in Perth Amboy ; its grounds extensive 
lawns with shrubbery, and stables in rear; 
it is of brick, and has been modernized 
from time to time, making an ideal home. 
Mr. Pierce's son, William Watson, is a 
lawyer, and was educated at Columbia 
College, and University Law School, New 
York, and received the degree of LL. B. 
His daughter, Sadie Compton, was edu- 
cated at Peddie Institute, Hightstown, 
New Jersey. 

TpDWARD B. BLAISDELL, manager of 
-^-^ the Keystone Ice Co., and secretary 
of the boai'd of health of Long Branch, 
New Jersey, is a son of Thomas N. and 
Lydia W. (Throckmoi'ton) Blaisdell, and 
was born at Newark, New Jersey, April 
15, 1849. 

Thomas N. Blaisdell (father) was a 
native of Norwich, Vt., with a common- 
school education, worked in a hat factory, 
beginning that business, and subse- 
quentl}' actively engaging therein on 
his own account, first at New York 
city, next at Jersey City, and then 
at Newark, New Jersey, from which 
place he removed to Long Branch, where 
he became interested in the manufacture 
of pumps, following that business until 
his decease, in 1890. He was a republi- 
can in politics and an earnest member of 
the Reformed church, taking an active 
part in the work of the Sunday-school, 
of which he was superintendent and also 
a teacher in early life. He was also a 
member of the masonic order. 

Thomas M. Blaisdell married Miss 
L3dia W. Throckmorton, of Deal, New 
Jersey-, and the}' had a family of five 
children ; Edward B., Charles A., Alice 
W., Jessie F., and Horace, the three 
latter deceased. Father Blaisdell died 




^ J^ iZZ^CLyiy^^J^CuLC. 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



585 



Nov. 20, 1890, and his wife Dec. 14, 
1881, and both are buried in the West 
Long Branch cemetery, at Long Branch. 

Edward B. Blaisdell (subject) I'eceived 
his early education in the common 
schools of Long Branch, and at the age of 
fourteen began his career in the world as 
a clerk for Messrs. Brown & Crater, pro- 
prietors of a general store at Oceanville, 
New Jersey. He remained here five 
years, and Mr. Crater having retired, Mr. 
Blaisdell was taken in as junior member 
of the firm of Brown & Blaisdell. This 
firm continued business until the with- 
drawal of Mr. Blaisdell five years later 
(1873), when he went to Long Branch, 
where, for the past sixteen years, he has 
been connected with the Keystone Ice 
Co., of which he is manager. Mr. Blais- 
dell is also associated with the Mon- 
mouth Ice Co., of Long Branch, and his 
business career has been crowned with 
the rewards that justly accrue to indus- 
trious application and good judgment. 
He is a progressive member of the Repub- 
lican party, and has been assessor of 
Long Branch for eight years; is also 
a member of the city board of health, of 
which he has been secretary since his 
connection with that body. He is a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, and also of the following secret 
orders : Royal Arcanum of Long Branch, 
No. 429 ; Loyal Addition Benefit Asso- 
ciation, Progress Lodge, No. 3, and the 
Ancient Order of United American Work- 
men, Seaside Lodge, No. 39. 

On June 5, 1872, Edward Blaisdell 
led to the altar and wedded Miss Lydia 
A. Jefirey, daughter of Hugh M., and 
Rebecca A. Jefirey, of Long Branch, and 
this union has resulted in the birth of 
one daughter and three sons : Dora, wife 
of Harry Van Brunt, clerk in the Pacific 



Bank, New York city ; E. Thurston, 
Charles T., and Raymond D. Mr. Blais- 
dell is a man of fine address and afiable 
manners. He is a progressive and care- 
ful business man, and a useful citizen, 
and is highly estee med by all who know 
him. 



TpRED A. BEALE, a prominent farmer 
-*- and dairyman, and a highly re- 
spected citizen of Eatontown township, 
Monmouth count}^, New Jersey, is a son 
of John and Maria P. (Innet) Beale, and 
was born in Brooklyn, N. Y., Feb. 20, 
1854. He comes from an English ances- 
try; his great-grandfather, John Beale, 
came from Hingham, Norfolk county, 
England, with his wife, five sons, three 
daughters, and two servants, to this coun- 
try in 1638, settling in Hingham, Mass. 
One of these sons, the paternal grand- 
father of Mr. Beale, subsequently re- 
moved to the state of Maine, but, after 
some time, returned to Hingham. Among 
his children was John Beale, who became 
the father of the subject of this sketch. 

John Beale (father) was born at Farm- 
ington. Me., Nov. 24, 1802, and was 
given a good, liberal education. He was 
educated in Hingham, Mass., and taught 
school at seventeen years of age. He 
left the school-room after some years, and 
turned his attention to the mercantile 
business, and from 1830 to 1873 was es- 
tablished in New York city in the whole- 
sale grocery business. In political opinion 
Mr. Beale was a republican, and was 
identified with the Episcopal church. 
By his marriage with Miss Maria P. 
Innet, daughter of Edward Innet and 
Elizabeth Pitcher, of New York, he be- 
came father of four children : Elizabeth 
Beale Sterns, deceased ; John E., retired, 
of the firm of Messrs. B. H. Howell, Son 



586 



Biographical Sketches. 



& Co., of 107 Wall street, New York ; 
Daniel, member of the Thirteenth regi- 
ment, Brooklyn, who died in Baltimore, 
Md., 1861 ; and Fred A. John Beale, 
Sr., died at New York city in 1889, aged 
eighty-seven ; and his wife died in Eaton- 
town, New Jersey, in 1878, aged sixty- 
five. 

Fred A. Beale (subject), after attend- 
ing the common schools of Brookljai, 
entered Bryan and Stratton's Business 
College of Brooklyn, N. Y., and acquired 
a general business education. He then 
entered his brothei''s store in New York 
city, and served there two years in the 
capacity of a clerk, and when eighteen 
years of age came to his present home 
on his farm, located just two miles from 
Long Branch, New Jersey. Here he has 
been engaged in farming and dairying 
during the past twenty-four j^ears. Mr. 
Beale is a veiy active j^olitician, and has 
served the Democratic party well, having 
been committeeman for Eatontown. Fra- 
ternally he belongs to the Masons, Wash- 
ington Lodge, No. 9, of Eatontown, K. 
of P. ; Jr. 0. U. A. M., Norwood Coun- 
cil, West Long Branch. 

On August 20, 1876, Fred A. Beale 
married Miss Clara Morris, granddaugh- 
ter of Samuel Morris, proprietor of the 
Pavilion Hotel, at Long Branch. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Beale have been born a 
family of seven children : John E., Maria 
P., Clara M., Fred A., Delia, Elizabeth, 
and Lillian. 



T C. VOORHEES, an enterprising and 
^ * prosperous florist of Somerville, is a 
son of James C. and Esther Moon Voor- 
hees, and was born Feb. 7, 1852, at Rari- 
tan, New Jersey, receiving his education 
in the common schools of that town. 
Upon leaving school he learned carriage- 



making and applied himself diligently to 
that trade for five years. Subsequently 
he was a farmer and a florist on a small 
scale at Adamsville. In 1893 he re- 
moved to Somerville and established his 
present business, which has developed to 
such an extent that he is now the lead- 
ing florist in Somerset county. His green- 
houses embrace ten thousand square feet 
of glass, and are thoroughly stocked at 
all seasons. 

Mr. Voorhees is a republican in poli- 
tics and takes a deep interest in public 
affairs. He is a member of the Ro^al 
Arcanum. On Feb. 14, 1875, he was 
married to Miss Gertrude Cole, daughter 
of E. A. Cole, of Somerville, by whom he 
has had three daughters : Etta, deceased ; 
Sarah and Eva. Mr. Voorhees is a thor- 
oughly self-made man, is skillful and 
energetic in the conduct of his business, 
and well-read and abreast with the times 
in everything relating to the cultivation 
and propagation of plants and floAvers. 
He is widely known throughout Somer- 
set count}', and is both popular and re- 
spected. 

Samuel Voorhees (grandfather of sub- 
ject) was a native of Raritan. He was 
a well-known farmer all his life, and died 
on Jan. 3, 1820, leaving three children : 
J. C, Garrett and Eliza. 

James C. Voorhees (father of subject) 
was also born at Raritan. He was a 
farmer in early life, but subsequently be- 
came better known as the proprietor for 
many years of the Raritan hotel, at Rari- 
tan, where he also conducted an exten- 
sive trade in horses and cattle. He was 
married to Aletta Veghte, by whom he 
had four childi'en : Sarah, Elizabeth, de- 
ceased ; Peter and Samuel, deceased. 
She died March 19, 1844. He married 
for his second wife, Esther Moon, Jan. 6, 



Biographical Sketches. 



587 



1851, by whom he had one child : J. C. 
Voorhees, our subject. Mr. Voorhees, 
St., died Oct. 4, 1851. 



ySAAC D. WARD, recorder of the city 
-*- of Perth Amboy, residing at Perth 
Amboy, Middlesex county, New Jersey, 
is a son of Bethuel and Catharine M. 
(Tuers) Ward, and was born Sept. 14, 
1832, at Newark, New Jersey. 

Bethuel Ward (father) was a native of 
Newark, where he was born in 1809, and, 
after acquiring a common-school educa- 
tion in the free schools, he learned the 
trade of a hatter. After working at this 
trade for a decade and a half he changed 
his vocation to farming and school-teach- 
ing at New Market, New Brooklyn and 
Samptown, and remained thus employed 
for a score of years. In addition to 
these occupations he took cognizance of 
infractions of the laws, and adjudicated 
disputes that came before him as a jus- 
tice of the peace at New Brooklyn, now 
South Plainfleld, New Jersey, to which 
office he was appointed in 1847. In 
1850 he was called to a higher bench, 
being appointed judge of the common 
pleas court of Middlesex county, by 
Governor Rodman Price. His magistracy 
over this court extended through two 
terms, and, although he deceased in 
1870, nearly thirty years ago, he is yet 
remembered by the older citizens of this 
county with feelings of deep respect as 
a fair-minded, able and impartial judge. 
In politics Judge Ward was in full sym- 
pathy all his life with the doctrines of 
the Democratic party, prominent in its 
affairs and active in its welfare ; in re- 
ligion he was a member of the Baptist 
church at Samptown, New Jersey, and 
in social and benevolent fraternity he 



was a mason and an odd fellow. He 
was married to Catharine M. Tuers, of 
Lodi township, Hudson county. New 
Jersey, on Dec. 28, 1831. She deceased 
in 1858, the mother of four children : 
Isaac D., our subject; Abraham and 
Catharine, now deceased, and Emma, 
married to John Fothergill, of Perth 
Amboy, New Jersey. 

Isaac D. Ward learned the trade of a 
harness-maker, after receiving a good 
common-school education, and, subse- 
quently after indefinite periods of service 
as clerk in a grocery store and in the 
post-office at Plainfleld, New Jersey, he 
returned to and followed his trade for 
twelve years. In 1857 he was made 
justice of the peace at Perth Amboy, 
which he held for two terms, of flve 
years each, and in 1877 he commenced 
another term in the same office, which 
bids fair to be perpetual, inasmuch as he 
has occupied it ever since. In 1857 he 
was elected city clerk of Perth Amboy, 
serving nineteen years in succession ex- 
cept three years. In 1872 he was desig- 
nated a member of the board of chosen 
freeholders of Middlesex county, serving- 
two years and declining another term. 
In 1884 Mr. Ward was elected recorder 
of the city of Perth Amboy, New Jersey, 
serving until 1892, and in 1896 he was 
again elected to this office, and is at 
present in the active discharge of his 
duties in connection therewith and giving 
as in his terra, 1884-1892, the largest 
measure of satisfaction to the people. 
He is the owner of a well-managed and 
flourishing fancy goods and notion busi- 
ness, on High street, Perth Amboy, to 
which he gives personal supervision after 
his hours of daily official service are 
ended. Mr. Ward is a democrat in poli- 
tics, and, although always an active par- 



588 



Biographical Sketches. 



tisan, his pernicious activity has never 
prevented his election to office in his 
town, so distinctively republican. In 
religious matters he is a member and 
former vestryman of St. Peter's Protes- 
tant Episcopal church at Perth Amboy. 
In secret societies he is a member and 
one of the organizers of Raritan Lodge, 
No. 61, F. and A. M., at Perth Amboy; 
member of Lawrence Lodge, No. 62, 
I. 0. 0. F., in Perth Amboy, and he 
served as grand patriarch of the Grand 
Encampment of New Jersey in 1869. 

Mr. Ward was united in marriage 
Dec. 31, 1854, to Hester Fothergill, a 
daughter of George Fothergill, of Perth 
Amboy. To their union has been born 
three children : Alice, born Oct. 4, 1855 ; 
Mary Elizabeth, born Nov. 17, 1856, and 
Agnes, born January 3, 1870. Alice 
was married to Oscar Green on June 1, 
1876. Her husband died Feb. 11, 1896 ; 
has one child, Salvadora Paterson, born 
July 4, 1877. Mary Elizabeth wa.s mar- 
ried to Harvey W. Moffett on January 27, 
1885, has one child, Agnes Estell, born 
March 5, 1892. 



TTTILLIAM AVEST, one of the oldest 
^^ living citizens of North Long 
Branch, a farmer and fisherman by occu- 
pation, is a son of Elias and Deborah 
(Siierman) West, and was born Dec. 25, 
1820, in the town already mentioned. 
The family, of English origin, was es- 
tablished in this country by the paternal 
grandi'ather, William West, who settled 
at North Long Branch, leading an un- 
eventful life, on what is now known as 
the Hastings farm, in the double occupa- 
tion of agriculture and fishery. In poli- 
tics he affiliated with the old whig party 
and in religion he was a protestant. He 



deceased, leaving five children as the 
issue of his marriage. Their two daugh- 
ters and three sons are respectively 
named : Ellen, who married Joseph 
Dennis and Benjamin Lockwood, of 
Conn. ; Mary, who wedded Henry Lip- 
pincott, of Rumson ; William, John, and 
Elias. 

Elias West (father) after receiving a 
common-school education, engaged in the 
family pursuits of fishing and farming; 
following the hooli and line in the waters 
that wash the Jersey coast, and urging 
the plow into the soil of a farm at North 
Long Branch, on which Mr. West now lives. 
He was not affiliated with any church, 
but took an interest in politics as an old- 
line whig. His marriage with Deboi^ah 
Sherman occurred in 1823 and he de- 
ceased on Sept. 8, 1860. Their marriage 
resulted in the birth of eight children : 
Katharine, who married James Potter; 
Edmund, William, Lydia, married to 
Stewart Cook ; Alice, John, Owens, and 
Borden. 

William West, after attending the 
public school at North Long Branch for 
a brief period and acquiring but a limited 
education, went to New York city, where 
he worked at the carpenter trade during 
the years 1845-6, and subsequently^ re- 
turned to North Long Branch engaging 
at fishing in the ocean and cultivating 
crops on his farn near that town, in 
which remunerative and successful em- 
ployment he remained during the long 
period stretching from 1846 to 1881. 
Since that time he has relaxed his activ- 
it}^ in these pursuits. He is a well-pre- 
served, energetic man of steady habits 
and of rugged health, and scarcely looks 
like a man who has attained his three- 
score years and ten. His declining days 
will be smoothed and softened by a com- 



Biographical Sketches. 



591 



fortable competence, acquired during 
years of hard, but honest toil. In poli- 
tics he is a republican, and in religious 
matters very active and prominent, 
having occupied the different ofl&ces in 
the Methodist chui-ch at North Long 
Branch, of which he is a member. 

Mr. West was married Nov. 17, 1853, 
to Mary White, of Xorth Long Branch, 
to which marriage has been born four 
children : Sydney B., born Aug. 31, 
1854; Warren, born March 18, 1856; 
Benjamin A., born Jan. 22, 1858 ; and 
Milton, born Feb. 2, 1862. 



A T. METZGAR, a veteran of the late 
-^--*-' civil war, and at present a promi- 
nent farmer and political leader of West 
Long Branch, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, was born at Princeton, New Jer- 
sey, June 20, 1840, and is a son of C. 
Henry and Elizabeth Bennett Metzgar. 
The ancestors of this family may be 
traced back to the historical soil of the 
German Empire, where Abraham Metz- 
gar (the grandfather) was born. He was 
a blacksmith by occupation. He became 
the father of six children : Catharine 
(Mrs. Michael Faunch), John, Abram, C. 
Henry, Jacob and Christian, all deceased ; 
and passed away at a goodly age, very 
much respected by friends and neighbors. 
C. Henry Metzgar (father) was born 
on shipboard during the passage of his 
parents across the Atlantic, April 2, 
1801. He received a common school 
education, and began life at Princeton, 
New Jersey, as a farmer, and later re- 
moved to Poplar, and continued there until 
his death, April 2, 1866. Politically, 
Mr. Metzgar was an old-line whig, and a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. In 1823 he married Miss Eliza- 



beth Bennett, daughter of Garret Ben- 
nett, of Red Bank, and their children 
were: Mary, deceased ; Jacob, deceased; 
John B., Lydia A., Catherine E., Mrs. 
John B. Edmonds, Margaret B., Mrs. 
Clark Warren, and A. T. Mrs. Metzgar 
died at Long Branch, May 12, 1870. 

A. T. Metzgar (subject) was reared on 
his father's farm at Princeton, New Jer- 
sey. He was educated in the common 
schools of his native district, and later at 
Bryant and Stratton's College, Philadel- 
phia. He then engaged in farming and 
mercantile business at Poplar, New Jer- 
sey, and finally at West Long Branch, 
where he still resides and successfully 
operates a truck farm. Mr. Metzgar 
takes an active and lively interest in the 
political doings of his district, is a pro- 
nounced republican, and has been the 
recipient of a number of local offices, 
among which are the coUectorship of 
Lincoln township, and assessor of Eaton- 
town township for five years. He is a 
member in good standing in the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church, is actively identi- 
fied with the spiritual and temporal 
interests of the same, and has been a 
trustee for ten years. 

Mr. Metzgar was enrolled Aug. 14th, 
enlisted Aug. 20th, and as a member of 
Company G, Fourteenth regiment. New 
Jersey volunteers, was mustered into 
service at Freehold, New Jersey, Aug. 
26, 1862. This regiment was first as- 
signed to the provisional brigade, middle 
division, Eighth corps, then to the First 
brigade. Third division. Third corps, and 
afterwards to the First brigade. Sixth 
corps, Army of the Potomac. The gal- 
lant Fourteenth then entered upon and 
served through all the principal conflicts 
of the Virginia campaigns of 1863 and 
'64, participating in the following battles: 



592 



Biographical Sketches. 



Manassas Gap, Wapping Heights, Cul- j 
peper, Bristoe Station, Kellej's Ford, 
Brandy Station, Locust Grove, Mine Run, 
Wilderness, Spottsylvania Court-house, 
Po river, North Anna, Hanover Court- 
house and Cold Harbor. In the latter 
engagement, Mr. Metzgar received a shot 
that so shattered his left arm, that am- 
putation became necessary, and he was 
discharged from the United States Army 
hospital, Dec. 30, 1864, and retired to 
engage in the affairs of civil life. On 
Afay 5, 1869, Mr. Metzgar married Miss 
Susie C. Reynolds, daughter of James 
and Phoebe Reynolds, of Eatontown. | 
Mr. Metzgar belongs to that great num- 
ber of deserving men, who receive as a 
part renumeration, a pension, for their 
invaluable services to our country, which 
was saved by their deeds of noble daring 
and generous sacrifice. 



r^ EORGE A. SEAMAN, a well-known 
^-^ insurance agent and notary public 
at Perth Amboy, a veteran of the civil 
war, and a highly respected and patriotic 
citizen, is a son of Anthony and Ann 
(Hadden) Seaman, and was born June 12, 
1837, at Perth Amboy. 

Robert Seaman, the paternal great- 
graudfather, was born about 1755, in 
Ulster county, N. Y., and was married 
to Cynthia Golding about the year 1780, 
by whom he had eleven children, all boys 
except one. Anthony Hansell, the ma- 
ternal great-grandfather, served as a 
private in Capt. James Morgan's com- 
pany, Second regiment. New Jersey 
militia, of Middlesex county. Thomas 
Hadden (the elder), the maternal great- 
great-grandfather, served as a private in 
Capt. Asher Fitz Randolph's company, 
First regiment, New Jersey militia, of 



Middlesex county. Thomas Hadden, Jr., 
the maternal grea1>grandfather, served as 
a captain in the same regiment, was pro- 
moted to first major, and afterwards com- 
missioned as lieutenant-colonel. He died 
in Sept., 1778, and is buried at Wood- 
bridge, New Jersey. 

Henry Seaman, his paternal grand- 
father, was born July 11, 1787. He 
married, June 7, 1807, Isabel Hansell, 
by whom he had eight children : Eliza, 
burn Sept. 2, 1809; Robert, born March 
22, 1811 ; Anthony, born Dec. 29, 1813 ; 
Israel, born April 20, 1815 ; Henry, born 
May 28, 1817; Lewis, born Feb. 19, 
1820; John, born Nov. 14, 1822, and 
Cynthia A., born May 24, 1824. 

Anthony Seaman (father) received a 
common-school education at Perth Am- 
boy. In early life he was a shoemaker, 
but subsequently engaged successfully in 
the oyster business at Perth Amboy until 
1873, when he retired from active life. 
He died July 12, 1896, in his eight}'- 
third year. He had imbibed the tradi- 
tions of the old-line Whig party, but 
from 1864 was a staunch democrat in 
politics. He was a devout member of 
the Presbyterian church at Perth Amboy. 
He was married Jan. 7, 1836, to Miss 
Ann Hadden, a daughter of Jacob Had- 
den and Sally Ayers, of Perth Amboy, 
who died Jan. 24, 1892, after bearing 
him six children : George A., born June 
12,1837; Olivia, born Aug. 19, 1840; 
Jacob H., born Feb. 12, 1845; Sarah 
Isabel, born Aug. 17, 1847; Fred. A., 
born Dec. 19, 1850, and Charles K., born 
Oct. 8, 1856. 

George A. Seaman (subject) was edu- 
cated in the Perth Amboy public schools. 
His first start in active life was in con- 
nection with his father in the oyster 
business at Perth Amboy, where he re- 



Biographical Sketches. 



593 



mained until the outbreak of the civil 
war. In 1862 he joined the Twenty- 
eighth New Jersey regiment as a private, 
and went to the front as a nine months' 
man. He was engaged in the battles 
of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, 
served gallantly through a hard-fought 
camj)aign, and during his entire career at 
the front, spent but nine days in the hos- 
pital with rheumatism. At the close of 
the war he went to Illinois for a short 
time, but subsequently engaged in the 
drug business at Perth Amboy. In 1869 
he established his present insurance 
agency, which he has operated success- 
fully ever since. He is also a notary' 
public, having received his commission 
as such from the late Gov. Robert S. 
Green, and has a wide clientage. Mr. 
Seaman cast his first vote for Bell and 
Everett in 1860, and has been a staunch 
democrat all his life. He was elected by 
his party as comptroller of Perth Amboy, 
in 1877, and served with fidelity and 
credit for nine years. He is an ardent 
society man, and is a member of Law- 
rence Lodge, No. 62, I. 0. 0. F. ; Earitan 
Lodge, No. 61, F. and A. M., and New 
Jersey Society of Sons of the American 
Revolution. On March 26, 1874, he was 
married to Miss Anna A. Evans, a 
daughter of Jacob and Mary L. Evans, 
of Perth Amboy, and they have had four 
sons ; all of them died in infancy. 

Mr. Seaman is widely known as one 
of Perth Amboy' s most active and public- 
spirited citizens. He is upright and 
steadfast, exemplary in his habits, indus- 
trious in his business, and irreproachable 
in his domestic relations. 



Tp C. BENBROOK, a thriving meat- 
-*- • dealer and vendor of general table 
supplies at Somerville, Somerset county, 



New Jersey, is a son of Edward R. and 
Antoinett Benbrook, and was born Feb. 
15, 1862, at Pluckamin, Somerset county, 
this state. 

Edward R. Benbrook (father of sub- 
ject) was born in England. He obtained 
his education at the common schools of 
England, and afterwards became a farmer 
and butcher in Somerset county. New 
Jersey. He followed this occupation 
until his death, which occurred in 1855. 
He was a democrat, and in religion a 
member of the Presbyterian church. His 
wife is still living. They had eleven 
children : Henry B., Stephen F., Augus- 
tus B., James P., Benjamin V., Frederick 
C, George Stephen, Thursa, Anna, Cath- 
arine, and May Elizabeth. 

F. C. Benbrook received a good com- 
mon-school education in the public schools 
of Morris and Somerset counties. After 
leaving school he learned the trade of a 
butcher, which he pursued for sixteen 
years. He worked three years in Jersey 
City with A. Scherer, and the ensuing 
five years with W. K. Smith, at Somer- 
ville, since which time he has been doing 
business for himself. He purchased a 
meat-shop near Plainfield, this state, and 
conducted a business of his own very suc- 
cessfully. After two years he sold out 
his establishment and spent the winter 
of 1890-91 in Florida on account of poor 
health. Returning thence early in 1891, 
he went to Nyack, N. Y., and resumed 
the meat business. He clerked in a shop 
there for one year, and subsequently con- 
ducted a meat stand of his own. After 
operating this business for two years he 
removed to Somerville in April, 1893, 
and opened a large general market for 
meats, fruits, vegetables, and canned 
goods. He is still carrying on this busi- 
ness and commands a large and profitable 



594 



Biographical Sketches. 



trade. Mr. Benbrook's political affilia- 
tion is with the Democratic party, and in j 
aifairs of religion he is an active and earn- 
est christian, a member of the First Re- 
formed church. He served two terms, 
1891-92, as president of the Epworth 
League, of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. He is a member of the masonic 
fraternity, of Solomon Lodge, No. 46, of 
Somerville, New Jersey. He is also a 
Knight of Pj'thias, a member of the Cas- 
tle, No. 82, at Somerville, New Jersey, 
and a charter member of the West End 
Hose Co. He Avas married May 30, 189.3, 
to Mary Van Buskirk, a daughter of 
James B. Van Buskirk, of Bayonne City, 
New Jersey. They have one son, Chas. 
Frederick, born April 23, 1896. 



TOHN WILSON, a prominent retired 
'-^ fanner and contractor, and a highly 
representative citizen, residing near Mid- 
dlebush, Somerset county, New Jersey, 
is a son of Christy and Elizabeth (Wilson) 
Wilson, and was born in Enniskillen, 
county Fermanagh, Ireland, in 1836. 
His father died when he was but five 
years of age, leaving eight children, four 
boys and four girls. 

Mr. Wilson received a scanty educa- 
tional training by irregular attendance at 
the crude district schools such as the 
simple educational system of Ireland pro- 
vided at that day ; attending a few 
months each winter, and working on the 
farm during the summer. In 1851, at 
the age of fifteen years, he courageously 
resolved to break away from the op- 
pressed and crowded economic conditions 
of the land of his forefiithers to try the 
fortunes of Amei'ica. He landed in New" 
York, and soon secured employmi-nt in a 
foundry on William street. But in a 



short time he entered upon an apprentice- 
ship to the mason trade. After serving- 
four years he became employed as a fore- 
man in the employ of large contractors 
in New York, with whom he remained 
five years, and by industry and faith- 
ful service and strict economy in hus- 
banding his eai'nings, he succeeded in 
accumulating sufficient capital to enter 
into contracting and building on his own 
account, in which business he was quite 
successful. Mr. Wilson purchased where 
he resides at present in Middlebush town- 
ship, one of the handsomest and best- 
kept farms in Somerset county. His 
well-cultivated fields, his beautiful lawns 
and rich and valuable conservatory of 
rare flowers and plants, eminently attest 
his skill as a farmer and horticulturist. 
Besides the one upon which he resides, he 
owns two farms in Somerset county, and 
also valuable property in Brooklyn, N. Y. 

The Methodist church at Millstone 
finds in Mr. Wilson a devout steward, a 
wise trustee, and a liberal contributor to 
the financial needs of the church. In 
matters political he is in every sense a re- 
publican, giving such conscientious sup- 
port to the party of his choice as every 
good citizen is expected to give. While 
thus signally pi'osperous and successful 
in all his undertakings, he was faithful 
in his fulfillment of the highest demands 
of useful and noble citizenship. 

He married Miss Ellen Hadwick, an 
early playmate, the estimable woman, 
and the affectionate mother of their only 
child, a daughter, Mary A., the wife of 
Rev. P. C. Bascom, residing at Newai'k, 
New Jersey. 

TOHN NELSON, an extensive and influ- 
^ ential farmer of Piscataway town- 
ship, Middlesex county, is a son of Wil- 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



595 



Ham and Johanna Voorhees Nelson, and 
was born Jan. 10, 1826, in Piscataway 
township, receiving a common-school 
education in the local district schools. 
Upon completing his studies he became 
a wood-merchant at Stanhope, Morris 
county, New Jersey, remaining eight 
years, and subsequently continued that 
business in Sussex county, New Jersey, 
for three years. Later he removed to . 
Pennsylvania, and operated a mill in 
that state for some time. He returned 
to his native place in 1866, when he 
went to farming, and at the present time 
owns and operates two fine farms in Pis- 
cataway township, one of a hundred and 
fifty and the other of fifty-seven acres. 

Mr. Nelson is a democrat in politics, 
and has always exerted considerable in- 
fluence in local affairs. In 1883 he was 
elected freeholder of Piscataway town- 
ship, and served for two terms. He has 
at various times filled most of the minor 
offices of the township, such as assessor 
and member of the town committee. In 
1850 he was married to Miss Sarah D. 
Line, daughter of Isaac Line, of Penn- 
sylvania, by whom he has had eight chil- 
dren : Bathsheba, William James, Ada- 
line, Alfred, Phoebe, Fred and Frank, 
twins, and Sarah Jane. 

Mr. Nelson is well known throughout 
Middlesex county. He is vigorous and 
active in his agricultural work, has been 
very successful in his operations, and his 
two farms are models of high-class tillage. 
He has been conscientious in the dis- 
charge of his public duties when in office, 
and has won the esteem and respect of his 
fellow-citizens. Mr. Nelson's mother is 
of Holland-Dutch descent. His father, 
William Nelson, was a native of Scot- 
land, and a prosperous farmer during 
most of his life in Middlesex county, 



where he owned and operated one hun- 
dred and twelve acres of land. He died 
in 1847, at the age of sixty years, having 
been the father of ten children : Jane 
Ann, Adeline, John, Gertrude, Catherine, 
Eleanor, Ida, Voorhees, William James, 
and Mary. 

GEORGE W. STIL WELL, one of the 
oldest and most reputable citizens 
of Monmouth county, and a retired busi- 
ness man, now residing at Shrewsbury, 
is a son of Joseph and Theodocia (Gas- 
kill) Stilwell, and was born in Hights- 
town, Burlington county. New Jersey, 
April 15, 1809. The Stilwell family is 
of English origin, and some of its mem- 
bers settled in one of the New England 
states, either Massachusetts or Connecti- 
cut, during the early colonial history of 
this country. Here, according to tradition, 
the name " Stilwell" had its origin. It is 
supposed to have originated thus : the re- 
cently arrived emigrants wrote their rela- 
tives in England : " We are still well," 
and thenceforth they assumed the name 
of Stilwell. A few years later some of 
Mr. Stilwell's emigrant ancestors came 
to New Jersey, and settled near Free- 
hold, the present capital of Monmouth 
county. Here Joseph Stilwell, the grand- 
father of Mr. Stilwell, was born in Nov., 
1748. He was a shoemaker, and fol- 
lowed that trade, in connection with 
farming, all his life. During the battle 
of Freehold he laid sick with small-pox 
in that town ; and, while his sympathies 
were all with the colonists, owing to his 
physical condition he was not an active 
participant in the struggle that freed us 
from the mother country. Politically he 
was an old-line whig, but never took an 
active part in politics. He was not iden- 
tified with any church organization, but 



596 



Biographical Sketches. 



was a constant reader of the Bible, and 
was well informed on the religious and 
social status of his day. Honest and 
conscientious in all his relations with his 
fellow-men, liis was a happy and con- 
tented life. He died upon his farm in 
Englishtown, at the advanced age of 
ninety-two years. He was hajipily mar- 
ried to a Miss Havlin, a lady of kind and 
generous disposition, and to their mar- 
riage six children were born : Obediah, 
Pats}', Martha, Leah, Joseph, and Mary, 
all of them deceased. 

Joseph Stilwell (father) was born upon 
a farm near Freehold, on Nov. 5, 1780, 
and died at his home, three miles north 
of Freehold, on August 11, 1850, having 
removed there in 1839. He launched 
out in life as a farmer, but subsequently | 
engaged in the butcher business, and, 
from 1824 to 1839, was proprietor of a 
hotel at Leedsville, New Jersey. In 
these triangular enterprises, widely dif- i 
ferent in their nature, and requiring 
diverse ideas for their operation, he met 
with uniform success, attesting in a 
marked degree the versatility of his 
mind. He acquired avast estate, and, at 
the time of his death, was one of the 
most prosperous and opulent men of this 
county. Politically he was a whig, as 
were nearlv all his family. His marriaoe 

, " ' I 

with Theodocia Gaskill, daughter of Jo- 
seph and Anna Gaskill, of Hightstown, 
resulted in the birth of ten children : 
James, Charles, George W., Elisha, John, 
Forman, Mrs. Mary Smith, Martha, Cor- 
nelia, and Henrietta, who died at the age 
of two and a half vears. 

George W. Stilwell obtained the edu- 
cation that the common schools of his 
day aftbrded, and, at an early age, en- 
gaged in the butcher business with his 
father, with whom he was employed until 



1829 ; upon that date he took up this 
line of business on his own account at 
Leedsville, where he did business success- 
fully up to 1834, purchasing during this 
time valuable realty at Leedsville and 
Red Bank. After his father's death he 
purchased the old homestead, containing 
fifty acres, and resided upon it until 
1848, when he purchased his present 
home and propertj- at the beautiful and 
picturesque little hamlet of Shrewsbury, 
this county. The farm was settled some 
two hundred years ago by Robert White, 
a quaker ; and the house, a commodious 
and comfortable dwelling, in which Mr. 
Stilwell lives, is of similar age. After 
locating there he continued the butcher 
business, and dealt extensively in cattle, 
driving them to New York and other 
eastern markets, prior to the advent of 
railroads in tliis section of the country. 

In 1880 he gave up the cares and re- 
sponsibilities of an active and successful 
career, and now lives in quiet retirement, 
enjojing the comforts of a pleasant home 
and an ample competency, the fruits of an 
industrious and well-sj^ent business life. 

On Oct. 17, 1833, Mr. Stilwell and 
Miss Gertrude Hendrickson, a daughter 
of Hendrick and Mary Hendrickson, 
were united in the bonds of matrimony ; 
and to their union have been born five 
children : David, Joseph, Charles, Anna 
T., and Mary E. 

Mr. Stilwell has been a man of marked 
perseverance and pluck and determina- 
tion, and it is to these elements in his 
mechanism that his success in life is 
largely due. Possessed of wonderful 
physical endurance, he is remarkably 
well preserved, looking twelve years 
younger than he is. He is affable, con- 
genial, and possesses a large circle of 
friends. 



Biographical Sketches. 



597 



JAMES G. CRAWFOED, a prosperous 
farmer near Holmdel, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, is a son of John 
and Mary Crawford, and was born Sept. 
2, 1860, in Holmdel township. The 
Crawford family tree was originally 
planted in Scotland, where it flourished 
until about the year 1672, when John 
Crawford, from whom descends our sub- 
ject, quitted his native hills and sought 
and found a new home at Holmdel, New 
Jersey. 

The paternal grandfather, likewise 
named James G., was a native of Holm- 
del, New Jersey, where he was born in 
1794, and there received his education in 
the common schools. He became by oc- 
cupation a farmer ; in church matters he 
was a baptist, and in politics a member 
of the Democratic party. He was mar- 
ried to Elizabeth Smith, and died at 
Holmdel in 1883. His wife bore him 
seven children, and died at the age of 
eighty-four years. The names of their 
children wei-e : James, deceased ; Wil- 
liam ; Anna, married to Joseph Holmes, 
of Holmdel, deceased; Caroline, deceased; 
Elizabeth, Mary, deceased, and John, 
deceased. 

John Crawford (father) was born Feb. 
22, 1829, at Holmdel, where he acquired 
his primary education in the common 
schools. He subsequently attended the 
Glen wood Institute at Matawan, New 
Jersey, and afterwards chose as his life- 
work the occupation of farming. He 
was an active and zealous member of 
the Baptist church, and in politics was a 
democrat. As the result of his married 
life he became the father of ten chil- 
dren : John, James G., William, de- 
ceased ; Sarah, Caroline, Mary, deceased ; 
Esther, Theresa, Harriet; and Emma. 
He died at Trenton in 1887. 



James G. Crawford (subject) attended 
the public schools of Holmdel township 
until he was eighteen years old, then 
engaged in farming pursuits, which occu- 
pation he is still carrying on very suc- 
cessfully at the home of his birth. He 
is the owner of a fine farm, which he 
keeps in prime condition, and which is 
well equipped for the intelligent and 
well-directed labor he bestows upon it. 
He is a good citizen of Monmouth county, 
and he commands the respect and confi- 
dence of his neighbors and with all those 
persons with whom he has business rela- 
tions. In politics Mr. Crawford is wedded 
to the principles of the Democratic party, 
although he has as yet taken no particu- 
larly active part in political affairs, nor 
has he ever cared to hold office. He 
attends divine worship at the Baptist 
church of Holmdel. 



TpOMUND W. THROCKMORTON, a 
-*-^ prominent legal practitioner at Red 
Bank, New Jersey, comes of English an- 
cestry, and was born at Rumson Neck, 
near Red Bank, Jan. 14, 1859. He is a 
son of Tylee W. and Anna M. (Smith) 
Throckmorton. His paternal grandfather, 
Edmund Throckmorton, was born at 
Shrewsbury, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey. He was an active christian, a 
member of the Presbyterian church, and 
in politics a republican. He married 
Susanna Maclaren. To his marriage 
were born seven children, as follows : 
Susanna M., Margaret, T. W., Edmund 
M., a counsellor-at-law ; Anna M., mar- 
ried to Robert R. Conover, and Julia, not 
married. 

Tylee W. Throckmorton, father of sub- 
ject, graduated from the private schools 
of John T. Halsey, Elizabeth, New Jer- 



598 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



sey. From this he graduated at the 
early age of thirteen as a civil engineer. 
He has followed the profession of a sur- 
veyor all his life, and has achieved so 
eminent a reputation in it that in every 
instance when his judgment has been ap- 
2>ealed to in litigated cases his decision 
has been accepted as final. In connec- 
tion with his professional work he con- 
ducted the Byer farm for a time, after- 
wards moving to the G. D. H. Gillespie 
farm at Rumson, New Jersey, which he 
managed for thirty years. He then re- 
moved to Red Bank and retired from ac- 
tive business, with the exception of doing 
a little surveying at times. For several 
years he was commissioner of the town of 
Red Bank, and for several 3'ears a free- 
holder and street commissioner. He at- 
tends the Presbj'terian church at Shrews- 
bury, New Jersey, and belongs to the 
Republican party. To his marriage were 
born four children : Elizabeth De Hart, 
married to James Marshall ; Harriet, 
married to Dr. James S. Conover; Charles, 
deceased, and Edward W. 

Edmund W. Throckmorton entered 
the Freehold Institute in 1872 and gradu- 
ated in 1877; then entered the law of- 
fice of Charles H. Trafford, and subse- 
quently in 1879 became a student at the 
University of New York Law School, 
from which he graduated with honors in 
May, 1880. He then began the practice 
of law in New York cit}^, and remained 
there about six years ; removing to Red 
Bank in 1886. Here he has since i-e- 
mained, devoting himself to office prac- 
tice and paying especial attention to the 
settling up of estates, and matters con- 
cerning real-estate. He is a member of 
the Order of Elks of Red Bank, and in 
the social, as well as business circles, he 
is greatly esteemed and respected. 



TpEEDERICK WEIGEL, attorney for 
-*- the city of New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, and one of the ablest lawyers in 
the state, was born in that city March 
19, 1859, and is a son of Philip Weigel, 
Sr. and Anna Silzer, deceased. Frederick 
Weigel received all the educational ad- 
vantages affoi'ded by the public schools of 
New Brunswick, and Rutgers Grammar 
school, and afterwards became a student 
at Rutgers College, from which he v/as 
graduated in 1880. He then read law 
in the office of Adrian & Weston, at New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, and was ad- 
mitted to practice at the New Jersey bar 
in June, 1883. He soon thereafter 
opened a law office in Ncav Brunswick, 
and began what has since proved to be a 
phenomenally successful legal career. He 
is gifted with a legal acumen beyond his 
years, and possesses in a high degree 
what has been defined as genius, that is 
to say, the ability to take pains. He is 
regarded as especially careful and con- 
scientious in his treatment of cases and 
matters brought to him, and has, in con- 
sequence, been enabled by the reputation 
thus gained to build up a very large 
practice in a comparatively few years. 
In 1885, two years after his admis- 
sion to the bar, he was elected to the 
very important office of attorney to the 
city of New Brunswick, which position 
he still holds, and his energetic and able 
execution of the duties of that office has 
reflected upon him a high degree of 
credit. These duties have brought to 
him an especially large number of tax 
cases, many of which have been of an 
exceedingly complicated nature, and his 
extraordinary- success in handling them 
has greatly enhanced his legal reputation, 
and increased' the number of his clients. 
Mr. Weigel also holds the position of 



Biographical Sketches. 



599 



counsel to the Brunswick Traction Co., 
and his legal services have been of the 
greatest value to it, and not one of the 
least important factors in its success. He 
is also secretary and treasurer of the 
New Brunswick Insurance Co., one of the 
oldest insurance companies in the state. 
In politics Mr. Weigel is affiliated with 
the Democratic party, and is one of its 
most active workers in the city of New 
Brunswick. He is exceedingly popular 
with his political associates, and has been 
frequently tendei'ed nominations to office 
by them, but as frequently refused. He 
is a member of the masonic and other 
orders, the Middlesex Bowling Green 
Club, a trustee of the Brunswick Boat 
Club, the New BrunsAvick Gun Club, 
and its president; also a member of the 
Reformed church of New Brunswick. 
In 1885 he married Catherine A. Mc- 
Curdy, daughter of the late Daniel 
McCurdy, of New Brunswick, New Jer- 
sey, and to their union have been born 
two daughters, Mildred R., and Kathryn 
D. Well educated, talented, industrious, 
and possessed of such genial manners as 
make friends of all who come in con- 
tact with him, Mr. Weigel is regarded 
with a high degree of respect and esteem 
by all who know him. 



"p\R. JUSTUS H. COOLEY, a physi- 
-*-^ cian and surgeon of North Plain- 
field, New Jersey, is a son of Justus and 
Elizabeth (Pine) Cooley, and was born 
on Oct. 26, 1852, in Orange county. New 
York. He traces his ancestry to French 
and English origins respectively. His 
grandfather was Justus Cooley, who was 
of sturdy New England stock, born in 
the state of Connecticut, but upon arriv- 
ing at maturity located in Ulster county, 



New York. He was a man of but limited 
education, having but few advantages in 
his school-boy days for securing mental 
training. His mind was of a mechanical 
vamp, and in this line he was justly enti- 
tled to rank as a genius. He married 
Esther Manney, who belonged to one of the 
old and prominent families of the "empire 
state." Their marriage was prolific in 
the birth of twelve children, as follows : 
Hettie, who married Samuel Adams; 
! Hannah, became the consort of David 
I Adams; Ebenezei-, John, Mary, became 
the wife of Prince Haviland; Charles, 
Justus, Annie, who married Nathaniel 
Adams, and two that died young. 

Justus Cooley (father) was born in 
Ulster county. New York, May 10, 1811, 
removed to Orange county with his father, 
and spent his life quietly engaged in the 
arts of husbandry in that county. In 
matters of politics he subscribed to the 
principles first of the old-line whigs, and 
later to those of the Republican party. 
He was a reader and thinker, and kept 
well posted on the political history of the 
times, but never sought nor held political 
office. He was a devout member of the 
Society of Friends, in which he held the 
office of elder. He married Elizabeth 
Pine, and they were the parents of the 
following children : Frances, who married 
Dr. J. A. Maubey ; Asahel, Mary, Eliza- 
beth, Justus, Charles, Helen, a physician 
located in New York city ; Maurice, a 
civil engineer. He died in Orange county 
in June, 1879, and his wife followed him 
in 1891. 

Dr. Cooley attended the public schools 
of Orange county and New York city 
until eighteen years of age, when he took 
a position as bookkeeper in the latter 
city fcrr three years under the employ of 
R. L. Cole. Having decided upon a pro- 



600 



Biographical Sketches. 



fessional career, he began preparation for 
the same by registering as a student of 
medicine in the office of Dr. A. J. Inger- 
soll, of Corning, New York, where he 
pursued his studies for three years. He 
then entered Eclectic Medical College of 
New York cit}', from which he gradua- 
ted in 1884. He at once located in Plain- 
field, and has successfully practiced there 
ever since. He is active and energetic 
in the pursuit of his profession, keeps 
well abreast of the advancement in the 
medical science of the age, and deserv- 
ingly ranks as one of the leading physi- 
cians of his town. In 1890 he founded 
a sanitarium at Brookside, and in 1896 
a like institution at Westervelt and 
Manning avenues. The doctor is an 
ardent republican, and, although he has 
never been a seeker after office, yet 
has frequently been called to offices of 
trust in the municipality of his adop- 
tion. He served three terms as maj'or 
of Noi'th Plainfield, and as assessor six 
years. In the religious world he sub- 
scribes to the doctrines of the Congrega- 
tional church, and fraternally stands high 
in masonic circles, being a member of 
Anchor Lodge, No. 149, of Plainfield, 
and instrumental in the founding and 
was for several years president of the 
Plainfield Bicycle Club. Oct. 5, 1876, he 
married Mary Haviland, a daughter of 
Justus and Elizabeth Haviland, and their 
union has been blessed in the birth of the ' 
following children : Erwin, Elenor C, 
Edith, Roger, Agnes, and Marjory. 



n^HOMAS LEA, a successful machinist 
-*- and steam-fitter of New Brunswick, 
Middlesex county. New Jersey, is a son 
of Thomas and Margaret (Green) Lea, 
and was born Jan. 28, 1849, at Horage, 



Lancastershire, England. His paternal 
grandfather was born in Standish, Lancas- 
tershire, England, and followed the occu- 
pation of a carpenter in that town dur- 
ing all his life. He had four children : 
William, John, Elizabeth, and Thomas. 
He was a member of the Protestant 
Episcopal church and of the order of 
Odd Fellows. He died at the age of 
seventy years, and his remains lie buried 
in Standish. 

Thomas Lea, (father of subject) was 
born in the town last mentioned, and, 
after receiving a common-school educa- 
tion, followed the occupation of farming 
for a time at Horage, and subsequently 
was engaged in the manufactui-e of wagon 
covers at Keighley, Y'orkshire. He was 
a member of the Church of England at 
Horage and filled the offices of deacon 
and elder. He died in Keighley at the 
age of seventy-two years. His children 
were : Jane, married to William Parkin- 
son ; Alice, Elizabeth, deceased ; John 
and William, deceased ; and Thomas. 

Thomas Lea (subject) was educated at 
Horage, and after leaving school he 
learned the trade of a machinist at 
Leeds, Y'orkshire, and followed that oc- 
cupation for nine 3'ears at Keighley. He 
then entered the employ of the Haigh 
foundry at Wigan, Lancastershire, where 
he remained six years. In Nov., 1880, he 
came to the United States and located at 
Philadelphia, where he worked at his 
trade for six weeks in the employ of 
the Southwark Foundry Machme Co., 
at the end of which time he assumed 
the management of the machine depart- 
ment of that company. He continued 
in this position until April 16, 1881, 
when he removed to Worcester, Mass., 
where he remained twelve years engaged 
with the Pond Tool Machine Co. He 






r. 




Biographical Sketches. 



603 



then clianged his residence to New 
Brunswick, where he engaged in the 
business of machinist and steam fitter 
on his own account, in which he has been 
successful. He married Joanna Peet, of 
Pemberton, Lancastershire, and to their 
married life have been born eighteen 
children, as follows ; William, Fred., 
Samuel, Margaret, Frank, deceased ; 
Franklin, deceased ; Charles, Ernest, 
Minnie, deceased ; Alice, and Mabel, 
Franklm, Thomas, Herbert, all deceased; 
May, Hei'bert J., deceased; and three 
infants who died at birth. There ai-e 
now living, five sons and three daugh- 
ters. 



rpHOMAS R. WOOLLEY, of old family, 
-*- successful in the business world, 
and a man of strict integrity, is the 
gentleman whose name heads this sketch. 
He is a son of Jordan and Mary Jane 
(Haslem) Woolley, and was born March 
10, 1841, in Philadelphia, Pa. The 
family of which Thomas R. Woolley is 
a worthy scion is of English origin, but 
have for many generations been promi- 
nent and respected citizens of this 
country. 

Thomas Woolley (great-grandfather) 
was born on the old homestead at Pop- 
lar, Ocean township, this county. He 
married Elizabeth W., and among the 
children born to this marital relation 
was Britton Woolley, the grandfather of 
Thomas R. 

Britton Woolley (grandfather) was 
born at the family home above referred 
to", in Monmouth county, April 15, 1765, 
obtained a common school education, 
pursued the arts of agriculture as a 
means of securing a livelihood, and died 
in the township of his birth, June 18, 
1825. He was a great admirer of that 

31 



school of political economists of which 
Cla}^ and Webster were typical represen- 
tatives, and in his support of the whig 
party was steadfast and enthusiastic, 
whilst in religious faith he was a con- 
sistent member of the Quaker church. 
He married Mary Williams, and to them 
were born three children : Britton, Jor- 
dan, and Mary Ann. 

Jordan Woolley (father) was born May 
12, 1815, on the homestead, and after a 
residence of some years in his native 
county removed to Philadelphia, where 
he was engaged as a fish merctian.t. In 
about 1847 he returned to this county 
and located at Long Branch, and from 
that time until his death he was active 
in the political and industrial affairs of 
the county. Politically he was a whig 
until that party was disrupted upon the 
issues growing out of slavery, when he 
became a democrat. In 1862 he was 
elected sheriff of Monmouth county, pre- 
viously having held the ofiice of coroner, 
and also held for a number of years in 
succession the oflBce of freeholder. After 
retiring from the office of sheriff he em- 
barked in the lumber business at Branch- 
port, and continued it four years. He 
then retired from business, and the re- 
mainder of his life was devoted to study, 
and such office of a public character as 
he was from time to time called to. In 
fraternal circles he was prominent and 
respected, being a thirty-second degree 
Scottish Rite Mason, and an influential 
Odd Fellow. He died Feb. 9, 1879. He 
married Mary Haslem, a lady of English 
birth, and they were, the parents of two 
children : Thomas R., and Mary Jane, 
wife of Edward R. Slocum. Mrs. Mary 
(Haslem) Woolley died on Jan. 1, 1844, 
and Mr. Woolley took as his second wife 
Margaret Van Brunt, and to them were 



604 



Biographical Sketches. 



born the following children : Clay, Ada, 
Sarah, Pema, Margaret, and Annie. 

Thomas R. Woolley received a good 
rudimentary education in the public 
schools of Philadelphia, and at the age 
of sixteen years entered a wholesale 
hardware store, where he remained until 
twenty-one years of age, in the capacity of 
a clerk. He then removed to Long Branch, 
and was appointed the under-sherifl' 
of the county, serving three years with 
his father, who was then sheriff, and two 
yeai-s with his father's successor, William 
B. Sutphen, but resigned in 1867 to en- 
gage in the lumber business. In the lat- 
ter enterprise he was established in Long 
Branch, where for twenty years he con- 
ducted a thriving and profitable trade. 
In 1887 he retired from the latter indus- 
try, and since then has devoted his time 
to other matters closely identified with 
the economic and political history of his 
community. He has always been a 
staunch democrat, and is prominent and 
active in the councils of his party. In 
1866 he was elected to the office of 
superintendent of the schools of Ocean 
township ; and also served as a member 
and treasurer of the township committee 
of Ocean township, 1875 to 1879. In 
1879 he was elected chosen freeholder, 
and held that office until 1883, when he 
declined further re-election. He was 
elected a Long Branch commissioner by 
the citizens of the town irrespective of 
party, in 1877, and was re-elected an- 
nually, serving until 1883 ; having served 
two years as chairman of the finance 
committee and for five years as president 
of the board, Mr. Woolley was elected 
mayor of Long Branch in 1879, and re- 
elected annually for five years, when 
having placed the town on a firm finan- 
cial basis he declined further service. 



He was also a member and president of 
the Long Branch board of health, 1884 
to 1887. He was in 1885 elected a mem- 
ber of the Long Branch board of educa- 
tion, which position he still holds, having 
served continuously as chairman of the 
finance committee. In 1886, under the 
borough council law, Mr. Woolle}^ was 
again elected mayor of Long Branch, be- 
ing the only mayor ever elected by the 
direct vote of the people. In 1890 Mayor 
Woolley was again elected a Long Branch 
commissioner, and for the seventh time 
chosen mayor of the city ; and also in 
1890 he was again elected a member of 
the township committee of Ocean town- 
ship, which position he still holds, hav- 
ing been re-elected, and serving as the 
president of the board. In lS96 Mayor 
Woolley was unaiiimously elected city 
treasurer. 

Mayor Woolley is a director and vice- 
president of the First National Bank of 
Long Branch; a director of the Long 
Branch Banking Company ; treasurer of 
the Long Branch Building and Loan As- 
sociation for sixteen years, and formerly 
treasurer of the Long Branch Gas Light 
Company. He is president of the Atlan- 
tic Fire Engine and Truck Company 
No. 2 ; treasurer of the Tutelos Club, 
and for ye.ars vice-president of the Board 
of Governors of the Monmouth Memorial 
hospital. Mayor Woolley is also a mem- 
ber of Olive Branch Lodge, No. 16, of 
Free and Accepted Masons ; of Standard 
Chapter, No. 35 ; of Carson Commandery, 
No. 15, of Knights Templar, and also of 
Mecca Temple, No. 1, of the Mystic 
Shrine, and is connected with the Odd 
Fellows and Knights of Pythias fraterni- 
ties. 

On Dec. 4, 1864, Mr. Woolley mar- 
ried Annie M., daughter of James C. 



Biographical Sketches. 



605 



West, of Long Branch, and a grandfather 
of George W. West on the paternal side 
of the family, and of Benjamin White on 
the maternal side. The children bless- 
ing this union were : Thomas K., Charles 
P., Annie S. J., and Bloomfield Drum- 
mond. The last named, born April 3, 
1876, being the only survivor. Enjoying 
as he does in an earnest degree the con- 
fidence of the community in which ,he 
lives, and having a well-grounded reputa- 
tion as a shrewd and honorable business 
man, he is frequently appointed as an 
executor and often solicited to fill the 
office of guardian. These trusts are 
always filled with unswerving fidelity to 
duty. 

"Tj^DGAR CARROLL, M. D., of Dayton, 
-'-^ Middlesex county. New Jersey, is a 
son of Thomas and Elizabeth (McClure) 
Carroll, of Coshocton county, 0., where 
he was born Feb. 11, 1853. He is de- 
scended from a sturdy race of ancestors 
of Irish extraction and especially noted 
for their longevity. Both his paternal 
grandfather and grandmother had almost 
reached the age of one hundred when they 
died, and enjoyed remarkable activity and 
spirits to the end. 

Thomas Carroll (the father of Edgar 
Carroll) was born in Ireland in 1809. 
Early in life he came to America and 
located in the city of Philadelphia. 
After spending several years in that 
city he removed to Keene, 0. He had 
learned the trade of a shoemaker in his 
early life, and this occupation he followed 
for a number of years. Subsequently he 
entered into business as a shoe-dealer, in 
which he continued until 1876, when he 
retired. He is still living in the home 
of his adoption, at Keene, 0., in the en- 
joyment of a ripe old age, at peace with 



all the world, and greatly esteemed by 
friends and neighbors. He is a republi- 
can in politics, but was never an active 
partisan. He is a member of the Presby- 
terian church at Keene, 0., and an earn- 
est and faithful christian. He was mar-, 
ried in 1834 to Elizabeth McClure, daugh- 
ter of Nathaniel McClure, of Ireland, and 
they had the following children born to 
them : William, who is a practicing phy- 
sician in Philadelphia, Pa. ; Dr. Thomas, 
who died in New Orleans in 1867 ; Na- 
thaniel, who resides in Philadelphia ; 
Dr. Robert J., who resides in New York ; 
Margaret, who lives with the parents ; 
James, who lives in Chicago ; Edgar, our 
subject, and Elizabeth. Mrs. Carroll, the 
mother, died in 1871. 

Dr. Carroll, our subject, attended the 
public schools of his native town for 
some years, then went to Philadelphia, 
Pa., where he availed himself of the ex- 
cellent advantages afforded by the pub- 
lic schools in the attainment of a thor- 
ough education. He afterwards entered 
Jefferson Medical College and took a 
regular course, graduating therefrom in 
the class of 1880. He next took a post- 
graduate course. He then associated 
himself with his brother William, who 
was located in Philadelphia, in the prac- 
tice of medicine, and with him he re- 
mained three years, or until 1883, when 
he removed to Dayton, and entered upon 
the practice of his profession there. He 
has quite a growing practice, and bids 
fair for an eminent position in his honor- 
able profession. He is a democrat in 
politics, and in 1893 was elected to the 
office of county physician for the term of 
three years, an office which he is now 
filling. He was married April 10, 1889, 
to Miss Tillie Buckalew, daughter of 
Obediah Buckalew, Esq., of Dayton, New 



606 



Biographical Sketches. 



Jersey, and they have the following chil- 
dren : Nathaniel and Margaret. 



OAMUEL W. KIRKBRIDE, one of the 
^ most prominent building contractors 
of Monmouth count}-, New Jerse}', re- 
siding at Asljury Park, is a son of Wil- 
liam and Elizabeth Boltenhouse Kirk- 
bride, and was born May 30, 1848, at 
Mount Holly, Burlington county. New 
Jersey. He descends from one of three 
brothers, native-born Scotchmen, who 
came to America in the seventeenth 
century and settled ; one near St. Louis, 
Mo. ; one near Philadelphia, close by 
Bridesburg, so named in honor of the 
sturdy pioneer, Kirkbride ; and the one 
from whom our subject descends found a 
home in New Jersey. 

William Kirkbride (grandfather) was 
a prominent builder and a prosperous 
business man of Medford, Burlington 
county. New Jersey. He was born in 
Burlington county about 1770; was mar- 
ried to Elizabeth Kirk, a native of Bur- 
lington county, and deceased in 1858, 
leaving eight children, one of whom was 
William, the father of our subject. 

William Kirkbride, last named, Avas 
born Feb. 11, 1812, near Mount Holly. 
He was a carpenter and contractor, 
which he followed for more than forty 
years in the vicinity of Mount Holly. 
He was active in republican politics, 
prominent in municipal affairs, and occu- 
pied various town offices dui'ing a period 
of fifteen years, and was held in high 
estimation as a public-spirited and patri- 
otic citizen. He was unable to serve his 
country as a soldier during the civil 
war, in consequence of an accident 
which rendered him a cripple, but was 
well represented in tlie army by his 



three sons and his two sons-in-law. In 
religion he Avas a methodist, and for 
many years was a prominent member of 
the church of that denomination at 
Mount Holly. He deceased Sept. 18, 
1881, leaving nine children as the result 
of his marriage relations with Elizabeth 
Boltenhouse, whom he espoused in 1836, 
and who died April, 1885. His five sons 
and four daughters were named as fol- 
lows : Margaret, Charles, Elizabeth, Jo- 
siah, Rachel, William, Samuel, Walter 
and Hannah. 

Samuel W. Kirkbride spent his days 
of early life at Mount Holly, receiving 
his education in the public schools of 
that place. At the age of fifteen years 
he enlisted for service in the Union 
army, but was prevented by his family 
from going to the front. Two subse- 
quent enlistments encountered the same 
result, and his patriotic desire to breathe 
the smoke of battle remained ungratified. 
He was thus deprived of what seemed to 
him a just duty; that of avenging the 
death of one of his brothers, which oc- 
curred in a hospital at Memphis, Tenn., 
resultant from a wound received in bat- 
tle. Young Kirkbride was variousl}' em- 
ployed from 1865 to 1869 as a newsboy 
on the Pennsylvania railroad ; at clerk- 
ing in a store, and in learning the car- 
penter trade with his father. In 1869 
he was admitted to partnership with his 
father, with whom he remained until 
1871, when he opened up for himself in 
a modest way as a builder. In 1877 he 
formed a partnership with his brother, 
Josiah R., in the same business, which 
they continued in and about Mount 
Holly for upwards of a year, securing 
such desirable contracts as those for 
l)uilding the East End Hotel, improving 
the Ocean Hotel, and erecting a number 



Biographical Sketches. 



607 



of cottages at Asbuiy Park. The great 
bulk of his business centering in that 
rapidly-growing town induced him to re- 
move there in 1878, and since that year 
his residence at Asbury Park has been a 
permanent one. Mr. Kirkbride and his 
brother carried on their business together 
very successfully for five years, and in 
1885 theydissolved partnership, our sub- 
ject continuing the business. During 
the thirteen years since elapsing, Mr. 
Kirkbride has erected many buildings 
along the shores of Jersey, notable 
among which are the Colonnade Hotel, 
Hotel Brunswick, Second Avenue Hotel, 
and Sunset Hall, at Asbury Park; the 
Berkeley and Avon Inn, at Avon ; 
Sloan's Hotel and Moore's Hotel, at Long 
Branch ; the Asbury Park post-office ; 
St. James' Episcopal church, at Lake- 
wood, Ocean county; Trinity Episcopal 
church, at Asbury Park ; the New York 
and Long Branch railroad stations, at 
Interlaken, Avon and Asbury Park. He 
built the Barnman, the John Steinbach, 
Mikado block, and the Appleby stores; 
the White building; the Githen's block, 
and the extensive car house of the Coast 
Electric Co., at Asbviry Park, as well as 
a multitude of cottages, conspicuous 
among which are those of George P. 
Kroehl, A. C. Twining, Capt. Abram 
Baker, James Hanan, etc. 

Mr. Kirkbride is not only one of the 
most substantial and leading business 
men of Asbury Park, but is equally 
prominent in the religious, political, edu- 
cational and social walks of life. He is 
ever foremost in all matters relating to 
town development, and is deservedly 
popular among his fellow-citizens. In 
religion he is a member and junior warden 
of the vestry of Trinity Episcopal church, 
and in politics he is an ardent member 



and leader of the Republican forces at 
Asbury Park. He has occupied various 
public offices, among which may be 
named the following : member of town- 
ship committee from 1887 to 1894 ; ^jresi- 
dent of the board of health dui'ing three 
years ; township treasurer for the same 
length of time ; member of the board of 
education for eight years ; and a member 
of the borough council from 1888 up to 
the present time. In secret society mem- 
bership, Mr. Kirkbride is affiliated as 
follows : Asbury Park Lodge, No. 114, F. 
and A. M. ; Standard Chapter, R. A. M. ; 
Carson Commandery, No. 15, Knights 
Templar; Mount Holly Lodge, No. 19, 
I. 0. 0. F. ; Coast City Council, No. 813, 
Royal Arcanum ; and Washington Coun- 
cil," No. 5, Jr. 0. U. A. M. He has been 
a director of the First National Bank of 
Asbury Park since 1892 ; is vice-presi- 
dent of the Asbury Park Amusement 
Co. ; vice-president of the Monmouth 
Social Club, and president of the Asbury 
Park Athletic Association. He is a 
member and ex-chief of the local fire de- 
partment, serving as such from 1883 to 
1886 ; was one of the organizers of the 
Neptune Engine Co. ; is a member of the 
Chief Engineers' Association of the 
United States, and a member of the Fire 
Relief Association of New Jersey, in 
which he is now serving a term as one 
of its executive committeemen. He has 
been an active fireman ever since he was 
nineteen years of age, and his first con- 
nection was with the Good Iiatent Hose 
Co., of Hount Holly. 

Mr. Kirkbride was united in marriage, 
Jan. 25, 1871, to Margaret Little Bain, a 
daughter of Daniel and Sarah Bain, of 
Mount Holly, formerly of Paisley, Ren- 
frew county, Scotland. To their union 
have been born three children : Walter 



608 



Biographical Sketches. 



S., born Nov. 21, 1871; Maud, bom 
Feb. 24, 1874, died July, 1876; and 
Mabel B., born July 19, 1877. 



"DULEF F. HOPPER, a coal and lum- 
-*-*' ber dealer of Eatontown, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, is a son of 
Abraham M. and Mary (Tucker) Hopper, 
and was born at Long Branch, now West 
Long Branch, New Jersey, Nov. 9, 1838. 
He is of Holland-Dutch extraction, and 
his immigrant ancestors settled in New 
Amsterdam, now New York, during the 
early part of the seventeenth century. 
They were a frugal and thrifty people 
and contributed much to the progress 
and prosperity of the new colony. 

Mr. Hopper's paternal grandfather 
was John Hopper, who was a native of 
New York city. He was a baker by 
trade and followed that vocation in the 
metropolis until about 1820, when he re- 
moved to Long Branch, which became 
his future home up to the time of his 
death. There he engaged in merchan- 
dising and farming. Politically he was 
an old-line whig and religiously a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
His marital union with Eunice Russel, of 
New York city, resulted in the issue of 
two children, Abraham M. and Maria. 

Abraham M. Hopper (father) was 
twice married ; first, to Deborah Mc- 
Greggor, of Long Branch, by whom he 
had three children ; second, to Mary 
Tucker, of Deal, New Jersey, by whom 
he had eight children, of whom the sub- 
ject of this sketch is the fourth. 

R. F. Hopper has been a resident of 
Eatontown, New Jersey, for twenty-six 
years. He was at one time a resident 
of Milwaukee, Wis., and served three 
years in a Wisconsin regiment of volun- 
teer infantry during the late civil war. 



n\ EORGE VAN WAGENER BUR- 
^-^ ROUGHS, a prominent and entei-- 
prising druggist of Manasquan, New 
Jersey, is a son of Rev. George H. and 
Sarah N. (Hageman) Burroughs, and was 
born in Princeton, New Jersey, Feb. 8, 
1864. His mother is a sister of John F. 
Hageman, attorney-general of New Jer- 
sey. Mr. Burroughs received his early 
education in the public schools, and en- 
tered Princeton College in 1883. He is 
a graduate in both medicine and phar- 
macy, but never practiced the former 
profession. After his studies were com- 
pleted he resided for short periods, suc- 
cessively, at Jersey City and Orange, 
New Jersey, and New York city, where 
he was employed as a pharmacist. In 
1890 he removed to Asbury Park, and 
continued in the drug business. He re- 
moved to Manasquan in 1888, and now 
carries on one of the largest and most 
successful wholesale and retail drug stores 
in that section. He has made a specialty 
of manufacturing flavoring exti-acts for 
five years, and has built up a large and 
profitable trade in that line. 

Mr. Burroughs is thoroughly versed in 
the details of his profession, and is a man 
of exceptional business ability and great 
probity of character. He is an active 
member of the Presb3terian church. He 
was married, Jan. 16, 1895, to Fannie A. 
Meggs, daughter of J. W. Meggs, Esq., of 
Matawan, New Jersey. 



TRA T. SPENCER, M. D., a prominent 
-*- physician of Woodbridge, New Jer- 
sey, was born at Martinsville, in this 
state, July 28, 1870, and is a son of 
Aaron and Annie (Drurj') Spencer. His 
paternal grandfather, Jolin Spencer, was 
educated at the public schools, after- 



Biographical Sketches. 



609 



ward learned the trade of carpenter and 
builder, and followed that occupation the 
greater part of his life. For a number 
of years he has been living a retired life 
at Warrenville, New Jersey. In politics 
he is a democrat, but never a seeker 
after office, although at various times he 
has been elected to fill township offices. 
John Spencer married Caroline Giddes, 
who died at the age of sixty-five years. 
To his marriage there has been born six 
children, two of whom died in early in- 
fancy, the others being John, Jr., who 
died in middle life, leaving a wife and 
four children ; Lydia, married to William 
Kipsey, Jacob and Aaron. 

Aaron Spencer, father of the doctor, 
received a public school education at 
Mount Horeb, and leaving the public 
school a few years later became engaged 
in the flour and feed business at Rahway, 
New Jersey, where he had an extensive 
trade for several years, disposing of it to 
engage in farming. He now owns and 
manages a fine place at Martinsville, 
New Jersey. He belongs to the Demo- 
cratic party, and takes especial interest 
in the county and township politics. In 
the year 1885 he was elected an assessor 
in Warren township, and served credita- 
bly a term of five years. He is an at- 
tendant of the Methodist Episcopal 
church at Mount Horeb, and his mar- 
riage has been blessed with four children : 
Ira T., William, married to Anna PheifFer; 
Muzetta, and one dying in infancy. 

Ira T. Spencer received his prelimi- 
nary education at the public schools in 
Mount Horeb, New Jersey, and then en- 
tered Pennington Seminary, which he 
left while in the senior class to assume 
the occupation of teacher. He taught 
in the public schools at Mount Horeb 
and Bound Brook one year each, in the 



meantime preparing to enter the medical 
department of the University of Penn- 
sylvania at Philadelphia; graduating 
therefrom in the class of '93 with the 
degree of M. D., after taking a full three 
years' course. In July of 1893 he was 
licensed to practice medicine in the state 
of New Jersey by the New Jersey State 
Board of Examiners, after passing one 
of the best examinations before that 
board. He commenced the practice of 
his profession at Harlington, New Jersey, 
where he resided for two years, removing 
from thence to Woodbridge, New Jersey, 
in August, 1895. Since then, meeting 
with unusual success, he has proved him- 
self to be one of the most active and 
skillful physicians in that town, and has 
built up a large, lucrative and influential 
practice. He is a member of the John 
Guiteras Medical Society, which is con- 
nected with the University of Pennsyl- 
vania; also the New Jersey and Somer- 
set county medical societies ; the Knights 
of Pythias, for which he is one of the 
medical examiners ; the Jr. 0. U. A. M., 
Anchor Council, No. 40, and its medical 
examiner; a member of the Chosen 
Friends Society, and its medical exami- 
ner ; also examiner and physician to the 
Society of Lady Foresters of Wood- 
bridge ; medical examiner for the Metro- 
politan Life Insurance Co., and also the 
Mutual Life Insurance Co., of New York. 
In politics Dr. Spencer is allied with the 
democrats, but does no active political 
work. He was a member of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church originally, but sub- 
sequently changing his residence became 
a member of the Dutch Reformed church 
by letter. 

Dr. Spencer is personally a man of ge- 
nial temperament, courteous and afiable, 
and is most highly esteemed! 



610 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



TP D. TOMS, M. D., a popular medical 
-*- • practitioner of Key port, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Clarkson 
and Mary A. (Holmes) Toms, of Tren- 
ton, New Jersey-, and was born, Feb. 17, 
1858, at Bloomington, 111. The fiimily 

is of Scotch and Dutch origin, and 

Toms was tlie first adventurous emigrant 
of that name who, landing earlj- in 1700 
on the Jersey coast, at the spot where 
the town of Toms River now stands, 
christened a I'iver with, and bequeathed 
to a town, his name. 

The paternal grandfather, Charles 
Toms, was born at Toms River, Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, in the year 
1792. He received a common-school 
education, and became a trader and a 
speculator; was associate judge of Som- 
erset county. New Jersey. In politics 
he was a democrat. He was married to 
Mercy Run}'on, and by her was the 
father of seven children ; David, John, 
Charles, Runyon, Clarkson, Mevribah, 
and Mary. His death occurred at Sa- 
vannah, Ga., in 1827. 

Clarkson Toms (fothei*) was born, Aug- 
ust 25, 1816, at Somerville, Somerset 
county. New Jersey ; and, after acquir- 
ing such education as the common schools 
afforded, he engaged himself with Rich- 
ard Garrett, of New Brunswick, N'Ew 
Jersey, to learn the trade of carriage- 
making. He followed that business very 
successfully for twenty years, when he 
removed to the west, and engaged for 
several years in the banking business, at 
Bloomington, 111. He subsequently went 
to Kansas and located at Pratt, where he 
is now living and carrying on the bu,si- 
ness of a banker. He is president of the 
People's Bank at Pratt. In politics he 
is a democrat, and has always been an 
active political worker, but has never 



held office. He is affiliated with the mar 
sonic fraternity at Pratt, Kan., and is 
loyal to that ancient and honorable order, 
both in precept and in practice. His 
wife is also surviving, and is the mother 
of five children : George W., deceased ; 
G. V. ; Mary, mari'ied to William Ross, 
of Bloomington, 111. ; Julia Runyon, wife 
of Charles W. Tackenberg, of Cincinnati, 
0. ; and Dr. F. D. 

Dr. F. D. Toms attended the high 
school at Bloomington, 111., from which 
he was graduated in 1874. In 1884 he 
entered Rush Medical College at Chicago, 
and was graduated from there with high 
honors in 1887. He then spent two 
years in hospital practice at Cincinnati, 
0., where he acquired that skill in sur- 
gery which is a characteristic of his pro- 
fessional work. Dr. Toms' first location 
for general practice was at Dillon, Mont., 
toward the close of 1888, and he re- 
mained there alwut seven years. He 
came to the east, and located, July 15, 
1895, in Kej-port, where in one short 
year he has established himself in popu- 
larity and patronage highly gratifying to 
himself and to his friends. Politically 
Dr. Toms is a democrat, but he has as 
yet taken no active interest in party 
work. He is a member of the masonic 

[ order at Dillon, Mont., and is non-affil- 
iated as yet with the fraternity of Key- 
port. He is a member of Chingarora 

j Tribe, No. 110, I. 0. R. M., and he was 
vice-president, for Montana, of the Patri- 
otic Sons of America. Personally he is 
a gentleman of refined and pleasing man- 
ners. 



A LBERT A. TAYLOR, an extensive 
-^-^ mason, builder and senior member 
of the bicycle firm of A. A. Taylor & 
Son, at Asbury Park, Monmouth county, 



Biographical Sketches. 



613 



New Jersey, is a sou of Peter and Caro- 
line Taylor, and was born March 7, 1856, 
at "A¥illow Park," Spring Lake, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey. 

The paternal grandfather, likewise 
named Albert, was a native of Germany, 
whence he came to America, and settled 
in Monmouth county, becoming a farmer 
and an extensive land-owner. 

Peter Taylor (father) was born at 
Colt's Neck, Monmouth count}'', where 
he was educated and bred to agricultural 
pursuits, which he carried on without 
interruption until his death. 

Albert A. Taylor (subject) was edu- 
cated in the district schools, and labored 
on his father's farm until he was eighteen 
years of age, when he was apprenticed to 
E. I. Pitcher, at Long Branch, to learn 
the trade of masonry. After continuing 
two years as a journeyman mason he re- 
moved to Asbury Park in 1878. He now 
resides at Bradley Beach, one mile south 
of Asbury Park, and is one of the founders 
of that village. He is at this time one of 
the most successful building contractors 
on the Jersey coast, and has been en- 
gaged in many extensive building opera- 
tions. He built both the banks of Asbury 
Park, also the Tusting and Taylor flats, 
in 1892, and assisted in the erection of 
the Appleby and the Steinbach buildings. 
His leading specialty is contracting for 
the erection of gas, water, and electric- 
light plants, as well as to moving and 
hoisting of iron and steel. At the present 
time he is occupied in building the water- 
works at West Asbury Park, an enter- 
prise pi'ojected by a syndicate of New 
York capitalists. Mr. Taylor is an ex- 
sive owner of real estate in and around 
Asbury Park, and is busily engaged in 
its development and improvement. He 
is also the organizer and principal of the 



firm of A. A. Taylor & Son, dealers in 
bicycles, at No. 711 Bangs avenue, As- 
bury Park, and patentees of a high-grade 
wheel bearing their name, and he helped 
to organize a local board of the Newark 
Republic Building and Loan Association, 
in which he serves as treasurer. His has 
been a prosperous business career, into 
which j)olitics has never entered, although 
he votes the republican ticket. In re- 
ligion he is a prominent member of the 
Bradley Methodist Episcopal church, and 
is now serving as the president of its 
board of trustees. Mr. Taylor was mar- 
ried in 1877 to Elizabeth Herbert, a 
daughter of Joseph Herbert, of Elberon- 
by-the-Sea. They are the parents of two 
children : George A., junior member of 
the firm of A. A. Taylor & Son, and 
Harry, who is sixteen, and attending the 
high school. 



y\E. CHARLES H. ANDRUS, a highly 
^-^ honored and successful physician 
now living in retirement at Metuchen, 
and one of the best-known citizens of 
that town, is a son of Sylvester and Eliza- 
beth P. (Clark) Andrus and was born Oct. 
13, 1823, at Windham, Greene county, 
N. Y. His elementary education was 
acquired at Delaware Academy, Dela- 
ware county, N. Y., after which he 
entered the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons in New York city, graduating 
March 13, 1845. He immediately entered 
upon the practice of his profession at 
Windham, subsequently removing to 
Poughkeepsie in 1846, and then to Ball- 
ston Spa in Saratoga county in 1857, 
where he remained for five years. Dur- 
ing the early days of the civil war, in 
1862, he was commissioned as first assist- 
ant surgeon in the One Hundred and 
Twenty-eighth New York regiment, and 



614 



Biographical Sketches. 



on Aug. 14, 1864, was promoted to sur- 
geon of the One Hundred and Seventy- 
sixth New York reghnent, remaining 
with the Litter organization until it was 
mustered out May 1, 1866. At the close 
of the war he continued the practice of 
his profession at Poughkeepsie, which he 
conducted successfully for six years. In 
1872 he removed to Metuchen, and for 
over twenty years was the leading physi- 
cian of that place, with an extensive and 
remunerative practice. He retired from 
active labor about two years ago, and has 
since spent considerable time in travel. 

Dr. Andrus has always been a staunch 
republican, and his active services on be- 
half of the party have received substan- 
tial recognition on several occasions. He 
was a member of the board of education 
of the city of Poughkeepsie for nine years. 
He was elected coroner of Dutchess 
county, New York, in 1867, serving for 
two terms, and occupied the office at the 
time of the famous New Hamburg dis- 
aster in 1871, when twenty-two persons 
wei'e killed. He was elected coroner of 
Middlesex county, New Jersey, in 1874, 
and has been solicited several times to 
again accept the office, but has declined. 
In 1881 he was elected a member of the 
board of education of Metuchen, and 
served faithfully in that capacity as presi- 
dent of the board for three years. 

Dr. Andrus is a member and elder in 
the Reformed church at Metuchen, and 
was at one time choir-master ; he has al- 
ways taken a deep and active interest in 
the church work. He has been a mem- 
ber of the F. and A. M. since 1852, and 
was a diligent worker in the Know-Noth- 
ing party during the famous campaign of 
1854. He is also a member of the Loj'al 
Legion of New York, and of Post No. 44, 
G. A. R., of New Jersey. On Oct. 2, 



1845, he was married to Miss Louisa C. 
Cowles, daughter of Dr. Jonathan B. 
Cowles, of Greene county, N. Y., who 
died in Feb., 1879, after having born him 
four children : Willard P., a citizen of 
Cincinnati, 0. ; Edwin P., captain of the 
Fifth United States cavalry troop, situ- 
ated at Fort Clark, Tex. ; Jonathan 
Cowles, a clei'gyman at Syracuse, N. Y., 
and Charles H., who resides in Illinois. 

Dr. Andrus' family is of English ori- 
gin, his first American ancestors having 
been John and Mary Andrus, who settled 
in Farmington, Conn., in 1640. His pa- 
ternal grandfather, Lemuel Andrus, was 
a farmer and miller in Bristol, Conn. ; 
was first sergeant of the world-famous 
" Minute Men " in the Continental army 
during the Revolutionary war, and was 
a member of the town committee that 
provided for families whose male mem- 
bers were away with the army. He was 
a federalist in politics and a member of 
the Congregational church. He died in 
1820, having been the father of four chil- 
dren : Sylvester, Aroma, Lemuel and 
Sarah. Sylvester Andrus, our subject's 
father, was born in 1780 in Bristol, Conn. 
In early life he taught school in winter 
and operated a farm of about one hun- 
dred acres in summer, finally devoting 
his entire attention to agricultural pur- 
suits and amassing a comfortable little 
fortune, upon which he retired. He was 
a staunch federalist, and afterwards a 
whig and republican in politics, and a 
Congregationalist in religious faith. In 
1802 he married Miss Elizabeth P. Clark, 
a daughter of Enos Clark, of Southington, 

t Conn., b}' whom he had eight children : 
Roderick C, Newell P., Sylvester, Enos 

' C, Charles H., Susan, Sarah A. and Eme- 

'■ line E. Our subject's father died Dec. 

, 17, 1857 ; his mother, July 24, 1849. 



Biographical Sketches. 



615 



"DLOOMFIELD J. MILLER, of Perth 
-*-^ Amboy, New Jersey, is a son of 
Elias N. and Sarah M. (Coates) Miller, 
of Newark, New Jersey, and was born 
in that city on Dec. 31, 1849. The 
family is of English descent, and origin- 
ally settled on Long Island, N. Y. Jona- 
than Miller, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was a native of Newark, New Jer- 
sey. Elias N. Miller, the father of our 
subject, was in his early life in the drug 
business at Charleston, S. C, where he 
was married, his wife being a native of 
that city. He afterwards returned to 
Newark, where he was elected sheriff 
of the county, and subsequently served 
during the civil war as provost marshal. 
He was a staunch republican, and filled 
numerous positions of honor and trust 
creditably to himself and to the entire 
satisfaction of the community. He died 
at Perth Amboy, on Oct. 2, 1885. His 
widow, Mrs. S. M. C. Miller, died at 
Newark, New Jersey, on May 3, 1887. 
Their children were as follows : Josephine 
M., married to Theodore F. Mercer ; 
Bloomfield J., our subject; William C, 
who died April 9, 1889, and Jonathan 
B., who died July 3, 1887. 

Bloomfield J. Miller attended the 
Newark Academy, and afterwards entered 
the scientific department of Rutgers 
College, in the class of 1868. In 1867 
he entered the service of the Mutual 
Benefit Life Insurance Co., of Newark, 
New Jersey, as a clerk in the mathemati- 
cal department, at the home oflSce of the 
company. In 1882 he was appointed 
mathematician of the company. In 1894, 
he was elected a director and second vice- 
president, which offices he now holds, to- 
gether with that of mathematician of the 
company. He is also first vice-president 
of the Actuarial Society of America. He 



is a republican in politics, but not an ac- 
tive partisan, and is a member of the 
Episcopal church. On Nov. 5, 1879, he 
married Miss Jeannie Ogden, a daugh- 
ter of Morgan L. Ogden, of Newark. 
She died Aug. 28, 1880, leaving one child, 
Jeannie 0. Miller, who was born Aug. 
24, 1880, and is still living. 



T3EV. JOSEPH W. DALLY, pastor of 
-L^ the Bound Brook, New Jersey, 
Methodist Episcopal church, is a popular 
and successful minister of the gospel, and 
traces his ancestry back to the early days 
of the colonization of Virginia. The 
family is of English origin, the first 
American representative being Richard 
Dally, who settled on a plantation at 
Jamestown, Virginia, in the year 1635. 
In the line of succession follow an un- 
known Dally, whose wife was Sarah, who 
spent her last days in Bethlehem, New 
Jersey ; Charles Dally, son of this Mrs. 
Sarah Dally, a rich planter of Augusta 
county, Virginia ; Samuel, for a time a resi- 
dent on the Monongahela river, Vir gini a, 
butwho subsequently removed and settled 
at Woodbridge, New Jersey, thus estab- 
lishing the latter branch of the family. 
Samuel Dally was a soldier during the 
greater part of the war of the Revolution, 
and died in consequence of illness from the 
extreme heat, together with many others, 
at the memorable battle of Monmouth, 
New Jersey. He died March 11, 1784, 
aged fifty-one years. Next comes Jere- 
miah Dally (great-grandfather), who, 
when but seventeen years of age, ran 
away from his home and enlisted in the 
Middlesex regiment, Continental militia. 
Samuel was among the twelve hundred 
picked men, chosen by Washington to 
make the brilliant and successful attack 



616 



Biographical Sketches. 



upon Colonel Rahl and his Hessians, at 
Trenton, Christinas night, 1776. Thej- 
were also participants in the battles of 
Springfield and Connecticut Farms, as re- 
liable family tradition will prove. 

After the war ceased, Jeremiah Dally 
ensjased in farming on a large scale at 
Wood bridge. New Jersey, and continued 
the same with much success during his 
life, which ended Nov. 7, 1823. An in- 
teresting anecdote is related of Mary 
Dally, wife of Samuel. It seems that the 
British troops, one day in passing by the 
Dally home, at Woodbridge, New Jersey, 
were engaged by the American skirmish- 
ers. During the exchange of military 
compliments that followed, a rifle-ball 
from the enemy's guns crashed through 
the window and fell to the floor. With 
singular coolness Mrs. Dally quickly 
picked up the spent ball, and running 
out to one of the American skirmishers, 
requested him to send it back to the red- 
coats at once. 

Charles Dally (grandfather), was born 
at Woodbridge, New Jersey, and there 
operated the farm previously owned by 
his father, Jeremiah. Charles Dally is 
credited with being the father of the clay 
industry in New Jersey, and from the 
clay-pits first opened by him on his own 
farm have developed the great and valu- 
able industries that are now operated in 
this state. He was a soldier in the war 
of 1812, and by his marriage with Miss 
Nanc\' Gamberton, of Plainfield, New 
Jersey, had one daughter, Lydia, and 
three sons, Samuel, Jeremiah and Charles 
M. Charles Dally, Sr., died in Wood- 
bridge, New Jersey. 

The subject's grandmother was the 
daughter of Charles Gamberton, a regular 
member of the Continental army, who 
was in the battle of Monmouth with 



Samuel Dally. Charles Gamberton was 
badly wounded in this engagement. (See 
Stryker's Roster, pp. 565 and 98.) In a 
raid by the British upon the town of 
Woodbridge, the Bible of Samuel Daily's 
family was taken by the soldiers, and the 
record of births, deaths, etc., disappeared 
with the Bible. The grave-stone in the 
Presbyterian cemetery at Woodbridge fur- 
nishes the date of Samuel's demise, but 
the exact date of Jeremiah's birth (son of 
Samuel)' is not recorded an^'where. On 
the subject's maternal side, the great- 
grandfather, John Inslee, served in the 
Continental army, was captured by tories, 
his house burned, his farm devastated, 
and he himself shut up in the infamous 
old sugar-house for his patriotism. All 
the Inslees were either American soldiers 
or adherents to the cause of Indepen- 
dence. 

Jeremiah Dalh- (father) was born at 
Woodbridge, New Jerse}^, eighty-five years 
ago. He attended the public schools, 
and subsequently went to Eahway, New 
Jersey, where he was apprenticed to 
learn the trade of coachmaker, and estab- 
lished a factory of his own at Woodl^ridge, 
and built up a large trade. Mr. Dally 
became associated with William H. Berry 
and others in brick manufacture. A few 
years later he retired from business and 
removed to Trenton, where he served as 
state librarian for several ^ears. Mr. 
Dally returned, and has lived since re- 
tired on his old homestead at Woodbridge. 
He is a man of cultivated literary tastes, 
especially for history. He has been 
chiefly a bu.siness man. He was during 
his active life an enthusiastic worker for 
the Democratic party, and was also one 
of the first promoters of the Methodist 
Epi.scopal church at Woodbridge. Fra- 
I terually, Mr. Dally was an Odd Fellow. 



Biographical Sketches. 



617 



Jeremiah Dally married Miss Mary Ins- 
lee, daughter of Gage and Mary Inslee, of 
Perth Ambo}^, New Jersey. She died at 
Wood bridge, in 1885, aged seventy years. 
Their children are : Gage and Lydia, 
both deceased ; Thomas J., in business at 
Wood bridge ; Joseph W. and George W., 
in business in Philadelphia. 

Kev. Joseph W. Dally (subject) is a 
son of Jeremiah and Mary (Inslee) Dally, 
and was born at Woodbridge, New Jer- 
sey, June 22, 1843. His preliminary 
education was obtained in the public 
schools of Woodbridge and Trenton, 
the Elm Tree Institute at Woodbridge, 
and Wesleyan University. At the end 
of one year, his health failed and he re- 
turned home, continuing his studies, how- 
ever, under the direction of Dr. Buttz, 
president of Drew Theological Seminary, 
Madison, New Jersey, for the ensuing 
four years. At the annual conference 
held in Washington, New Jersey, in 1866, 
Rev. Dally was ordained to preach, and 
his subsequent ministerial charges are as 
follows : at old Tappan and Palisade, on 
the Hudson, one year ; Readington, New 
Jersey, 1867-69. In 1870 he with- 
drew from the active work of the minis- 
try to become city editor of the New- 
ark, New Jersey, Morning Register. In 
1872, Rev. Dally was re-admitted to the 
conference, and has since labored in the 
following fields : Bloomsbury, New Jer- 
sey, three years; Basking Ridge, New 
Jersey, three years ; Irvington, New Jer- 
sey, three years; Englewood, New Jer- 
sey, three years ; Hackensack, New Jer- 
sey, five years ; pastor of the Centenary 
church, Jersey City, New Jersey, three 
years ; and in 1894 was assigned to Bound 
Brook Methodist Episcopal church. Our 
subject's labors here and elsewhere have 
been marked by activity and earnest 



labor. Churches have been remodeled, 
improved, and freed from debt, and much 
spiritual blessing has attended the work. 
In addition^ to his church work, he is en- 
gaged in writing for religious papers and 
magazines. And, among other literary 
efforts, in 1873 he published a history of 
Woodbridge, New Jersey, for which the 
demand required a second edition. He 
is the author of several articles in 
McClintock & Strong's Cyclopedia. He 
is also the author of several humorous 
lectures, such as " Geological Shams," 
and " Scientific Humbugs." Politically, 
Mr. Dally is a sound-money republican. 
He was formerly an Odd Fellow, and is a 
member of the Sons of the American 
Revolution. 

On Oct. 24, 1866, Joseph W. Dally 
was united in marriage to Miss Martha 
Lockwood, daughter of William and 
Hannah Lockwood, of Paterson, New 
Jersey. They have one son — William 
Lockwood Dally, of Turners, N. Y., 
architect and dealer in building materials. 



A TAYLOR TRUAX, a retired hard- 
-^-^* ware merchant, now dealing in 
real estate at Long Branch, is a son of 
Anthony and Tenny Ann (White) Truax, 
and was born Oct. 17, 1847, at Poplar, 
Monmouth county. New Jersey. The 
family had its origin in Holland hundreds 
of years ago. Prom that land, that has 
contributed so largely to the World's 
history, came its American progenitor. 
The name is conspicuous in the annals 
of New York city, in view of the fact 
that the first male child born on Man- 
hattan Island was a Truax. 

Elias Truax, the paternal grandfather, 
was born July 5, 1788, at Shrewsbury, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey, where 



618 



Biographical Sketches. 



he received a common-school education. 
He subsequently became an agriculturist 
on a large farm which he owned at Ham- 
ilton, Monmouth county. In politics he 
was formerly an old-line whig. He lived 
to become a republican, and for many 
years after the formation of that party 
was one of its staunch adherents. In 
1812 he was one of the patriotic defenders 
of our country, and remained in the mili- 
tary service until the war with Great 
Britain was happily and honorably brought 
to a close. In figure he was stoutly 
built, enjo3ed unexceptional health, 
and never experienced a day's illness 
during his long life until pneumonia 
seized him and sent him to his grave 
June 2, 1881, in the ninety-fourth 3^ear 
of his age. He never tasted ardent 
spirits, and at no time did he use tobacco 
in any form. His wife, Hannah Dayton, 
born in 1791, and married in 1819, de- 
ceased in 1885, at the age of ninety-four 
years. They had four children : An- 
thony, John, and Sarah Ann, who mar- 
ried Hamilton Banta. The fourth died 
in infancy. 

Anthony Truax (father) was born Jul}- 
17, 1810, at Hamilton, where, after re- 
ceiving an education at the common 
schools, he was engaged in diversified 
employment, and after arriving at man's 
estate removed to Poplar. He was a 
farmer during the seasonable months of 
agriculture, and during the winter season 
he burned charcoal and slaughtered hogs 
and cattle. For his various products, as 
well as the farm products of his neigh- 
Ijors, which he would buj^ he found a 
ready market in New York city, and he 
invested his profits from time to time in 
bank, building and loan, turnpike and 
other stocks. Politically he was a repub- 
lican, and in the affairs of that party he 



took an active, livel}' interest. He was 
justice of the peace at Poplar during a 
score of years, and for five years he 
served as coroner, with the duty of in- 
quiring into and certifying the facts as to 
shipwrecks. In 1850 he was appointed 
at Freehold commissioner of wrecks for 
Deal district. In religion he was a meth- 
odist, and active member, steward and 
trustee of the church of that denomination 
at West Long Branch. He was married 
Dec. 15, 1832, and is living yet. His 
wife, Tenny Ann White, was born Sept. 
28, 1812. They were the parents of 
twelve children : the first died in infancy ; 
Henry, born Aug. 30, 1835 ; Hannah, 
born Sept. 30, 1837, married to Matthias 
Woolley ; Jacob W., born Sept. 1, 1839 ; 
Elias S., born May 2, 1841 ; Mary Cath- 
arine, born Feb. 16, 1843, married to 
George Taylor; Cornelia, born Dec. 9, 
1846, married to Charles L. Hulick ; A. 
Taylor, George W., born May 15, 1849; 
Joseph Chattel, born June 30, 1851, and 
two unnamed infonts, deceased. 

A. Taylor Truax attended the public 
schools at Poplar until he was eighteen 
years of age, and then assisted his father 
in the latter's various enterprises until the 
attainment of his majority. When that 
period arrived he sought a change of em- 
ployment, after declining to accept a farm 
that his father wished to give him. He 
engaged himself to clerk for his brother, 
Elias L. Truax, who was in the grocery 
business at Long Branch, and remained 
in that service for three years. In 1850 
Mr. Truax opened a grocery store of his 
own at Long Branch, in which business 
he remained until 1892, when he changed 
the tenor of his mercantile operations 
and became a dealer in hardware. He 
followed this line of trade with continued 
success until 1895. In that year he re- 



Biographical Sketches. 



619 



tired from such active cares and concerns, 
and thenceforth occupied himself with 
building and loan and other real-estate 
transactions, in which, as well as in his 
previous operations, he has made money. 
In politics he is a republican, and in re- 
ligion he has been a consistent member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church since 
the age of jfifteen years, and is now treas- 
urer and a steward of that church at 
Long Bi'anch. He has been a member of 
the fire department of Long Branch since 
1885. Mr. Truax was married March 6, 
1879, to Laura Hulick, a daughter of 
Charles Hulick, of West Long Branch. 
She deceased May 11, 1885, after giving 
birth to three children : Charles Lincoln, 
born June 16, 1880, died July 22, 1880; 
Henry W., born July 17, 1881 ; Chester 
M., born April 11, 1884. His present 
wife, Minnie Behr, a daughter of Fred- 
erick and Wilhelmina Brinkhantz, to 
whom he was wedded Oct. 26, 1887. 



GEOEGE W. PARISEN, a successful 
pharmacist of Perth Amboy, Mid- 
lesex county. New Jersey, is a son of 
Phillip J. and Mary B. (Riddell) Parisen, 
and was born, July 7, 1850, at Pough- 
keepsie, N. Y. The family is of German 
origin on the father's side. Baron Von 
Der Riff Parisen, the paternal great> 
grandfather, was a native of Germany, 
where he was born. He subsequently 
became distinguished, by virtue of his 
appointment as secretary of war to His 
Imperial Majesty, Frederick the Great. 
He emigrated to France, and settled at 
Paris, where he died. 

Phillip J. Parisen was born at New 
York, in 1827, where he acquired a com- 
mon-school education, and learned the 
trade of painting. He became a conduc- 



tor on the Hudson River railroad in the 
early days of that line, and remained in 
its service for several years. In 1852 he 
was elected major of the Seventy-first 
New York militia, and in 1858 was com- 
missioned as a colonel in the New Jersey 
militia. At the breaking out of the 
civil war he raised the first New Jersey 
regiment, and afterward went to New 
York and joined the Fifty-seventh New 
York volunteers, and was commissioned 
as major of that regiment, serving all 
through the Peninsula campaign, in the 
army of the Potomac. He bore the rep- 
utation of being a soldier and a man of 
strong intellectual acquirements. In pol- 
itics he was a vigorous party-worker for 
the democratic cause, and filled many 
of the public offices of his town. In re- 
ligion he was an active and earnest mem- 
ber of the Protestant Episcopal church 
of South Amboy. His death occurred 
at the battle of Antietam, Sept. 17, 1862 ; 
and his wife, Mary Riddell, whom he mar- 
ried in 1845, deceased May 30, 1887. 
They were the parents of five children : 
Charles E., deceased; Mary E., married 
to John H. Green, of New York ; Philip 
J. ; George W. ; and Allan C. 

George W. Parisen received his earlier 
education in the public schools, at the 
place of his birth, and, at the age of thir- 
teen years, he attended the New York 
Grammar School, where he remained 
three years. During that time he spent 
his leisure hours clerking in a drug store, 
and, after leaving school, he remained 
several years in that employment. In 
1870 he removed to South Amboy, and 
became a clerk in a drug store owned by 
George W. Jaques, with whom he re- 
mained until 1873. Two years later he 
became manager for George Foster, at 
Perth Amboy, of a business in the same 



620 



Biographical Sketches. 



line. He continued in Mr. Foster's ser- 
vice for eighteen years, and, on Feb. 9, 
1891, he purchased the entire business, 
which he has been conducting since that 
time. He has an attractive store, and is 
a rehable and successful pharmacist. 
Mr. Parisen, in political matters, affiliates 
with the Eepublican party ; and, in re- 
ligious affairs, he is an active christian 
worker, a member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church of Perth Amboy, and a 
teacher in the Sunday-school. He is a 
member of the Royal Arcanum, and also 
a member of Raritan Lodge, No. 61, F. 
and A. M., of Perth Amboy. Mr. Pari- 
sen was married, Oct. 16, 1873, to Mary 
A. Tice, a daughter of Andrew Tice, re- 
siding at Perth Amboy, New Jersey. 

Mr. Parisen has been closed identi- 
fied with his profession, is a member of 
the New Jersey Pharmaceutical Society, 
and was its president on its twenty-fifth 
anniversary; he. is also a member of 
the American Pharmaceutical Associa- 
tion, and, at the meeting in Montreal, 
Sept. 18, 1896, was elected its third ^nce- 
president by a unanimous vote of the as- 
sociation. 



A RNOLD F. STOUT, of the firm of A. 
-^^ F. Stout & Sou, dealers in lumber, 
coal, fertilizers and agricultural imple- 
ments, at Monmouth Junction, Middle- 
sex county. New Jersey, was ])orn Dec. 19, 
1836, near where he now resides. He is 
the son and only child of John and E. 
A. (Farmer) Stout, long and well-known 
residents of Middlesex county. New Jer- 
sey. 

His grandfather, John Stout, was 
a well-known and highlj^-respccted resi- 
dent of Rocky Hill, New Jersey, where 
he was engaged nearly all his life in the 



blacksmithing trade. 



During the latter 



years of his life, however, he devoted 
himself to farming, and became a success- 
ful farmer. He married Miss Sarah Hart, 
she being related to John Hart, one of 
the signers of the declaration of inde- 
pendence, a daughter of John and Sarah 
Hart, residing near Seneca Lake, N. Y. 
The Hart family were natives of New 
Jerse}^, but had settled at Seneca Lake 
with those families from New Jersey 
who had been induced by Colonel 
Cooper to emigrate and locate upon the 
large purchase of land he had made in 
that vicinity, and where Cooperville was 
subsequently founded. John Stout re- 
moved to New Jersey, however, in 1810, 
and located at Rocky Hill, afterward 
near Monmouth Junction, Avhere he 
spent the remainder of his life. He died 
in 1833, in the sixty-second year of his 
age, and his wife some years latei', in the 
seventy-fifth year of her age. They had 
the following children : Zebulon, Re- 
becca, John Francis, Isaac, the only sur- 
viving one, and John. 

John Stout (father of subject) was 
born at Rockj^ Hill, Montgomery town- 
ship, Somerset count}'. New Jersey, May 
21, 1809, and received his education in 
the pulilic schools of said township. He 
resided on the farm and engaged in farm- 
ing pursuits until 1888, when he retired 
from active life and business and took up 
his residence with his son (the subject), 
with whom he now resides. He has 
been a life-long democrat, though never 
an active politician. He is identified 
with the Kingston Presbyterian church, 
at Kingston, New Jersey, and is greatly 
esteemed in church circles for his excel- 
lent traits of character and exemplary 
christian deportment. He married in 
1834, Miss Eliza A. Farmer, daughter of 
Arnold T. Farmer, of near New Bruns- 



Biographical Sketches. 



621 



wick, New Jersey, and to whom was 
born the only child, Arnold F. 

The Farmer family, from which de- 
scended the mother of Mr. Stout, was of 
English extraction, the original ancestors 
being representatives of many of the 
most distinguished families in England. 
Among those families who came to Amer- 
ica with William Penn and his colonists 
that of the Farmer family bore a con- 
spicuous part, and its descendants have 
widely dispersed, and through alliance 
with others may now be found in many 
sections of our country. The branch of 
the family from which Mrs. Stout traces 
her descent, however, originally located 
on Long Island, N. Y., and thence re- 
moved to New Jersey. It is not at all im- 
possible, however, that her immediate 
ancestors were also connected and of 
kindred with those who came with Penn 
in 1682. 

Arnold F. Stout was born and has con- 
stantly resided, in the vicinity of Mon- 
mouth Junction. He received his pre- 
liminary education in the district schools 
of South Brunswick township, Middle- 
sex county. New Jersey, and then spent 
one year at the Amboy Academy. After- 
wards he went to the Pennington Semi- 
nary, where he spent two years. Subse- 
quently he went to the White Marsh 
Valley Seminary, where he spent another 
year. After leaving school he returned 
home and worked upon the farm until 
1889, when he moved to his present 
locality and engaged in the lumber, coal, 
fertilizer and agricultural implement busi- 
ness. He is a wholesale dealer in fer- 
tilizers, etc., and is doing a most excel- 
lent business in every line of commodity 
he represents. He is a member of the 
Democratic party, though not an active 
partisan. He has served as county com- 
32 



mitteeman, but has never sought political 
preferment. He is a consistent member 
of the Kingston Presbyterian church, of 
which he has been an elder for the past 
thirty-eight years, and takes a great inter- 
est in all church work. For the past 
thirty-seven years he has been the super- 
intendent of the Sabbath-school on the 
ridge, near Monmouth Junction. He 
takes a deep interest in agriculture, and 
is an active member of the Princeton 
Agricultural Club, of Princeton, New 
Jersey. He was married Sept. 8, 1859, 
to Miss Anna E. Van Zandt, daughter 
of John Van Zandt, of Blawenburg, 
Somerset county, New Jersey, and to 
them have been born the following chil- 
dren : Frank W., a farmer, now living on 
the old homestead ; Jennie, married to 
Samuel H. Lake, near Kingston, New 
Jersey, and Augustus V., who is in busi- 
ness with his father. It may be related 
as an interesting fact connected with the 
family antecedents of our subject, that 
the Stout family, as a rule, live to a ripe 
old age, and this was happily illustrated 
when a short time ago no less than four 
generations of the family were gathered 
around the dinner-table of our subject, at 
his residence at Monmouth Junction. 



/CHARLES H. BUTCHER, a successful 
^-^ practitioner of the Monmouth county 
bar, is a son of William H. and Ann 
(Boyd) Butcher, and was born Sept. 6, 
1856, at Freehold, this county. He re- 
ceived his elementary education first at 
the Freehold Academy, and later at the 
Freehold Institute, from which he grad- 
uated in 1875. Subsequently, in 1875, 
he registered as a law student in the 
office of William H. Vredenburgh, a suc- 
cessful lawyer, and was admitted from 



622 



Biographical Sketches. 



his office in June, 1879, and three years 
later, in 1882, as counsellor. Immedi- 
ately upon his admission he opened an 
office at Freehold, where he has con- 
tinued in the active practice of his pro- 
fession ever since. He has served as the 
careful and efficient clerk of the board of 
commissioners of Freehold since 1887. 
He was treasurer of the Freehold fire 
department for sevei'al j^ears, and is at 
present a member of the board of I'epre- 
sentatives of that organization, having 
charge of the handling of appropriations 
made for the relief of firemen. During 
the existence of the Monmouth County 
Agricultural Society and Fair Associa- 
tion, he was its treasurer for several 
years. He is a member of the Order of 
F. and A. Masons, Olive Branch Lodge, 
No. 16, and a member of the Freehold 
Baptist church, having occupied the posi- 
tion of clerk in that congregation during 
the past ten years. On May 4, 1896, he 
was elected director, secretary and treas- 
urer of both the Freehold Gas and the 
Freehold Electric Light Companies, two 
of the oldest and most successful corpor- 
ations in the county. On Sept. 11, 1889, 
Mr. Butcher was married to Josephine 
Dorset Bedle, a daughter of Elihu B. 
Bedle, the present cashier of the Central 
National Bank of Freehold, whose sketch 
appears elsewhere in this volume. They 
have been blessed with one child, Donald 
Craig. 

Thomas Butcher, paternal grandfather 
of Mr. Butcher, was a highly respected 
farmer living at Hamilton Square, New 
Jersey, where he died at the early age of 
twenty-eight years, leaving a large fam- 
ily. William H. Butcher, fother of Mr. 
Butcher, was also born at Hamilton 
Square, Aug. 27, 1818. He received a 
good common-school education, but was 



left an orphan when but eight years of 
age. At the age of fourteen years he 
was thrown wholly upon his own re- 
sources, and, being desirous of making 
his way in the world, be accordingly ap- 
prenticed himself to Jacob Wall, a baker 
in New York, and for seven years served 
faithfully at his trade, at the end of that 
time starting a baking establishment of 
his own on a modest scale in that city. 
Through diligence and perseverance his 
business prospered. He removed to Free- 
hold on June 1, 1846, and for fiftj' years 
remained in active business as the pro- 
prietor of a large retail and wholesale 
bakery on Main street. Mr. Butcher, 
Sr., was universally recognized as one 
of Freehold's most progressive business 
men and soundest citizens. He was a 
staunch republican, and for a number of 
years was a member of the board of com- 
missioners of Freehold and a director of 
the Freehold Banking Co. He was a 
charter member of the local lodge of In- 
dependent Order of Odd Fellows, and 
during the whole of his fifty years' resi- 
dence in the town was one of the most 
respected members of the Freehold Bap- 
tist church, having held the office of dea- 
con since 1862. Mr. Butcher, Sr., was 
stricken with paralysis on Dec. 6, 1895, 
and died eight days later. His wife, 
who was Miss Anne Boyd, and to whom 
he was married in New York, June 2, 
1840, survives him, together with five of 
their eight children, three sons and two 
daughters. 



TT H. LONGSTREET, of the firm of 
-*— ^* Brown & Longstreet, carriage- 
dealers, of Matawan, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Aaron and Cath- 
arine Lloyd Longstreet, and was born 
Oct. 24, 1857, in Matawan. His di- 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



623 



rect ancestors were natives of Holland. 
Hendrick Longstreet, the paternal grand- 
father, was born in 1785, at Holmdel, 
New Jersey. After acquiring a common- 
school education his life was spent on a 
farm near Holmdel, New Jersey. In re- 
ligious faith he was a baptist, and in 
party politics a democrat of the Jeffer- 
sonian type. The maiden name of his 
wife, to whom he was married in 1804, 
was Mary Holmes. She survived his 
death, which occurred at Holmdel in 
1859, until the year 1872, when she was 
laid to rest by his side. To their mar- 
riage were born ten children : Aaron, 
Eleanor, Lydia H., Ann H., Emeline, 
married to Hendrick Smock, of Holmdel, 
New Jersey; Joseph Holmes, H. H., a 
physician of Bordentown, New Jersey ; 
Mary A., John I., and Jonathan. 

Aaron Longstreet (father) was born 
Aug. 17, 1805, at Holmdel, where, after 
obtaining his education in the common 
schools, he was engaged in farming for 
about one year. In 1841 he removed to 
Matawan and opened up a lumber, grain, 
and feed business. He remained for 
more than forty years in the successful 
prosecution of this business, and in 1882 
retired. In politics he was an active dem- 
ocrat and party worker and in religion a 
zealous presbyterian and a liberal con- 
tributor of both money and time to all 
charitable and christian enterprises. He 
was married to Catharine Lloyd in 1839, 
and four children resulted from their 
union. They both died at Matawan, he 
on Nov. 4, 1894, and she in December, 
1890. Their children were : Mary, mar- 
ried to J. H. Ellis, a resident of Freehold, 
New Jersey ; Charles Lloyd, deceased ; 
Hulda, wife of Dr. J. S. Conover, of Free- 
hold, New Jersey, and Henry H. 

H. H. Longstreet, after attending the 



public schools of Matawan, took a law 
course at the Columbia Law School, New 
York city, and was admitted to the bar 
in 1881. After practicing law for a while 
he engaged in brick manufacture at Mat- 
awan. This enterprise he pursued suc- 
cessfully and profitably for about ten 
years. At the end of this time he pur- 
chased a stock farm, and became a breeder 
and dealer in blooded stock. In July, 
1896, he formed a partnership with Ed- 
ward Brown, of Matawan, New Jersey, 
under the firm name of Brown & Long- 
street, for dealing in carriages. Mr. 
Longstreet is a democrat in politics, and 
in religious matters takes an active part 
in the affairs of the Presbyterian church, 
of which he is a member. He is also a 
member of the Holland Society, of New 
York city. Mr. Longstreet has been 
twice married. His first wife, Martina 
Dayton, a daughter of Dr. A. B. and 
Elizabeth Dayton, to whom he was wed- 
ded Feb. 20, 1884, deceased in 1888, 
leaving one son, Harry. He was mar- 
ried Jan. 25, 1893, to Almira Farry, his 
present wife, a daughter of John H. and 
Delia Farry. 

A UGUSTUS A. De VOE, a prominent 
-^-^ snuff" manufacturer and one of the 
leading citizens of Spottswood, Middle- 
sex county. New Jersey, is a son of Isaac 
and Mary Appleby De Voe, and was born 
in Spottswood, in August, 1845. The 
De Voes are of French-Huguenot extrac- 
tion, and trace their ancestry back to the 
sixteenth century, when they resided in 
France. Mr. De Voe's earlier education 
was acquired in the private schools of 
Spottswood and Burlington, N. J., and 
he was subsequently sent to the Polytech- 
nic College, Philadelphia and became a 
civil engineer, practicing that profession 



624 



Biographical Sketches. 



about eight years in New York and Con- 
necticut, and operating in the construc- 
tion of the boulevards in Westchester 
count}', N. Y., and projected railroads in 
Herkimer and Otsego counties in New 
Yorlt state and New Haven county. 
Conn. He abandoned his profession in 
1876 on account of the great railroad de- 
pression then prevailing, and became his 
father's partner in the manufacture of 
snufi' at Spottswood. He has been very 
successful in this business and had the 
satisfaction of receiving at the World's 
Fair in 1893, on his product, the highest 
award. Mr. De Voe is a large real-estate 
owner and possesses valuable farms near 
Spottswood. He is a member of the 
Episcopal church in Spottswood and its 
senior warden. In politics he is a demo- 
crat, and takes a lively interest in the 
success of that party and its principles 
for sound money and anti-extreme pro- 
tection. He is a member of Whitney 
Lodge, No. 191, I. 0. 0. F., of Spotts- 
wood; Union Lodge, No. 19, Free and 
Accepted Masons of New Brunswick ; a 
member of the Mystic Shrine of New 
York city, and of the Temple Command- 
ery. No. 18, of Metuchen. 

Mr. De Voe was married April 19, 
1871, to Mary Mixsell, of New York 
city, daughter of Aaron Mixsell, Esq., a 
noted piano manufacturer. They have 
two children, John and Henry G., both of 
whom are in business with their father. 

The paternal grandfather was John 
De Voe, of Westchester county, New 
Y'^ork. His last occupation was that of a 
butcher, and he served as a soldier in the 
war of 1812. He was a member of the 
Episcopal church of New York city, and 
politically was a democrat. He was 
married to Sophia Farrington, of Yonk- 
ers. They had eight children : Isaac, 



Thomas F., colonel of the Eighth Regt. 
New York militia ; James, Moses, Susan, 
Mrs. Lemuel Valentine, John, George W., 
deceased, president of the People's Bank 
of New Brunswick, New Jersey', and F. 
W., one of the proprietors of the F. W. 
De Voe & C. T. Reynolds Paint Co., of 
New York city, and head of the Hugue- 
not Society of New Y^'ork. 

Isaac De Voe, father of subject, re- 
ceived a good common-school education. 
He was a great lover of books and a dili- 
gent reader. He was for fifty years a 
manufacturer of snuff at Spottswood, a 
highly respected member of the com- 
munity in which he resided. For many 
years he was senior wai'den of the Episco- 
pal church in Spottswood ; politically he 
was a democrat. He had several chil- 
dren ; but all died save Augustus A. 
Isaac De Voe died in 1889 in his eight- 
ieth year. 

"pAWLEY BROTHERS CO.— This com- 
-*- pan}' is composed of four of the 
most wide-awake and uj)-to-date business 
men of the day, and represents some of 
the most influential and highly-esteemed 
citizens of Asbury Park, New Jersey. 
Very seldom is there represented to the 
observer of human affairs a spectacle at 
once so unique and at the same time so 
pleasing as to see members of the same 
family engaged in one united enterprise, 
and at the same time individually en- 
gaged each in his own particular busi- 
ness, as is the case with the Pawley 
family. The Pawley Brothers Co. is 
composed of Augustus F. Pawley, presi- 
dent, William M. Pawley, vice-president, 
F. A. Pawley, secretary, and Raymond 
PaAvIey, treasurer and manager ; the lat- 
ter three being sons of the former. This 
enterprising corporation operates a large 



Biographical Sketches. 



625 



coal plant on North Main street, Asbury 
Park, New Jersey. 

Augustus F. Pawley (father) was born 
in the parish of Kingsdown, Kent county, 
England, Oct. 15, 1829, and there re- 
ceived his education. He learned the 
trade of a carpenter at the age of nine- 
teen, and for twelve years worked at the 
same as a journeyman builder. He also 
learned the profession of dentistry in 
England, and upon coming to the United 
States in 1850 first located at New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, and in 1869 removed 
to Lakewood, New Jersey, where he 
practiced dentistry for twenty-five years. 
Mr. Pawley, Sr., became one of the early 
citizens of Asbury Park, coming there in 
1879. He has been successful in his 
business and professional careers, and is 
now president of the Pawley Brothers 
Co., as above stated. In politics he is 
independent, but a staunch supporter of 
the prohibition cause. He was district 
clerk of the Lakewood school board for 
three years, is a member of the First 
Baptist church of Asbury Park, in which 
he is a licensed preacher, and has served 
as clerk. By his marriage with Miss 
Mary Drake, daughter of Renne R. and 
Theodosia Drake, of Stelton, New Jer- 
sey, Mr. Pawley has a family of three 
sons, all of whom are associated with him 
in business. 

Francis A. Pawley is a son of Augus- 
tus F. and Mary (Drake) Pawley, and 
was born near Lakewood, Ocean county. 
New Jersey, Feb. 14, 1865. His early 
life and school days were spent at Lake- 
wood, and when fourteen years of age, 
1879, moved with his parents to and 
entered the public schools of Asbury 
Park. His first introduction into the 
business world was that of clerk for 
Messrs. Gould & Osborne, then grocers. 



In April, 1882, this firm engaged in the 
real-estate and insurance business, and 
Mr. Pawley became their general mana- 
ger in this line. On Sept. 1, 1884, the 
firm dissolved, and Mr. Pawley was re- 
tained as manager for James H. Osborne 
in the insurance business. On Jan. 1, 
1886, he was admitted as a partner in 
the business, under the firm name of 
Osborne & Pawley, which continued 
until Feb. 1, 1887, when Mr. Pawley 
became sole proprietor, and on Jan. 1, 
1888, consolidated his real-estate and in- 
surance business with that of Mr. Myron 
S. Gould, doing business under the head 
of Gould & Pawley. He has since (on 
Oct. 1, 1895) taken charge of the entire 
business, and makes a specialty of fire 
insurance, representing twelve of the 
more than " millionaire companies," with 
assets of over $50,000,000, and was ap- 
pointed in 1893 to the general agency of 
the New Hampshire Fire Insurance Com- 
pany of Manchester, N. H., in the New 
Jersey department. Mr. Pawley is an 
active member of the First Baptist church 
of Asbury Park, and is secretary of the 
Pawley Brothers Co. On Dec. 25, 1889, 
Francis A. Pawley was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Bernice S. Gould, daugh- 
ter of Myron S. Gould, and they reside 
at 517 Asbury avenue. 

William M. Pawley, vice-president of 
the Pawley Brothers Co., and dealer in 
general hardware, is a son of Augustus 
F. and Mary (Drake) Pawley, and was 
born at Oceanport, Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, Aug. 23, 1861. He was 
reared and educated at Lakewood (then 
Bricksburg). At the age of seventeen 
Mr. Pawley began his business career as 
a clerk in the real-estate office of Messrs. 
C. D. Warner & Son, Asbury Park, for 
two years. In the spring of 1886 he 



626 



Biographical Sketches. 



opened up a hardware business on his 
own account at No. 166-168 Main street. 
He is an extensive importer and whole- 
sale and retail dealer in general hard- 
ware. He has had an active and suc- 
cessful career, is a prohibitionist politi- 
cally, and is actively' identified with the 
work of the First Baptist church, having 
been superintendent of its Sunday-school 
of nearly four hundred members for the 
last ten years. He has been a member 
of the church for eighteen years, and is 
at present a deacon in the same, and 
clerk of the Trenton Baptist Association, 
composed of forty churches in Monmouth, 
Mercer, and Ocean counties. Mr. William 
M. Pawley was married Oct. 11, 1883, to 
Miss Elva F. Latham, of Hudson, N. Y., 
and their pleasant home, No. 615 Lake 
avenue, is brightened by the presence of 
three children : Mary A ., Annabelle, and 
William M., Jr. Another son died in 
infancy. Mr. Pawley is a member of 
the Grand Fraternit}^ 

Raymond Paw^ley, treasurer of Pawley 
Brothers Co., is the third and youngest 
son, and was born at Lakewood, New 
Jersey, May 28, 1873. He attended the 
Park public schools until fourteen yeai's 
of age. He then entered the office of his 
brother, F. A. Pawley, real-estate and 
insurance business, and remained there 
as a clerk for nine years, up to Jan. 1, 
1896, when he became secretary of the 
Pawley Brothers Co., at its incorpoi'a- 
tion. He is an active christian, a mem- 
ber and secretary of the First Baptist 
church of Asbury Park, and vice-presi- 
dent of the christian endeavor society. 
Politically he is a prohibitionist. 



A RTHUR A. ZIMMERMAN, the pres- 
-^--*- ent bicycle-riding champion of the 
world, president of the Zimmerman Cycle 



Co., of Freehold, editor of the bicycle 
department of the New York Wbi-ld, and 
a resident of Freehold, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Theodore and 
Annie W. E. Zimmerman, and was born, 
June 11, 1869, in Camden, New Jersey. 

Mr Zimnaerman spent the years of his 
early boyhood in Camden, where he at^ 
tended the public schools until the age of 
twelve. At this period he removed with 
his parents to Manasquan, Monmouth 
county, and completed an education by 
taking a course of three years at the 
Freehold Institute. After leaving school 
he entered the law office of Joseph Mc- 
Dermott at Freehold, New Jersey, where 
he remained as a conveyancer until 1891. 
In that year he adopted bicycle riding as 
a profession. He, for several years pre- 
vious to this time, had been racing as an 
amateur, winning his first race at Queens, 
Long Island, in 1887, on an old-style 
star wheel; time, 3.13 minutes; distance, 
one mile. He continued in the amateur 
class until, as stated above, he entered 
the ranks of the pi'ofessionals in 1893. 
That year Mr. Zimmerman achieved his 
first signal victoiy at Peoria, 111., where 
he won a ten-mile race. The same 
autumn he wrested from W. W. Windle 
the championship of the United States, 
in a ten-mile race at Peoria. He went 
to Europe in 1893, winning in England 
the championship for one-, five- and fifty- 
mile distances, as well as the open cham- 
pionships of Gej'many, France and Ire- 
land. Returning home in July of the 
same year, he continued racing in the 
United States until the spring of 1894, 
when he was declared the champion of 
all distances. In 1894 Mr. Zimmerman 
made a second professional tour of Eu- 
rope, covering England, France, Ireland, 
and Wales, during which, out of a total 



Biographical Sketches. 



627 



of one hundred and three races, he won 
them all save two, and returned to his 
home, with brows covered with laurels 
and pockets lined with guineas and na- 
poleons ; a fate in striking contrast with 
that of Ixion, who was broken at the 
wheel. In 1895 this Nestor of the cycle 
made an Australian tour, from which he 
returned with additional fame and gold. 

Mr. Zimmerman mounted his first 
safety machine in 1892. The world at 
large is familiar with his wonderful ca- 
reer, and his many triumphs on the bi- 
cycling track, which he has now entirely 
abandoned to devote himself to business 
pursuits. In 1896 Mr. Zimmerman be- 
came editor of the bicycle department of 
the New Yorh World, by invitation of 
George F. Pulitzer, its proprietor, in 
which capacity he exhibits strong evi- 
dences of talent in a literary line. He is 
president of the Zimmerman Cycle Co., a 
successful bicycle manufacturing estab- 
lishment, incorporated under the law of 
New Jersey, at Freehold, in 1895. In 
the manufacture of the well-known 
" Zimmy " wheel the concern runs day 
and night, giving employment to seventy- 
five hands, and ships its products to Aus- 
tralia, Denmark, and England, as well as 
to all American cities. Mr. Zimmerman 
is also the efficient president of the 
George Pierce Co., manufacturers, at Free- 
hold, of bicycle lamps, and carrying on 
an extensive and profitable business. 
He is a partner in the firm of Burtis & 
Zimmerman, organized in 1892 for the 
sale of bicycles, sundries, etc., having 
state agents for half a dozen large fac- 
tories, and are export agents for one of 
the largest manufacturers in the United 
States. 

Mr. Zimmerman is the president of the 
Zimmerman Cycle Club, organized, in 



recognition of his ability and fame, by 
the business men, and citizens generally, 
of Freehold. This club was organized 
in 1895, with a membership of one hun- 
dred, which is now doubled, and is offi- 
cered and directed as follows : president, 
A. A. Zimmerman ; vice-president, Fred- 
erick Parker; treasurer, William B. Ellis ; 
secretary, F. V. Maney; executive com- 
mittee, Joseph McDermott, also captain ; 
Alonzo Bower, and A. F. D. Bennett. 
The club is located on Main street, in a 
building which it owns, and which is ele- 
gantly and comfortably furnished and 
equipped. Mr. Zimmerman is also a 
member of Freehold Lodge, Knights of 
Pythias. 

Mr. Zimmerman was united in mar- 
riage, in 1895, to Grace G. D., a daugh- 
ter of John and Mary Riley, residents of 
Troy, N. Y. Mr. and Mrs. Zimmerman 
expect, in a short time, to reside per- 
manently on Hudson street, Freehold, in 
a handsome dwellingthey have purchased, 
and which they are now remodeling. 



TTON. ALBERT D. BROWN, ex-judge 
-L-L of Middlesex county, vice-presi- 
dent of the Savings Institution at Wood- 
bridge, and a prominent citizen of that 
place, was born in that town Oct. 29, 
1829, and is a son of David and Julia 
A. Brown. His paternal grandfather, 
Furman Brown, was born at Woodbridge, 
and died Oct. 1826. He was a farmer at 
Woodbridge. 

David Brown (father) was born in May, 
1796, and died June 12, 1845. He was 
first educated at the common schools of 
Woodbridge, and afterwards attended the 
academy at that place, and then engaged 
in farming on a part of the homestead 
inherited from his father. He took a 



628 



Biographical Sketches. 



great interest in politics and was a mem- 
ber of the old-line Whig party, but never 
aspired to office of anj^ kind. He Avas an 
attendant of the Presb3'terian church. 
His widow died April 23, 1 878, at the age 
of eighty-four. Their children were : 
Christina, Effie, Albert D., and Rebecca, 
deceased in 1846. 

Albert D. Brown (subject) attended the 
public schools of Woodbridge and after- 
wards attended the academy of Thomas 
H, Morris in the same town. The death 
of his father occurred when the subject of 
this sketch was sixteen years of age. He 
at once took possession of his father's 
farm, and while attending to the farm also 
engaged in various other kinds of busi- 
ness. He is the possessor of considerable 
property in and around Woodbi'idge, and 
a portion of his time is necessarily devoted 
to its care. He is a republican, and al- 
though he cannot be termed a politician, 
yet he takes an active interest in all polit- 
ical questions, and has been prominently 
identified with his party for many years. 
During the civil war he held the position 
of government inspector, and for a 
number of years was a member of 
the committee of the governing board 
of Woodbridge. He has served at 
various times in township offices, such 
as judge of elections, town commissioner, 
etc., and during tlie year 1860 was col- 
lector of Woodbridge. He has been twice 
nominated for the legislature by his party, 
being defeated the first time by a majority 
of seven, and on the second occasion bj- 
eight votes, each time receiving many 
more votes than his party. He was judge 
of Middlesex county court from 1873 to 
1878. He is one of the trustees of the 
Barron library ; a director in the Rah way 
Mutual Fire Insurance Co., and president 
of the Union Loan and Savings Co., at 



Rahway. He is an attendant of the 
Presbyterian church. 

Mr. Brown was united in marriage to 
Caroline V., only daughter of the late 
William W. Mawby, a leading business 
man of the town of Woodbridge, on Oct. 
15, 1863, and their union has been blessed 
with six children : David A., proprietor 
of a general store, and also interested in 
the clay business in Woodbridge; William 
M.,an attorney-at-law in Newark; Charles 
R., an insurance agent; George H., pro- 
prietor of a general store in Woodbridge ; 
Arthur G., a graduate of Princeton Col- 
lege, and now in business in New York 
city; and Frederick V., book-keeper in 
his brother's store. 



TTON. JOHN D. BARTINE, of Somer- 
-*— *- ville, New Jersey, and law judge 
of Somerset county, a gentleman who 
ranks among the ablest lawyers of the 
state, was born near Princeton, New Jer- 
sey, Oct. 15, 1836, and was educated 
at the Lawrenceville high school. He 
completed the course of study in 1858, 
and for several succeeding years taught 
school. 

He is the son of Joseph F. Bartine and 
Nancy, daughter of Dr. Van Kirk. His 
grandfather was the Rev. David Bartine. 
His ancestors on his father's side were 
French Huguenots, who settled at New 
Rochelle, in the state of New York. 

In 1861 he became a law student in 
the office of John F. Hegeman, Esq., of 
Princeton, and was licensed to practice 
in 1865. In the same year he moved 
to Somerville, where he has since resided. 
Being an able counsellor he soon acquired 
a large practice before the courts. Before 
he was appointed judge he was counsel 
in some of the most difficult and import- 




Etn^ravea by J R.Rice I. 




Biographical Sketches. 



631 



ant cases ever tried in Somerset county. 
He was counsel in the Van Arsdale mur- 
der case, the Vander Veer will case, and 
the Ten Eyck and Eunk water-right case 
and the Cory case. He has been a mem- 
ber of the local board of education and of 
the board of commissioners, acting as pre- 
siding officer of both bodies. He is con- 
nected with the First Reformed church. 

In 1868 Princeton College conferred 
upon him the honorary degree of master 
of arts, and in the same year he married 
Maggie Vander Veer, of Rocky Hill. Of 
their two children the son Edwin mar- 
ried Miss Harris, daughter of the rector 
of St. John's church in Somerville, and 
their daughter, Mary Oakley, about seven- 
teen years of age, resides at home. 

Judge Bartine was first appointed law 
judge in 1885, was re-appointed in 1890, 
and was again re-appointed in 1895. Al- 
though he has been nearly twelve years 
upon the bench, such decisions of his as 
have been taken to higher courts have not 
been reversed in a single instance. This is an 
eloquent commentary upon his carefulness, 
wisdom and knowledge of the law. While 
the judge's record shows that he believes 
in administering the full penalty of the 
law upon habitual criminals for the pro- 
tection of society, yet he is inclined to 
mercy when youth or palliating circum- 
stances appear, and is ever ready to help 
a young or unfortunate man. 

Judge Bartine has made many friends 
on the bench with the best representa- 
tives of the bar of the country, irre- 
spective of politics. Off the bench he is 
one of the best men to meet in Somerset 
county, and his cordial manners and 
charitable deeds have made friends for 
him among all classes. He is a man of 
refined and highly cultivated taste, with a 
well-stored and well-balanced mind. 



GEORGE FREDERICK KROEHL, a 
successor to Henry Kroehl, a late 
importer of New York, and a prominent 
resident of Asbury Park, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Henry 
and Cornelia R. Kroehl, and was born 
Oct. 7, 1848, in New York city. His 
paternal ancestors were German, and his 
maternal forefathers were natives of Scot- 
land. 

Jacob Kroehl, paternal grandfather, 
was born at Memel, East Prussia, and 
there resided all his life. Henry Kroehl 
(father) was born May 9, 1818, at Memel, 
Germany, and attended the government 
schools until he was old enough to work, 
when he removed to Berlin, there serv- 
ing as junior clerk in a banking house 
until his twentieth year. In 1838 he 
emigrated to this country, locating at 
New York, where he became employed 
in an extensive bristle importing estab- 
ment for eleven years. In 1849 he 
started in business on his own account 
on Pearl street. New York, and continued 
up to 1860, from which year until 1865 
he was in partnership with Hulsman & 
Co., after which he continued alone up to 
his death on Dec. 5, 1890. Trading 
under the name of Henry Kroehl, im- 
porter, in which he enjoyed a steady, 
uninterrupted career of prosperity, he 
succeeded in amassing a fortune. He 
resided in New York up to 1880, when 
he was attracted to Asbury Park, since 
when he has made that town his perma- 
nent residence. He became interested 
in its development and growth. He was 
a member of council of that town in its 
early days. In religious matters he was 
a prominent member of Trinity Pro- 
testant Episcopal church. He deceased 
Dec. 5, 1890, leaving two children : 
George F., our subject, and Agnes, mar- 



632 



Biographical Sketches. 



ried to August L. Sieghortner, of New 
York. 

George F. Kroehl .spent his earlj' life 
in New York, where he attended the 
jjublic schools until he was about fifteen 
years of age, when he became clerk with 
Northrup & Chick, bankers, serving from 
1863 to 1865. At this latter period Mr. 
Kroehl entered his father's ofl&ce as clerk, 
in which he subsequentl}- rose to the 
position of financial manager, and upon 
the death of the elder Kroehl our 
subject succeeded to the business, which 
he carries on Avithout change in the name 
and style of the house. Mr. Kroehl is 
in the midst of an active, busy and pros- 
perous career, and one that offers ample 
scope for the exercise of his splendid 
business ability. He is largely interested 
in real estate in and about Asbury Park, 
and is conspicuous by his activity and 
entei'prise in town development. Among 
other interests, in addition to his exten- 
sive business as an importer, he is a 
large shareholder in the First National 
Bank of Asbury Park, of which he has 
been a director since 1889 ; its president 
since 1890, and especiall}^ prominent in 
its management. He is one of the in- 
corporators and a director of the Mon- 
mouth Trust Co., as well as a director in 
the Deal Beach Land and Improvement 
Co., and is interested in various building 
and loan associations. In politics he has 
alwa3^s been a democrat, but not a poli- 
tician, and for fourteen years has served 
as a borough commissioner. In religion 
Mr. Kroehl is a member and vestryman 
of Trinity Protestant Episcopal church, 
and all christian and charitable work of 
the parish receives substantial aid and 
encouragement from his hands. Mr. 
Kroehl takes an interest in all municipal 
matters, and is widely respected as one 



of Asbury Park's most progressive and 
poi^ular citizens. 

Mr. Kroehl was married Sept. 20, 
1871, to Sarah L. Gahagan, of New York 
city, of whom he was bereft by death 
Sept. 7, 1892, after bearing him five 
cliildren : Mary S., Percival, Cornelia R., 
Howard, and George F., Jr. His nuptials 
with Jane Ci-awford, daughter of Hon. 
William R. Crawford, of Franklin, Pa., 
were solemnized April 8, 1896. The 
family residence at No. 508 Summerfield 
avenue has been Mr. Kroehl's home since 
1877. 



TpUGENE FAY, the well-known and 
-*-^ popular proprietor of the National 
Hotel and the American Hotel, of Long 
Branch, New Jersey, is the son of Eugene 
and Ann Fay. He was born in County 
Cavan, Ireland, Dec. 25, 1830. His father 
was born 1795, died 1864. His mother 
was born 1802, died 1860. His grand- 
father's name was John Fay, and his pa- 
ternal gi'andmother died at the age of 
one hundred and two. His maternal 
grandmother's name was Carroll, and was 
related to the Carrolls of Baltimore. 

Eugene Fay, Sr., was a native of 
County Cav.an, Ireland, having been born 
there 1795. He was instructed in the 
local school of his district, took up farm- 
ing for his occupation, and continued this 
pursuit all his life in Ireland. He was a 
staunch member of the Catholic church 
and was a man of fine vocal poAvers, being 
a singer of abilitj-, and was prominent in 
the musical part of the church work. 

His father and mother are both buried 
in Mirth, County Cavan, Ireland. 

He had ten brothers and sisters : Mary, 
Catherine, Ann, John, Thomas, Matthew, 
Bernard, Mai'garet, Patrick and Charles. 

Eugene Fay (subject) passed his early 



Biographical Sketches. 



633 



boyhood days on the Emerald Isle, where 
he trod the mysterious mazes of the edu- 
cational processes in the common schools 
of his native soil. 

In 1852, when but fifteen years of age, 
Mr. Fay embarked, with his married sis- 
ter, Ann Connelly, for America, and here 
began the struggle for position and for- 
tune. Our subject's career is one of the 
most interesting, in that it shows to the 
world one Avho has by his inherent forces 
within himself conquered existing cir- 
cumstances and has, step by step and 
rung by rung, climbed the ladder of 
progress, and by courage and by unfail- 
ing strength of purpose, guided by good 
judgment, acquired a fitting reward for 
his expenditure of energy and industry. 

During the first twenty years of his 
life in the United States Mr. Fay was a 
brass-moulder by trade, and during the 
war worked in the shops of Trenton and 
made brass cannons for the use of the 
army. Also later took charge of the 
brass-moulding department of the rail- 
road shops in Manchester, and moulded 
the brass cannon used on the New Jer- 
sey Southern Railroad during the years 
of its early existence, and also at one 
time was the lessee of the New Jer- 
sey Southern Eailroad, and during the 
strike which took place shortly after 
the war run the railroad with horses, 
carrying passengers and produce from 
the farms of South Jersey. 

Our subject has mastered the essentials 
of the business in which he is so largely 
interested, and has been very successful 
in the management of these establish- 
ments. He is an aggressive democrat, 
and is a constant worker in the cause of 
his party, by which he has been elected 
to important offices. 

Mr. Fay is also a member of the Star 



of the Sea church of Long Branch, and 
is looked upon as one of the leading com- 
municants of that congregation. Eugene 
Fay was united in marriage to Miss 
Catherine McKenna, daughter of Thomas 
and Catherine McKenna, of Dungiven, 
Ireland, and to their union have been 
born ten children : James, Thomas, 
Eugene, Albert, Charles W., Mary, Mrs. 
Joseph Corbett, Eose, Catherine, de- 
ceased, and John C. 

James Fay is the postmaster at Elbe- 
ron. He is engaged in the real-estate and 
coal business. Eose Helen Fay is a 
graduate from the State Normal School, 
and is now principal of the grammar 
school at West Orange, New Jersey. 
Thomas P. Fay is a graduate of Colum- 
bia College, was a member of the fresh- 
men crew while in that college, and re- 
ceived the degree of LL.B. 

He is a practicing lawyer in Long 
Branch, Monmouth county, New Jersey. 
He is a democrat and every fall takes the 
platform in the interests of his party. 



^T^HOMAS P. FAY, a rising young legal 
-L practitioner of Long Branch, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, is a son of 
Eugene and Catherine (McKenna) Fay, 
and was born Nov. 18, 1865, in a house 
once occupied by the Bonaparte family, 
at Trenton, New Jersey. The paternal 
grandfather, Eugene Fay, was a native 
of Ireland, where he resided all his life 
as a farmer and a trader. He died in 
1864. His wife's maiden name was Anna 
Carroll. They had the following chil- 
dren : Charles, deceased ; Thomas, Mat- 
thew, Catherine, and Eugene. 

Eugene Fay (father) was born in Ire- 
land in 1830. His school education was 
extremely limited, as he commenced 



634 



Biographical Sketches. 



working on his father's farm at an early 
age, and he found little leisure for attend- 
ing school, save on occasional daA^s during 
winter months. He came to this country 
in 1848, located at first in New York 
state, and subsequentl}^ until slavery was 
abolished, he was overseer of a plantation 
near New Orleans. During the war he was 
engaged in moulding brass for ordnance 
in a large works at Trenton, New Jersey, 
and later he followed the trade of a ma- 
chinist for six years at Manchester. At 
the time of the strike on the New Jer- 
sey Southern railroad, in 1878, he suc- 
cessfully carried out an engagement to run 
the company's rolling stock with horses 
and was lessee of the road. He engaged 
in the hotel business for a short time at 
Manchester, Ocean county, and subse- 
quently he went into the same business 
at Long Branch, where he is now con- 
ducting two hotels. He is a well-read 
man, and in this way has made up the 
deficiency in his early education. Thei'e 
are few men, if any, at Long Branch, 
who are better posted than he is on the 
questions of the day. He is a member 
of the Roman Catholic church at Long 
Branch, while in politics he is a demo- 
crat. In Manchester he served on the 
board of school trustees. He was mar- 
ried to Catharine McKenna, who is still 
living, and is the mother of eleven chil- 
dren ; Joseph, deceased ; James, real- 
estate and coal dealer at Elberon ; Mary, 
married to Joseph Corbett, superintend- 
ent of the Atlantic Highlands line of the 
New Jersey Railroad Co. ; Thomas P., 
our subject ; Eugene, Jr., Jolin and 
Agnes, all three deceased ; Rose Helen, 
principal of the West Orange Grammar 
schools; Charles and Benjamin, both 
deceased,- and Albert. 

Thomas P. Fay attended the public 



schools of Manchester, until he was eleven 
years of age. Li 1884 he was gi-adu- 
ated from Long Branch High school, after 
which he read law in the office of ex- 
Senator John S. Applegate, at Red Bank, 
In 1886, he entered Columbia College, 
New York, where he rowed in the fresh- 
men crew and took a prominent part in 
all the college societies. He entered the 
Columbia Law school in 1887, from which 
he was graduated with the degree of LL. 
B., two years later. He was admitted 
to the New Jersey Bar at the February 
term, 1891, and the following September 
was appointed a master in chancery. 
Since that time he has been engaged in 
the active practice of his profession at 
Long Branch. In his religious faith, Mr. 
Fay is a catholic ; in fraternity he is a 
member of the Royal Arcanum, and in 
politics he is a straight-out loyal demo- 
crat. He attended the conventions at 
Chicago which nominated Cleveland in 
1892, and Bryan in 1896. He is very 
effective as a stump speaker, and is 
strong in debate. His first eftbrt at 
political speaking was in his eighteenth 
j-ear. For a number of yeai's he was a 
member of the Ocean Township Com- 
mittee, and as such was assigned to the 
position of local orator. On more than 
one occasion he has stumped the state at 
his own expense. Mr. Fay has twice 
been a candidate for the State Assembly. 
In 1887, at the age of twenty-two j^ears, 
he came within twentj'-four votes of an 
election. On Oct. 30, 1893, he received 
the Second District nomination for the 
New Jersey Assembly. 



TTOX. CHARLES MORRIS, ex-asso- 

-'--'- ciate judge of the court of common 

pleas, county of Monmouth, and one of 

I the leading citizens of Long Branch city, 



Biographical Sketches. 



635 



Monmouth county, New Jersey, is a son 
of John V. and Eveline Morris, and was 
born Sept. 11, 1852, in the above-named 
city. While the judge is well-known 
here, a brief history of his private and 
public life may prove interesting. His 
business was that of a merchant in our 
city for a number of years. Mr. Morris, 
when but eleven years of age, lost his 
father. This deprived the mother and 
her five children of their main support. 
Charles, being the eldest son, had the 
care and responsibility of the family on 
his hands, which he assumed and most 
manfully carried out by hard work, in- 
dustry and honesty. At the time of his 
majority he was active in politics, and 
was elected to the position of township 
clerk, which office he held for seven 
years. He was then elected collector of 
taxes for six successive years, which 
position he held to the entire satisfaction 
of the taxpayers, declining to be a candi- 
date for re-election in the spring of 1891. 
He was thrice elected as a member of 
the Long Branch commissioners and 
served on many important committees, 
being chairman of the lamp committee, 
besides a member of the finance and 
street committees, and declined also a re- 
nomination after having been urged to 
accept the same by his many friends for 
the fourth term. He was president of 
the board of directors of the Long Branch 
Hall Association for several years. He 
is captain of Company B of the Third 
regiment, N. J. N. G., and has faithfully 
served in that capacity as an officer of 
the state for the past ten years. He is 
also one of the directors of the New York 
and Long Branch Steamboat Co., and has 
been secretary of St. Luke's Methodist 
Episcopal Sunday-school for the past 
twenty-five years and is popular among 



its many members. Mr. Morris has al- 
ways been a democrat, and has pulled 
successfully through the hottest of polit- 
ical fights that ever took place in his 
township. He has a clear head, good 
judgment and made a reputation charac- 
teristic of his straight-forwardness whilst 
serving in his judicial position (as judge) 
that caused his name to have been promi- 
nently mentioned as a possible candidate 
for the high office of sheriff of Monmouth 
county, fall of 1896. Mr. Morris is also 
a member of a number of different organ- 
izations, being a member of Long Branch 
Lodge, No. 78, F. and A. M. ; Ancient 
Order of United Workmen, Sea Side 
Lodge, No. 39 ; and Long Branch Coun- 
cil, Koyal Arcanum, No. 429. Judge 
Charles Morris was not born with the 
proverbial silver spoon in his mouth, nor 
did he acquire at school aught more than 
a common-school education. And yet 
there is no man in Monmouth county to- 
day his superior in knowledge of English 
classics and in general information. 
Judge Morris won the commendation of 
the lawyers before his bar, of the people 
of his county and is missed from his pre- 
vious accustomed seat. The expression 
self-made is perhaps used too freely in 
biography and in obituary, but a review 
of the career of Judge Morris makes it 
apparent that in his case the word is not 
sufficiently expressed. The writer sees 
the heroism of a half-educated but deter- 
mined boy, toiling through many weary 
days in the support of a widowed mother, 
and robbing nature of repose at night in 
the pursuit of knowledge, etc., etc. Judge 
Morris's faithful honest services in public 
office, his ultimate investiture with the 
ermine, and the writer sees more, are in- 
spiration to boys of humble degree. 
Truly, the judge is a self-made man. 



636 



Biographical Sketches. 



A LAN H. STRONG, counsel for the 
-^-^ Pennsylvania Railroad Co., and a 
leading member of the Middlesex count}' 
bar, is a son of Judge Woodbridge and 
Harriett (Hartwell) Strong, and was 
born March 5, 1856, at New Brunswick, 
New Jersey. He was educated in the 
Rutgers College Grammar School and 
Rutgers College ; graduating from the 
latter in 1874. He at once entered upon 
the study of law in his father's office, 
being duly admitted therefrom as an 
attorney in Nov., 1877, and, after the 
I'egular term of three years, was admitted 
as a counsellor November, 1877. He 
was associated with his father and 
brothers under the style of Woodbi'idge 
Strong & Sons, up to his father's appoint- 
ment to the judgeship of Middlesex 
county early in 1896, at which time his 
father was obliged to resign from the 
firm, and the sons have continued as 
Alan H. and Theodore Strong. The 
firm has long been known to conduct the 
largest legal practice in Middlesex county. 
Individually he is counsel for the Penn- 
sylvania Railroiid Co. covering a district 
compiising Middlesex, Monmouth, Mer- 
cer, Hunterdon, Warren, Ocean, Somer- 
set, and Union counties, New Jersey. 
The firm makes a specialty of corpora- 
tion pi'actice, and have been counsel for 
the National Bank of New Jersey at New 
Brunswick ever since the organization of 
the bank; also for the First National 
Bank of Jamesburg and the First Na- 
tional Bank of South Amboy, besides 
other corporations of less importance. 
He is a republican, and served as a com- 
missioner under the Martin Act two 
years. On April 17, 1893, he married 
Miss Susan Delancey Van Rensselaer, a 
daughter of John CuUen Van Rensselaer, 
Esq., a retired lawyer of New York city. 



/CAPTAIN WILLIAM DE GROFF, a 
^-^ successful oyster dealer of Keyjjort, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey, is a son 
of Abram and Sarah Lansing De Groff, 
and was born Sept. 23, 1848, at Perth 
Amboy, New Jersey. 

Abram De Groff was born at Hyde 
Park, Dutchess county, N. Y. He re- 
ceived a common-school education, and 
later removed to Perth Amboy, where he 
was engaged in farming and in culti- 
vating oysters all his life. He was an 
old-line whig, later a republican in poli- 
tics ; and in his early days at Hyde 
Park, he was captain of a company of 
home guards. He died in April, 1879. 
His wife, Sarah, deceased 1884. She 
was the mother of thirteen children : 
Adelia, married to J. L. Crowell, of Perth 
Amboy ; John L., Ezekiel, Mary, George, 
Marilla, and Jane, all deceased ; Eugenia, 
wife of Richard Maxwell, of Yonkers, 
N. Y. ; Edwin, Captain William, our sub- 
ject; Sarah, deceased, wife of Frank 
Ballard, of Elmira, N. Y. ; Jacob and 
Stephen. 

Captain William De Groff attended 
the Newark, New Jersey, high school, 
for several years. He then farmed with 
his father at Perth Amboy for a while, 
and subsequently, for five years, he was 
employed on a steamship line running 
between Delaware and New York. In 
this latter capacity, he rose from grade to 
grade until he finally became a captain. 
He located at Keyport in 1875, and en- 
gaged in the oyster business. This trade 
he has developed into such extensive 
proportions, that it is at present the 
leading one of its character in Keypoi't. 
Captain De Groff yields his political 
allegiance to the Republican party, and 
although he has never aspired to public 
office of any kind, he is, nevertheless, 



Biographical Sketches. 



637 



the chairman of Raritan township com- 
mittee, and a member of the county com- 
mittee. He is a very active politician, 
and is one of the republican leaders of 
his district. He is a member of the 
Masters and Pilots Association of New 
York city, and a member of the Keyport 
Fire Engine Co. In Masonry, Captain 
De GrofF has always taken the deepest 
and most active interest. He is a mem- 
ber of Caesarea Lodge, No. 64, F. and 
A. M. ; a member and the present high 
priest of Delta Chapter, No. 14, R. A.M.; 
and he is a member of Carson Com- 
mandery, No. 15, Knights Templar. He 
is popular with his Masonic brethren 
throughout the state. 

Captain De GroiF was united in mar- 
riage, Sept. 15, 1872, to Emma Hanson, 
a daughter of James Hanson, of New 
Castle, Del. To this union have been 
born two children : Mary and Lolita. 



THEODORE STRONG, junior member 
of the law firm of Alan H. and Theo- 
dore Strong, is a son of Judge Woodbridge 
and Harriett (Hartwell) Strong, and was 
born Jan. 15, 1863, at New Brunswick, 
New Jersey. His educational training 
was received in the Rutgers College 
Grammar School and Rutgers College, 
from which old and time-honored seat of 
learning he graduated in the class of '83. 
He took up the study of law the same 
year in his father's office, in New Bruns- 
wick, from which he was admitted as an 
attorney in 1886 and as counsellor in 
1889. He at once became associated in 
practice with his father and brother in 
the firm of Woodbridge, Strong & Sons, 
which relation continued up to his 
father's elevation to the bench of Mid- 
dlesex county, in 1896, since which time 



the business has been known under the 
style of Alan H. and Theodore Strong. 
He is individually counsel for the Mid- 
dlesex county board of freeholders, while 
the firm enjoys one of the largest corpora- 
tion practices in the state of New Jersey, 
and they have long been known as one 
of the strongest legal firms in the state. 
Mr. Strong is a republican, and has ever 
been active in the local councils of the 
party, but has never sought preferment. 
He is an able pleader, a wise and valu- 
able counsellor, and is regarded as one of 
the most promising members of the junior 
bar. Mr. Strong is a careful, painstaking 
lawyer, and ever faithful to the interests 
of his clients. His civil practice rather 
than criminal has been more to his lik- 
ing, and his corporation clientele is one of 
the largest and most profitable in the 
state of New Jersey. 



TpDWARD W. REID, chief of the Long 
-*-^ Branch fire department, and a prom- 
inent and enterprising business man of 
North Long Branch, New Jersey, is a son 
of Joseph N. and Mary A. (Pearce) Reid, 
and was born at Cranbury, Middlesex 
county, New Jersey, June 2, 1857. 

Joseph N. Reid (father of the subject) 
was born in New Jersey, 1819, and, after 
attending the public schools of his native 
place, learned the trade of a blacksmith, 
and followed that business during the 
course of his life-time, at Cranbury. In 
political opinion and practice he was a 
democrat, and was a regular attendant 
of the Methodist Episcopal church. He 
was a man of high principles, and uni- 
versally beloved by all who knew him. 
His wife's father was Mr. Israel Pearce, 
of Hightstown, New Jersey, and she and 
Joseph N. Reid were united in marriage, 



638 



Biographical Sketches. 



at Crosswick, New Jersey, in 1844 ; and 
they reared a t'amilj- of four sons and 
one daughter : Charles B. ; Israel P. ; 
Lizzie M., wife of Mr. John W. Martin, 
contractor and builder, of Asbury Park, 
New Jersey ; Edward W. ; and John H. 
Joseph N. Reid died May 17, 1879, aged 
fifty-nine j^ears ; and Mrs. Reid passed 
away March 18, 1889, at sixty-six years 
of age. 

Edward W. Reid (subject), up to his 
thirteenth year, attended the public 
schools of Cranbury, and then worked in 
a spice mill at the same place for two 
years, after which he secured a clerkship 
in a country store at Franklin Park, New 
Jersey, and, remaining there a year, 
finally located in Elizabeth, New Jersej^, 
where he learned the butchering business. 
After a nine years' residence in the last- 
named place, Mr. Reid came to North 
Long Branch, and, in 1883, established a 
meat market on Atlantic avenue, oppo- 
site the depot. It may be found one of 
the best-equipped establishments of its 
kind in Monmouth county, and there are 
none who have gained a wider reputation 
in this line of trade than our subject, 
who has had ample experience in all de- 
tails of his business, and does his busi- 
ness with promptness, and with the view 
of giving satisfaction in the least partic- 
ular. Mr. Reid is an adherent of the 
Democratic party, and takes a lively iii- 
terest in the municipal affairs of his 
to\vii ; and, in 1888 and 1889, was the 
Fourth ward's representative in council. 
Chief Reid has been connected with the 
Long Branch fire department since 1888, 
and, by his efficient service and ability 
for the place, has earned the highest posi- 
tion in the department, having been 
elected chief in 1895. Our subject is 
one of the best>knowu secret society men 



in these parts, being a member in good 
standing of the following orders : Long 
Branch Lodge, No. 78, F. and A. M. ; 
Standard Chapter, No. 35 ; Carson Com- 
mandery, No. 15 ; Sea View Lodge, No. 
229, I. 0. 0. F. ; Long Branch Encamp- 
ment, No. 49 ; Long Branch Council, 
No. 429, Royal Arcanum ; and A. 0. U. 
W., No. 39. On July 28, 1878, Edward 
W. Reid was united in marriage to Miss 
Elizabeth Pople, daughter of John B. 
Pople, a blacksmith, of Elizabeth, New 
Jersey, and to them have been born one 
son, Edward J., and a daughter, Florence 
A. Mr. Edward W. Reid is well-known 
and highly esteemed, and numbers among 
his pati'ons many of the best families of 
Monmouth county. He is a generous, 
courteous gentleman, and is highly re- 
garded for his probity and business ver- 
acity. 

A RTHUR M. BROWN, the present effi- 
-^^^ cient assistant to the cashier of 
the Keyport Banking Co, and a repre- 
sentative citizen of that town, is a son 
of Thomas S. R. and Mar\- (Beers) Brown, 
and was born July 12, 1859, at Keyport, 
New Jersey. He received his education 
in the public schools of Keyport and the 
Glen wood Institute at Matawan. Upon 
leaving school he became associated with 
his father in business for six years, when 
he became assistant to the cashier in the 
First National Bank of Keyport, now 
the Keyport Banking Co., in which 
position he has served ever since. He is 
secretary and treasurer of the Kej-port 
and Matawan Street Railroad Co., and 
director and treasurer of the Second 
Keyport Loan Association of Keyport. 
He is a director in the Matawan and 
Keyport Gas Co., and is one of the 
trustees of his father's estate. Politically 



Biographical Sketches. 



639 



he is a democrat, and although he is in 
no sense a politician, he served as collec- 
tor of Raritan township in 1888. Mr. 
Brown was happily married, Dec. 12, 
1883, to Mamie A., a daughter of Benj. 
B. and Martha A. Pearce ; of their three 
children only one, Mary Gladys, sur- 
vives. Mr. Brown enjoys the highest 
esteem of the community in which he 
resides, and is recognized as one of Key- 
port's most substantial and valuable citi- 
zens. He is enterprising and progressive, 
and has always been found supporting 
every worthy movement or enterprise 
brought forward for the bettering of the 
condition of his town and the community 
in general. 

The oldest nativity of the Brown family 
of this country was the village which be- 
came known as Browntown, Middlesex 
county. New Jersey, named in honor of 
Lewis Browii, a Scotch highlander, who 
came to this country and settled at that 
place. He was the great-grandfather of 
Arthur M. Brown, and resided there the 
remainder of his life, pursuing the car- 
penter trade. He was twice married : 
first to a Miss Blue, and second to Re- 
becca Owen. Among the children to the 
first marriage was Benjamin L. Brown, 
who was born in Browntown, where he 
followed the carpenter trade. He mar- 
ried Susan, a daughter of Daniel Brown, 
whose ten children were : Thomas S. R., 
Richard, Charles M., Cornelius H., Amos, 
Adelia Arose, Margaret Burlew, Jane 
Bowne, Sophia Bloodgood, and Eliza Ely. 

Thomas S. R. Brown (father), a mem- 
ber of the New Jersey Senate at the time 
of his death, was born Sept. 8, 1823, in 
South Amboy township (then Madison), 
Middlesex county, New Jersey. He re- 
mained with his father on the farm until 
seventeen years of age, during which he 

33 



contrived to obtain a superficial knowl- 
edge of the common-school branches of 
study by irregular attendance at the dis- 
trict schools. He learned the mason 
trade and in 1846 entered into contracting 
and building at Keyport, where he car- 
ried on an extensive and profitable busi- 
ness for twenty years, when he abandoned 
his trade to engage in oyster planting. 
In 1866, along with his oyster business, 
he embarked in the hardware business, 
dealing also in coal and lumber, in which 
he continued up to his death, June 4, 
1892. He was prominently identified 
with all its important business enter- 
prises. He was one of the incorporators 
and a director of the First National Bank 
of Keyport, now the Keyport Banking 
Co., and president of the same at the 
time of his death. He was also presi- 
dent of the Matawan and Keyport Gas 
Co. He was prominently interested in 
politics, and served in various politi- 
cal positions in his township, includ- 
ing that of freeholder, township com- 
mitteeman, and school trustee. He was 
a staunch democrat, and served as a 
member of the general assembly of New 
Jersey during the season of 1866 and 
1867, and served as a member and chair- 
man of a number of important commit- 
tees. He was an advocate and a sup- 
porter of all the evangelical denomina- 
tions, and a member of St. Mary's 
Protestant Episcopal church at Keyport. 
On January 15, 1846, he married, for his 
estimable wife, Margaret, a daughter of 
David Lamberson, of Middlesex county, 
whose only surviving child is Caroline, 
wife of William C. Bedle. By his second 
wife, Sarah, a sister of his first wife, 
there was no issue. By his last marriage, 
to Maria L. Hunt, were born Richard R., 
George W., and Susan. 



640 



Biographical Sketches. 



I 

PROF. JOHN WILSON, A.M., Ph.D., 
of Ocean Grove, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Joseph and Jane 
Provins Wilson, and was born Nov. 25, 
1824, at Carlisle, Cumberland county, 
Pennsylvania. 

Joseph (father) was born in county 
Tyrone, Ireland, in the year 1795, and 
came to this country twentj'-five years 
later, settling in the above-named county 
and state. In early life he developed a 
marked bias for mathematics, which 
talent he developed, becoming in time an 
expert accountant. He was bookkeeper 
in the Carlisle Iron Works, at Boiling 
Springs, for more than thirty 3'ears, and 
his services were frequently brought into 
requisition in cases before the courts, and 
as an adjuster of private differences be- 
tween individuals. His acute perception, 
his clear intellect, and his impartial 
judgment commanded the respect of the | 
people, and his umpiriige appeals were not 
infrequent. In politics he was latterly a ^ 
democrat, formerly an old-line whig ; in j 
religion he was a consistent member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church, and in 
masonry he had passed the threshold of 
the royal arch. He was married to Jane 
Provins in 1817, and survived her loss 
for a period of thirtj'-two years, deceas- 
ing in 1865. They were the parents of 
four children : Jane and Mary, both de- 
ceased ; John, our subject, and Thomas. 

John Wilson attended the public schools 
of Carlisle for a time, and was prepared 
for Dickinson College at the grammar 
school of that name. He was graduated 
July 13, 1848, and remained with his 
alma mater as a tutor for three years. 
He subsequently spent seven years at the 
Wesleyan Female Institute at Staunton, 
Virginiii — two as a pi'ofessor and five 
years as the principal. In 1858 he ac- 



cepted the presidency of the Wesleyan 
Female College at Wilmington, Del., and 
reuiamed in that position during a full 
score of years. Under his administration 
the affairs of the college prospered greatly, 
and its roll of students, representing 
prominent families from all sections of 
the country, was never larger. At the 
expiration of this long and honorable 
term of service Professor Wilson removed 
to Ridley Park, where he resided three 
yeai's for rest, and regaining his health, 
he was recalled to Wilmington, Del., 
where he spent four more years in charge 
of the Wesleyan College. In 1882 he 
built the Corrolton, a summer hotel at 
Ocean Grove, New Jerse}-, which he 
leased to a party for three years, and in 
1885 removed from Wilmington to Ocean 
Grove, assumed its management and still 
successfully conducts it as a favorite re- 
sort of refined, cultivated and professional 
people. In politics our su))ject is a re- 
publican, and in religious matters he has 
for many years been prominently iden- 
tified with methodism, a regularly or- 
dained minister of the church of that 
faith, and deeply interested in its wel- 
fare, especially its educational interests. 
Professor Wilson was united in mar- 
riage Aug. 7, 1856, to Hannah, a daugh- 
ter of Chaunce}^ Halbert, of Batavia, 
New York. Her ancestors came from 
England, and settled in Connecticut, 
whence they subsequentlj' removed to 
New York state. She is collaterallj' re- 
lated to the Lee family, of Virginia, and 
is a niece of Samuel Kirkham, the author 
of Kirkham's " English Grammar." 



TOHN S. DAHMER, a prominent clo- 
^ thier and business man of New 
Brunswick, is of German parentage, be- 
ing a son of George and Elizabeth 



Biographical Sketches. 



641 



(Wenxel) Dahmer. He was born Aug. 
16. 1868, at New Brunswick. His father, 
who was born in Germany, was maiTied 
at a very early age, and came to this 
country shortly afterwards. He was 
engaged in the clothing business in New 
Brunswick for thirty years, and enjoyed 
a most excellent reputation as a sound, 
solid, conservative business man. He 
was an active member of the German 
Reformed church, and frequently served 
it in an official capacity. In politics he 
was a democrat, but not a politician. He 
was a member of the New Brunswick 
Lodge, No. 16, I. 0. 0. F. Eight chil- 
dren were born to his marriage : Amelia, 
William, John S., Charles, Elizabeth, and 
three children deceased. 

John S. Dahmer received his early 
education at the public schools, after- 
wards attending the New Jersey Busi- 
ness College at Newark. Upon graduat- 
ing from this latter school he engaged in 
business in New York city, remaining 
there until 1890, when he removed to 
Chicago, where he became interested in 
the soda-water business. He remained 
in that city until the year 1894, when he 
was recalled to New Brunswick by the 
death of his father, which occurred in 
that year. Upon the settlement of his 
father's estate he found himself in pos- 
session of a large and prosperous busi- 
ness, which he immediately assumed 
charge of The firm of Van Vliet & 
Dahmer manufactui-e clothing and deal 
generally in men's furnishing goods, and 
both its members are possessed of a prac- 
tical knowledge of their business. Mr. 
Dahmer is a member of the German 
Reformed church, and of the New Bruns- 
wick Lodge, No. 16, 1. 0. 0. F. Although 
not a politician, he takes great interest 
in the success of the Democratic party. 



In Oct., 1895, he was married to Mary 
Crawford, daughter of Alexander Craw- 
ford, Esq., of Chicago. 



OHERMAN B. OVIATT, ex-member of 
^ the New Jersey assembly, speaker 
of the House in 1880, and a prominent 
railroad contractor and real-estate opera- 
tor of Asbury Park, is a son of Morris B. 
and Mary Howlett Oviatt, and was born 
Jan. 28, 1845, in Richfield, Summit 
county, 0., in the famous Western Re- 
serve. The family is of well-known New 
England stock, some of our subject's im- 
mediate ancestors having been among the 
pioneer settlers of Ohio. 

His father, Morris B. Oviatt, was an 
extensive land-owner and thriving farmer 
throughout his life-time, and a man of 
means and influence. He married Mary 
A. Howlett, daughter of Joseph HoAvlett, 
of Richfield, Ohio. 

Sherman B. Oviatt (subject) spent his 
early life in Ohio, and received a thor- 
ough elementary education in the public 
schools of Cuyahoga county. Although 
not yet in his majority at the outbreak of 
the civil war, he entered the army. At 
the close of the war his health was very 
much broken down, and he removed to 
the New Jersey coast with a view to 
seeking more beneficent surroundings. 
He located in Monmouth county and be- 
came engaged in railroad contract work. 
For some years he lived at Belmar, but 
for the past eight years he has occupied 
a handsome residence in Asbury Park. 
Mr. Oviatt has always been an active re- 
publican in politics, and has for many 
years been recognized as one of the emi- 
nent leaders of his party in Monmouth 
county. He was elected a member of the 
assembly in 1878 from the first district 



642 



Biographical Sketches. 



of Monmouth county, and served two 
terms until 1880. During his last term 
he was speaker of the hotise. In 1887 
he was again elected to the assembly 
from the second district of Monmouth 
county and served one term. He has in- 
variably been foremost in all matters of 
municipal progress. 

Mr. Oviatt is one of Monmouth 
county's most prominent and influential 
men. He is possessed of energy, indus- 
try and perseverance to a high degree, is 
a shrewd and conservative business man, 
and has taken part in most of the import- 
ant enterprises which have marked the 
great advance in prosperitj- of this part 
of the Atlantic coast during the past two 
decades. 



/CLAUDE V. GUERIN, a brilliant and 
^ active young member of the Mon- 
mouth county bar, with offices at Asburj- 
Park, and a prominent citizen of that 
place, is a son of Samuel B. and Emilie 
M. (Kale) Guerin, and was born Sept. 8, 
1867, at Jersey City. The name is of 
French origin, and the New Jersey 
branch of the family traces its ancestry 
back to two brothers of Huguenot stock, 
who settled near Morristown in early 
colonial days, having emigrated from 
France to escape religious persecution. 

Vincent Guerin (grandfather) was a 
thriving merchant at Martinsville, Bridge- 
water township, Somerset county, and 
subsequently at Bound Brook, New Jer- 
sey. He was an active republican in 
politics, was at various times constable at 
Bound Brook, freeholder of Bridgewater 
township, and a member of board of edu- 
cation of same township for several years. 
He was a prominent worker and elder in 
the Presbyterian church. His children 
were : Samuel B. and Henry V. 



Samuel B. Guerin (father) was born at 
Mendhara, Morris county, subsequently 
removed to Martinsville, and received his 
education in the public schools of that 
town and Bound Brook. Early in man- 
hood he engaged in the grocer}- business 
at New Brunswick with Isaac L. Martin 
until 1861. During the civil war he en- 
listed for sixty days' service with the 
Fifth Pennsjdvania Reserves. In 1864 
he removed to New York city, and was a 
member of the firm of Comstock & Co., 
wholesale provision dealers, for six years, 
when ill-health made it necessary to with- 
draw from business, and he located on a 
farm in Middlesex county, near New 
Brunswick, New Jersey. In 1881 he re- 
moved to Asburj- Park, and again engaged 
in the grocery business, on South Main 
street; subsequently removing to Mat- 
tison avenue, where he has been located 
ever since. He has been highly success- 
ful, and owns valuable real estate. He 
is a prominent and active member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church, in which he 
has been a steward for the past eight 
years. His wife was Miss Emilie M. 
Kale, daughter of Colonel Charles Kale, 
of Easton, Pa., and they had but one 
child, Claude V. 

Claude V. Guerin spent his boyhood 
near New Brunswick, and was educated 
at the public schools there. In 1881 he 
removed to Asbury Park with his father, 
and took a course in the high school 
there, graduating in 1886 as valedictorian 
of his class. He then entered the law 
office of Hawkins & Durand, and after 
four years' reading was admitted to the 
bar in Nov., 1890. He immediately en- 
tered upon the pursuit of his prol'ession, 
and now has a lucrative and growing 
practice, making a specialty of surrogate 
and probate court business, and muni- 



Biographical Sketches. 



645 



cipal law. Mr. Guerin is counsel for the 
borough of Bradley Beach, and instituted 
the action investigating the unconstitu- 
tionality of the charter of Asbury Park 
under the act of 1891 ; he representing 
the prosecutor, and winning the suit. 
The decision in this case affected the ex- 
istence of one hundred boroughs in the 
state. 

Mr. Guerin takes an active interest in 
politics on the republican side, is chair- 
man of the township Republican execu- 
tive committee, and has been delegate to 
state, county, and congressional conven- 
tions. 

In March, 1896, he was elected a 
member of the board of education. He is 
a member and past councillor of Council 
No. 23, Jr. 0. U. A. M. ; a member of 
Neptune Lodge, I. 0. 0. F. ; a member 
of Tribe No. 60, I. 0. R. M. ; and a cor- 
poral in Company A, Third regiment, 
New Jersey National Guards. He is a 
very industrious church worker, a mem- 
ber of St. Paul's Methodist Episcopal 
church, superintendent of the Sunday- 
school, and a prominent figure in the big 
summer meeting at Ocean Grove. He 
was married in Oct., 1893, to Miss Ruth 
DeHart, daughter John V. N. DeHart, of 
Somerville, Somerset county, and they 
have one daughter, Ruthena. They oc- 
cupy a handsome house on Munroe 
avenue, Asbury Park. 

Mr. Guerin is an energetic and inde- 
fatigable worker, is bright, ambitious, and 
enterprising. He has already made a 
prominent place for himself in the local 
ranks of the legal profession, and is pop- 
ular in both business and social circles. 
He has the interests of his fellow-citizens 
at heart, and is guided by sound, clear- 
headed principles in both private and 
public life. 



"TTENEY B. SHERMAN, proprietor of 
-'--'- a flouring mill and dealer in grain 
and hay at Long Branch city, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, was born Nov. 28, 
1833, at Long Branch. The maternal 
grandfather, Gilbert Lane, was a native 
of Long Branch, born 1770, and died in 
1841. His life-time occupation consisted 
of farming and boating, and he was a 
whig in politics. His wife, Elizabeth, 
born in 1773, and deceased in 1849, was 
the mother of seven children : John, 
James, Abram, Sarah, married to Daniel 
Van Brunt; Margaret, wife of Moses 
Hampton ; Ellen, consort of Thomas 
Brown, and Susan, subsequently Mrs. 
John White, and Ann, wife of Benjamin 
Jackson. 

Henry B. Sherman, subject of this 
sketch, attended the public schools at 
Long Branch until he arrived at the age 
of twelve years, and from that time his 
occupation was that of a ship's cook, and 
he became master at twenty. In 1869 
he returned to Long Branch, and after a 
season of railroading for two years en- 
tered the grocery business at Long 
Branch, and for ten years carried on a 
highly prosperous trade in that line. At 
this period he disposed of his grocery in- 
terests, and thenceforth devoted himself 
to dealing in hay and grain and to the 
operation of a flour mill, both of which 
have proved profitable enterprises, as his 
business affairs are to-day in a very highly 
flourishing condition. Mr. Sherman is a 
republican in politics, and has attained a 
prominent and influential position in the 
municipal affairs of his town. In 1860 
he was appointed town, clerk, serving one 
year ; was elected a member of the board 
of education in 1876, serving three years ; 
became a member of the township com- 
mittee in 1893, serving three years; 



646 



Biographical Sketches. 



president of the township board of health 
in 1894, in which office he served two 
years, and at present is serving as a 
member. He was elected a member of 
the board of aldermen four times, and is 
at present serving as a member of said 
board. He is a township committeeman 
at present. In financial matters his 
sound, conservative judgment is suffi- 
ciently vouched for in his holding the 
position of a director in the Long Branch 
Banking Co. Mr. Sherman is particu- 
larly active in christian work, and is re- 
garded as one of the pillars of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church at Long Branch, 
in which he is a member of the board of 
stewards and of the board of trustees. 
He is a member of Arioch Lodge, T. 0. 
O. F. He was united in marriage April 
3, 1858, to Catharine M. Woolley, a 
daughter of Daniel and Adaline Wool- 
ley, of Long Branch. They are the 
parents of seven children : Adaline, mar- 
ried to George H. Woolley; Alonzo, 
Henry B., Jr., John W., Arthur M., 
Thomas C, and Horace W. 



TOHN HUBBARD, for ten years town- 
^ ship collector of Asbury Park, New 
Jersey, is a son of James Denise and 
Cornelia Grover Hubbard, and was born 
March 21, 1846, on the Hubbard home- 
stead, Middletown township, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey. His trans-Atlantic 
ancestors spoke the Norse, and were 
natives of Scandinavia. 

From letters compiled in the " Hub- 
bard History," they learn the nursery 
tradition, that they take their name from 
"Hubbii, the Dane," who invaded Eng- 
land one thousand years ago. 

In 866, with an immense fleet of 20,000 
warriors, Hubba landed on the coast of 



Kent to avenge the death of his father, 
the " Norse Sea King." His brother, 
Hingua, and himself, landed on the coast 
of East Anglia (or Kent). They did 
not acknowledge the loyalty of their 
king, Ethelred. In Feb., 867, they left 
their camp on the coast of Northumber- 
land, and marched landward and seized 
York. 

Hon. John G. Hubbard, London, Eng- 
land, says : " On positive genealogical 
evidence, you have far more Hubbards in 
the United States than we have in Eng- 
land," etc. 

James Hubbard, youngest of eleven 
children, was born in 1613 (son of Henry 
and Margaret Hubbard, born in 1570), 
in Langham, Rutland county, England. 
He arrived in America in 1637, and set- 
tled at Charlestown, Ma§s. He, how- 
ever, " sold his house and lot," and re- 
moved to Long Island with many other 
families in 1643, where Sergeant James 
Hubbard was granted land, Dec. 19, 
1645, where is now the town of Graves- 
end. This land was obtained from the 
Indian chief Pamamora, and granted to 
"Jeames" Hubbard, by Gov. Richard 
Nicholls, of New York. From him de- 
scended James, born in Gravesend, Dec. 
10, 1665. James, j^oungest son of Jas. 
and Rachel (Bergen) Hubbard, was born 
June 18, 1706. Jacobus, eighth child of 
James and Rachel Hubbard, was born 
May 23, 1744; died in Holmdel, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, Aug. 18, 
1807. He was a successful physician 
and surgeon. Elias, youngest son of Dr. 
Jacobus and Rebecca (Swartz) Hubbard, 
was born Dec. 18, 1781, and died April 
12, 1867. 

James Denise, son of Elias and Elea- 
nor (Hendrickson) Hubbai'd, Avas born 
Sept. 30, 1812, two hours after the birth 



Biographical Sketches. 



647 



of his brother, Dr. Wm. Henry, whose 
birth is recorded Sept. 29, 1812. John 
Hubbard was the second son born to 
James D. and Cornelia Hubbard. 

John Hubbard attended the public 
schools of Red Bank and of Dayton, 
Middlesex county, and later completed 
his education at Eastman's Business Col- 
lege, Poughkeepsie, N. Y. He followed 
clerking and bookkeeping from 1871 to 
1878, and in 1879 removed to Asbury 
Park, where he carried on painting and 
contracting, and during the summer 
seasons from that date to 1884, was 
employed as baggage-master with the 
New York and Long Branch railroad, at 
their Asbury Park station. In politics, 
Mr. Hubbard has always been a specially 
active republican. He was elected clerk 
of Neptune township in 1883, and in 
1886 collector of his township, and is 
now serving his tenth successive year 
(four terms of one year; two of three 
years). He has attended various county 
and district conventions as a delegate, 
and he is a member of the Republican 
congressional committee of the third dis- 
trict. In 1890 he received the republi- 
can nomination for clerk of the county 
court of Monmouth county, and after a 
vigorous campaign, he was defeated by 
less than five hundred votes. This was 
a notable run, in view of the fact that 
the normal democratic majority in those 
days was fourteen hundred. Mr. Hub- 
bard is a member of Trinity Episcopal 
church at Asbury Park, and interests 
himself deeply in church work, and in 
all matters tending to educational pro- 
gress in his town. He is a member of 
Asbury Lodge, No. 142, P. and A. M. ; 
Standard Chapter, No. 35, R. A. M. ; 
Carson Commandery, No. 15, K. T. ; 
Mecca Temple, Nobles of the Mystic 



Shrine, New York city : Neptune Lodge, 
No. 84, I. 0. 0. F. ; Park Council, No. 
38, A. 0. U. W. ; Asbury Council, No. 
42, Jr. 0. U. A. M. ; and Asbury Lodge, 
B. P. 0. E. He is an incorporator and 
director of the Asbury Park and Ocean 
Grove Bank ; an active director in the 
Asbury Park Building and Loan Associa- 
tion ; one of the incorporators, and at 
present a director and the secretary, of 
the Asbury Park and Belmar Street rail- 
road; and an active member of Neptune 
Fire Engine Co., No. 2. 

Mr. Hubbard united himself in mar- 
riage, Oct. 9, 1872, to Alice Thomas, a 
daughter of Richard C. Thomas, of 
Brooklyn, L.I. To them were born two 
children : Walter T., employed in the 
Asbury Park and Ocean Grove Bank; 
and Alice. Their residence is at No. 700 
Fifth avenue, Asbury Park. 



T3AND0LPH EOSS, the enterprising 
-L^J junior member of the Milan Ross 
Real Estate and Insurance Agency, lo- 
cated in Asbury Park, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Milan, Sr., and 
Elizabeth (Dolbeer) Ross, and was born, 
Oct. 19, 1862, in Rahway, Union county, 
New Jersey. His blood is a triple mix- 
ture, consisting of that of the Scotch and 
French on the paternal, that of German 
on the maternal side, and his emigrant 
ancestor settled in Union county four 
generations ago. 

The paternal grandfather, Randolph 
Ross, for whom our subject was named, 
conducted an extensive carriage factory 
in Rahway, prior to 1860, and became a 
man of prominence in public local affairs, 
as well as in business circles. He de- 
ceased in 1893, leaving five children, born 
of Leah Burdett, whom he married in 
1830. 



648 



Biographical Sketches. 



Milan Ross, Sr. (father of subject), was 
a native of Railway, where he was born 
in 1832, and received his earlier educa- 
tion in a private school. He completed 
his educational period at the age of eigh- 
teen, and entered into partnership in his 
father's carriage works at the age of 
twentj-one. He subsequently operated 
a lai'ge carriage repository on Cedar 
street. New York city, but never discon- 
tinued his residence at Rahway. In pol- 
itics he was an active republican, con- 
spicuous in public local affairs ; and in 
religion he was a methodist, taking 
special interest in its work and manage- 
ment. He deceased Oct. 12, 1867, and 
is yet survived, at Asbury Park, by his 
widow, Elizabeth Dolbeer, to whom he 
was married June 2, 1856. The issue of 
this marriage comprised five children : 
Leonard C. ; Milan ; Randolph, our sub- 
ject; Benjamin P.; and Emma A. 

Randolph Ross, after attending the 
Rahway public schools, and receiving a 
thorough English education, went to As- 
bury Park in 1876, and was engaged, 
fi'om 1877 to 1890, as the confidential 
clerk of Senator James A. Bradley, who 
Avas postmaster there in the early days 
of the town. He had the management 
of Mr. Bradley's bathing establishment 
on the beach during the seasons of 1892, 
1893, and 1894, and was a faithful cus- 
todian and conservator of that gentle- 
man's aff"airs during this period. In Jan., 
1895, Mr. Ross was admitted to partner- 
ship in the Milan Ross Real Estate and 
Insurance Agency, the leading brokerage 
establishment of that character in As- 
bury Park, to which he brought the re- 
sources of an energetic nature and a 
mind well trained to business affairs. 
This epoch in the life of Mr. Ross, as 
well as the prosperity attending the busi- 



ness with which he is connected, is further 
alluded to in the sketch of Milan Ross, 
which appears elsewhere in this volume. 
In politics our subject is an active repub- 
lican, and has served as treasurer of the 
board of health of Asbury Park for ten 
years, being now a member of that im- 
portant body; and in religion he is a 
member of the First Methodist Episcopal 
church in his town, and has been a trus- 
tee, as well as secretary of the board of 
trustees, of the church during the past 
twelve years. Mr. Ross was married, 
April 29, 1886, to Elizabeth Gillespie, 
daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth Gil- 
lespie, residents of Philadelphia, and to 
their marriage have been born three chil- 
dren : Randolph, Jr., Thomas Gillespie, 
and Henry Mitchell. The family resides 
in happiness, surrounded by every com- 
fort which prosperity afl^brds, at No. 711 
Fourth avenue, Asbury Park. 



T3EV. T. E. DAVIS, the popular and 
-*- ** energetic pastor of the First Presby- 
terian church of Bound Brook, New 
Jersey ,• is a son of Peter and Ann (Oster- 
houdt) Davis, and was born in Flafc- 
bush, Ulster county, N. Y., April 15, 
1851. The Davis family has been in 
America for five generations back, the 
first representatives being two brothers, 
Samson and Joseph, who came from 
Wales about 1750, and first settled in 
Philadelphia, Pa. One of the brothers, 
Samson, went to Flatbush, N. Y., and 
the other, Joseph, located in the south, 
and from the latter sprung the family to 
which Jefferson Davis, of the southern 
confederacy belonged. 

Joseph I)avis(grandfather) was a native 
of Philadelphia, Pa. He was a black- 
smith and was also engaged extensively 



Biographical Sketches. 



649 



in farming, and lived to be a very old 
man. He was in the Continental army 
and was a major fifer of the Ulster 
guards. He was formerly a Jackson 
democrat, but later became a whig. Mr. 
Davis' opinions on religious matters allied 
him with the Dutch Reformed church, at 
Flatbush, N. Y., of which he was an 
elder. His wife's maiden name was 
Anna Burhaus, and they had four sons 
and one daughter : Isaac, born May 1, 
1803; John, born May 18, 1805; Peter, 
born Sept. 25, 1807 ; Susan, born July 
13, 1801, and Hiram, born Aug. 15, 
1813. Grandfather Davis died Sept. 23, 
1836, and his wife June 14, 1837, aged 
respectively seventy-five and sixty-six 
years. They are buried at Flatbush, 
Ulster county, N. Y. 

Peter Davis (father) was born at Flai> 
bush, Ulster county, N. Y., Sept. 25, 
1807. He was reared on his father's 
farm, and educated in the common 
schools of that section. Upon reaching 
manhood Mr. Davis became a farmer and 
continued that until his death, Feb. 6, 
1886. In connection with his small but 
valuable truck and fruit fai-m, situated 
on the bank of the Hudson, Mr. Davis 
was also engaged in shad fishing. He 
was an adhei'ent of the Republican party, 
and an elder in the Reformed church. 
He was also superintendent of the first 
Sunday-school in that locality, which he 
had organized. He also started the first 
temperance society in the county. On 
July 12, 1832, Peter Davis married Miss 
Ann Osterhoudt, daughter of John P. 
and Gertrude Osterhoudt, of Flatbush, 
and their large family of children are as 
follows : Uriah, born June 16, 1833 ; 
Mary Ann, born Dec. 2, 1834 ; Martha, 
born Nov. 3, 18 57 ; John A., born Oct. 
28, 1839; Ezra, born Jan. 18, 1842; 



Hiram W., born Oct. 3, 1844 ; Amelia, 
born Oct. 23, 1847; Titus E., born April 

15, 1851, and Emma, born Oct. 3, 1853. 
Tiie mother of the above family of chil- 
dren died Feb. 2, 1891. 

Rev. T. E. Davis passed his early boy- 
hood days on the banks of the Hudson, at 
Flatbush, and until sixteen years of age 
attended the public schools. He then 
went to Greene Valley Seminary at 
Flatbush, and graduated from that 
school in 1870. In Sept. of the same year 
Mr. Davis matriculated at Rutgers Col- 
lege, and four years later took his A. B. 
at that institution. He then entered the 
Theological Seminary, at New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, and graduated May 

16, 1877. In this same year Rutgers 
College conferred upon him the degree of 
A. M. Upon being ordained. Rev. Davis 
was placed in charge of the Presbyterian 
church at Fairmount, New Jersey, Aug. 
2, 1877. He remained here until June 
5, 1880, when he was compelled to re- 
sign on account of failing health. The 
next year. May 3, 1881, he accepted a 
call from the Presbyterian church at 
Schaghticoke, N. Y., until May, 1887, 
when he returned home and spent one 
year on his father's farm. Following 
this period of rest came a call from the 
Presbyterian church at Valatie, N. Y., 
where Rev. Davis continued with great 
success until July 1, 1890, when he 
was called to his present charge at Bound 
Brook, New Jersey. Here he has found 
his labors blessed abundantly, both in 
spiritual and material results, numbers 
having been added to the congregation. 
On Feb. 6, 1896, this church was de- 
stroyed by fire, but a new house of worship 
located on Union avenue, is now being 
erected. 

Rev. Davis is an enthusiastic worker 



650 



Biographical Sketches. 



in all courses of reform and progress. ^ 
He began the temperance movement 
that resulted in the state temperance ; 
law, requiring instruction on this ques- ! 
tion to be given in the public schools, and 
for two years was a member of the state 
executive committee on Sunday-school 
work for Somerset couutj'^ ; was president 
of the Somerset County Sundaj^-school 
Association in 1893-4 ; president of 
Somerset County Christian Endeavor 
Union for two years ; and president of 
the Central Local Union for two years. 

Mr. Davis has always been active in | 
christian endeavor work. He took par- 
ties of endeavorers to the international 
conventions at Cleveland and Boston, and i 
had charge of a special train for the state 
convention at Atlantic City in 1895, 
whose special object was the securing of : 
the state convention for Plainfield in 
1896. In Nov., 1895, he was elected 
transportation manager for New Jersey, 
and had charge of the state delegates to 
the convention at Washington. 

In Oct., 1896, he was elected one of 
the vice-presidents of the New Jersey 
Christian Endeavor Union, and at the 
last meeting of the union was unani- 
mously elected transportation manager 
for the San Francisco convention in 
1897. 

Rev. Mr. Davis has done a large 
amount of literary work in addition to 
his ministerial labors. He is the editor 
of the New Jerseij Central Christian 
Eiideavorer. He has been for several 
years the historian of the Washington 
Camp Ground Association. He has 
delivered many historical addresses in 
various parts of New Jersey, Peinisyl- 
vania and New York, many of which 
have been published in permanent form. 
The most valuable of these are " Hen- 



drick Fisher," "The Samuel Adams of 
New Jersey," " Washington's Camp on 
the Middlebrook," "Early History of 
Bound Brook," " First Houses of Bound 
Brook," " The Battle of Bound Brook," 
" The First Independence Celebration at 
Bound Brook," " Six Bound Brook Boys 
who became Famous Men," etc. He is 
now preparing a history of the Presby- 
terian church of Bound Brook from 1684 
down to the present time. 

Politically our subject is a republican, 
and fraternally past counsellor. Pioneer 
Council, No. 58, Jr. 0. U. A. M., of Bound 
Brook. On June 20, 1877, Rev. T. E. 
Davis was united in marriage to Miss 
Ervilla S. Whitcomb, daughter of Rev. 
I. B. Whitcomb, of Jewett, N. Y., and 
tlieir six children are : El wood Linnell, 
Merton Whitcomb, Ethelyn Ervilla, John 
A., Horace Maynard, and Anna Pauline. 



A UGUST MULLER, a prominent stock- 
-^-^ raiser and brewer of East Mills- 
town, New Jersey, is a son of N. G. and 
Ellen MuUer, and was born at Auden- 
burg, Germany. His father, after com- 
pleting his education at the public schools, 
served his term in the German army, and 
on his release from the military service 
of the empire was appointed by the gov- 
ernment to a position in the customs ser- 
vice, which he kept during his life. He 
was a member of the Lutheran church. 
His death occurred in 1884. To him 
were born nine children : E., deceased ; 
Francis, Maria, deceased ; Henrj', F. W., 
deceased ; Victor, deceased ; August, 
Kate, and Johanna. 

August MuUer received a common- 
school education, and supplemented this 
by a course at college, after which he en- 
tered the civil service of the German gov- 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



651 



ernment, in which service he remained 
for one year. He then went to South 
Africa, and engaged in ostrich farming 
and dealing in live stock. He remained 
in this business in Africa for a period of 
ten years, when he came to the United 
States and to East Millstown. Here he 
entered the brewing business, and is now 
the efficient superintendent of the Som- 
erset Distilling Co. He also owns and 
manages an extensive stock farm. Dur- 
ing his eleven years' residence in this 
country he has accumulated a competence, 
and is regarded by all who know him as 
an exceptionally intelligent and well in- 
formed man, of unimpeachable integrity 
and great force of character. He is pub- 
lic-spirited and unostentatious in manner. 
He is a republican and a member of the 
Masonic Lodge. His children ai'e Jose- 
phine, Mamie and Charles E. 



THDWARD J. O'CONNOR, state treas- 
-*-^ urer of the Ancient Order of Hi- 
bernians and a thriving hotel-keeper of 
South Amboy, Middlesex county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Thomas and Mary Mc- 
Carthy O'Connor, and was born July 21, 
1865, at Ballynacally, County Clare, 
Munster province, Ireland. 

Edward O'Connor, the paternal grand- 
father, resided there all his life. He was 
a school-teacher until his death in 1867. 
In religion he was a member of the Ro- 
man Catholic church. His wife bore him 
the following children : John, who emi- 
grated' to America in 1881, settled in Chi- 
cago and engaged in the shoe business ; 
Edward, wjio came over in 1880 and lo- 
cated in Cleveland, 0., likewise in the 
shoe trade ; Thomas, Daniel, engaged in 
a print works at North Adams, Mass. ; 
Maria, married to Matthew Ryan, of 
North Adams, and Hannah Condon. 



Thomas O'Connor (father) was born in 
Tipperary, County Tipperary, Ireland. 
He learned the trade of a tailor. In 1884 
he came to this country, settled in South 
Amboy and worked at his trade for a 
short time. 

In religion he was a Roman Catholic, 
and in politics he espoused the demo- 
cratic cause. In Ireland he had been 
an active land-leaguer. He deceased in 
Dec, 1895, his wife having died in 1891. 
They were the parents of five children : 
John, Edward J. ; Mary, deceased in 
Oct., 1889 ; Maggie, married to John 
Breahnejr, of South Amboy, and Bridget, 
deceased in 1893. 

Edward J. O'Connor received his edu- 
cation in the national school at Clover- 
field, Ireland. In 1882, at the age of 
seventeen years, he came to South Am- 
boy, New Jersey, where he found em- 
ployment with the Central Railroad of 
New Jersey. After recovering from the 
effects of a serious injury incurred shortly 
after entering this service, which disabled 
him for some time, he resumed his duties 
and remained with that road until April, 
1893. At this time he accepted the posi- 
tion of telegraph operator and dispatcher 
for a short time. He afterwards engaged 
in his present hotel business. In politics 
Mr. O'Connor is a democrat, and he has 
thrice been elected an overseer of the poor 
in his township. He is a Roman Catho- 
lic in religious faith, and is an ardent 
and enthusiastic member of the Ancient 
Order of Hibernians. This order he as- 
sociated himself with in 1885, and in 
1890 was elected president of Division 
No. 1, of South Amboy, in which office 
he served two terms. In 1894 he was 
elected county president of the order, and 
in June, 1896, was still further honored 
by an election to the state treasurer- 



652 



Biographical Sketches. 



ship of the organization. We extract the 
following from the New Bransicich Home 
News, under date of June 29, 1896 : "The 
order (A. 0. II.) in this county, has 
greatly developed during the past two 
years, and much of that result is due to 
the intelligent and efficient work of the 
retiring president, Mr. Edward J. O'Con- 
nor. Appreciation of that fact has been 
practically shown by his election to the 
honorable and responsible office of state 
treasurer." Mr. O'Connor organized O'Far- 
rell Council, Catholic Benevolent Legion, 
and he is the present chancellor of that 
council. He is a charter member of the 
New Jersey State Liquor Dealers' Asso- 
ciation. He was married Nov. 16, 1892, 
to Sarah A. CuUen. To this marriage 
were born two children : Mary Veronica, 
deceased, and Anna Regius. 



/CHARLES HERRMANN, aleadinggro- 
^-^ cer of South River, has an enviable 
reputation as one of the progressive men 
of that thriving town. Born at Upper 
Sandusky, May 19, 1871, in addition 
to receiving a common-school education 
he took a graduating course at Coleman's 
Business College at Ne-wark, New Jersey. 
Upon leaving there in 1887, he entered 
a handkerchief manufactory as appren- 
tice, where he remained six years, being 
advanced from time to time, until he 
finally occupied the responsible position of 
assistant manager and cashier. This 
occupation he was compelled to relinquish 
on account of his failing health. In the 
winter of 1892 he opened a grocery store 
and market on Main street above Fury, 
which he has since conducted so success- 
fully that it is now one of the most pros- 
perous businessenterprises in South River, 
owned entirely by himself Although 



a young man, the high estimation in 
which he is held by his fellow-townsmen 
is evidenced by the fact that he was 
elected clerk of the election board. He 
is a republican in politics and a most 
active worker for his party. Fraternally 
he is a member of the Knights of 
Pythias. 



IDENJAMIN M. FIELD, a prosperous 
-^-^ and well-known farmer near Bound 
Brook, and a representative of one of the 
oldest and best-known families in Middle- 
sex county, is a son of Richard I. and 
Mary (Kline) Field, and was born May 1, 
1820, at New Branch, Somerset county, 
New Jersey. He was educated in the 
Franklin school, Piscataway township. 
While still in his teens he went to New 
York city, and was clerk in his brother 
Jeremiah's dry -goods store, 452 Pearl 
street, for six years, subsequently occupy- 
ing a similar position in a dry-goods store 
at Utica, N. Y., for six years. He returned 
to New York city, and spent two years 
as a salesman for Thomas Hunt & Co. 
He then went to Chicago and entered in 
business as a dealer in tailors' trimmings, 
which he conducted successfully for six 
years. In 1864 he removed to Plain- 
field, New Jersey, and shortly afterwards 
located upon his present farm, one and a 
half miles from Bound Brook, where he 
erected fine modern buildings ; he has re- 
sided there ever since. 

Mr. Field is independent in politics, 
casting his vote for the best candidates, 
irrespective of party. He has been dis- 
trict clerk and school director ^of Piscata- 
way township for several years, and is 
a member of the Presbyterian church at 
Bound Brook, of which he has been an 
elder for twenty-five years. 

To his marriage were born four chil- 



Biographical Sketches. 



653 



dren : Anna, Amy, Ada, and John Den- 
nis. Mr. Field is one of the solid and 
influential men of Middlesex county, and 
for over a quarter of a century has con- 
tributed in no inconsiderable extent to its 
development and general welfare. He 
is known and respected throughout the 
county as a man of sound judgment and 
business ability. He takes a very active 
interest in church matters, and is a liberal 
supporter of all worthy christian or char- 
itable enterprises. 

Mr. Field's ancestry is English on his 
father's side, and Dutch on his mother's. 
His paternal grandfather, Jeremiah Field, 
was a native of Piscataway township, and 
owned about one thousand acres of land 
in that township, which was afterwards 
divided among his children. He was a 
whig in politics, and was a " Minute 
Man " during the Revolutionary war. 

Richard I. Field (father) was a native 
of Piscataway township, and was a car- 
penter in early life, but became a farmer 
after his father's death. He served in 
the Revolutionary war as a captain of a 
militia cavalry troop. He was a whig in 
politics, and a member of the Bound 
Brook Presbyterian church. In 1805 
he was married to Miss Mary Kline, who 
bore him eleven children : Jeremiah, 
Phoebe, Jacob, Jane, Rachael, Richard, 
Benjamin M., John K., Isaac M., Peter, 
and William. Mr. Field's father died 
in 1881. 



~r^R. JOHN FORSYTH McWILLIAM, 
-^-^ a physician of Somerville, New Jer- 
sey, was born Jan. 31, 1860, on a farm in 
Orange county. New York, and is a son 
of Alexander and Margaret (Kernachan) 
Mc William. On the paternal side he is 
of Scotch, and on the maternal side of 
Irish ancestry. 



Alexander Mc William (father) was 
born in Scotland, and came to this coun- 
try at the age of thirteen. After com- 
pleting his education at Union College 
and Newburgh Theological Seminary, 
he was ordained a minister of the Re- 
formed church, and has passed his life 
in preaching the gospel. For twenty 
years he was a resident of East Mill- 
stone, New Jersey, and pastor of the Re- 
formed church in that town. At the end 
of this period of ministerial work he re- 
moved to Somerville. He has now re- 
signed active preaching, but occasionally 
acts as a pulpit supply. 

Dr. John Forsyth Mc William (subject), 
received his preliminary education at the 
common schools in Pike county, Pennsyl- 
vania. In 1872 he removed with his 
father to East Millstone, New Jersey, 
and there attended the high school. He 
afterwards became a student of the gram- 
mar school in New Brunswick, and upon 
his graduation from this institution he 
entered Rutgers College, taking a scien- 
tific course, and graduated therefrom in 
the class of 1881, with the degree of M. 
S. He then began the study of medi- 
cine with Dr. W. B. Ribble, of East Mill- 
stone, with whom he remained for some 
months. In the fall of 1881 he entered 
the Jefferson Medical College of Phila- 
delphia, and took a three years' course. 
Upon his graduation, in 1884, he entered 
the hospital at Wilkesbarre, Pa., and ob- 
tained one year's experience in that noted 
institution. After a vacation of one year 
he, in 1886, removed to Somerville, and 
began the active practice of his profession. 
His medical education being a sound and 
thorough one, he has achieved a reputa- 
tion as a most skillful and conscientious 
physician, and his practice has steadily 
grown until it is one of the largest pos- 



654 



Biographical Sketches. 



sessed by any physician in that section. : 
He is a member of both the State and j 
Somerset Count}^ Medical Societies, and 
for a period was the efficient president of 
the latter. He is a prominent member 
of Soloriion Lodge, No. 46, F. and A. M., 
and Keystone Chapter, No. 25. He also ^ 
belongs to the Knights of Pythias, the | 
Junior Order of American Mechanics, 
and the Eoyal Arcanum. He is assistant 
surgeon of the Third regiment. New Jer- 
sey National Guards, Avith rank of first 
lieutenant, having been promoted from a 
private. He has served since 1887. In 
June, 1889, he was appointed a pension 
examiner under the Harrison administrar j 
tion, and served until October, 1893. 

Dr. McWilliam married Annie V. 
Barcalow, daughter of Culver Barcalow, 
Esq., of Somerville, Nov. 25, 1889, and 
their union has been blessed with three 
children : Colver B., Margaret K., and 
Elizabeth C. Dr. McWilliam and wife 
are both prominent members of the First 
Dutch Reformed church of Somerville. 



WALTER W. DAVIS, senior member 
of the firm of Davis & Rue, fur- 
niture and bedding dealers at Asbury 
Park, and assistant cashier in the Ocean 
Grove and Asbuiy Park Bank, is a son 
of Daniel D. and Sarah (Watson) Davis, 
and was born, August 18, 1869, at Flush- 
ing, Long Island. The name is of Eng- 
lish origin. 

Walter W. Davis (subject) spent his 
early life at Trenton, but removed to As- 
bury Park when seven years of age, re- 
ceiving his education in the public schools 
of that city, and graduating from the 
high school in the class of 1886. For 
three years he was clerk and bookkeeper 
in the First National Bank. In May, 



1889, he became note-teller in the Ocean 
Grove and Asbury Park Bank, and in 
Jan., 1895, was promoted to the position 
of assistant cashier, which he now holds. 
Mr. Davis established his furniture and 
bedding business in 1890, under the firm 
name of Davis & Co. The enterprise 
was a small one at first, but grew in pro- 
portions so rapidly that, in 1892, he 
formed a co-partnership with S. C. Rue, 
under the firm name of Davis & Rue. 
They occupy two handsome stores at 
Nos. 143 and 145 Main street, compris- 
ing show rooms and sales rooms for fur- 
niture, and a work-shop for the manufac- 
ture of mattresses and bedding. The 
business has proven highly successful. 
Mr. Davis is an active republican m poli- 
tics, and is a member of the board of 
health. He is associated with the Meth- 
odist Episcopal church, and is a member 
of the board of stewards. He is also a 
member of the Neptune Fire Engine 
compan}-, and a chai'ter member of the 
Asbur}^ Park Wheelmen. In 1894 he 
was married to Miss Theresa G. Martin, 
daughter of Elizabeth A. Martin, of Brook- 
lyn, and they have one child : Eleanor 
Martin. They reside in a comfortable, 
well-appointed cottage at No. 1101 Grand 
avenue. Mr. Davis is a shrewd, active 
and entei'prising business man, and is 
both popular and influential in Asbury 
Park. He is energetic in church work, 
progressive in his views upon public af- 
fairs, and is universally regarded as one 
of the most substantial citizens of the 
town. 



A LVIN S. PORLE, V.S., a successful 
-^-^ veterinary surgeon, as well as busi- 
ness man at Long Branch, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is a son of Joseph 
and Hannah C. (Sairs) Porle, and was 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



657 



born Dec. 26, 1832, at Long Branch, 
New Jersey. 

Geoi'ge Porle, grandfather of Dr. Porle, 
was for many years cajDtam of a coasting 
vessel engaged in carrying farm products 
from Ocean Port to Jersey City and New 
York markets. He was a whig in poli- 
tics, and was a gallant soldier in the war 
of 1812. His wife, Margaret Smith, 
bore him the following children : Corne- 
lius, Hendrick, James, Joseph, Richard, 
Jane, and Ida, who marx'ied Philip Den- 
nis. 

Joseph Porle was born May 8, 1800. 
When but a small boy, he went to live 
with Jacob Croxson, with whom he re- 
mained for five or six j^ears, but subse- 
quently entered the employ of Obediah 
Sairs, whose daughter he afterwards mar- 
ried, and who, at that time, was pro- 
prietor of what is now known as the 
Rowland Hotel, at Long Branch. He 
assumed charge of his father-in-law's 
farm, with whom he lived altogether 
seventeen years, and until after his mar- 
riage with Hannah C. Sairs. She bore 
him the following children : William S., 
Alvin S., Clarence, Adele L., and Jose- 
phine. 

Alvin S. Porle received his educational 
training in various institutions, having 
first attended a boarding-school, the 
Mount Holly Institute, another boarding- 
school at Shrewsbury, then under a pri- 
vate tutor for two years ; and again 
under the father of Vice-president Gar- 
rett A. Hobart, at Long Branch, New 
Jersey. He subsequently went to New- 
ark, where, in connection with other em- 
ployments, he studied veterinary surgery. 
In 1853 he located in the practice of his 
profession at Long Branch, where he has 
continued ever since. In politics Dr. 
Porle is a republican. He was twice 



married ; his first wife, Sarah Cronk, to 
whom he was united Oct., 1854, deceased 
March 10, 1866, leaving him a daughter, 
Deborah. His subsequent union, Oct. 27, 
1866, with Kate O'Connell, a daughter 
of Martin O'Connell, of Jersey City, re- 
sulted in the birth of three children : 
Christina, born Sept. 28, 1867, married 
to Christian Frederiksen, of Copenhagen, 
Denmark; Joseph, born Nov. 18, 1870; 
and Susie, born Nov. 19, 1872. 



"Vy^ILLIAM B. DUEYEE, a leading 
^ ' druggist of Freehold, Monmouth 
county, and at present one of the water 
and sewer commissioners of Freehold, is 
a son of Isaac Groot and Lydia (Buding- 
ton) Duryee, and was born Nov. 14, 1847, 
at Fallsburg, Sullivan county, N. Y. The 
name is of French Huguenot origin and 
orthography, and the original spelling 
was Dure ; the immigrant ancestor and 
the original American progenitor of that 
branch of the family of which William 
B. Duryee is a direct lineal descendant, 
came through Holland to America in 
1675 and located on Long Island. Here 
the family resided for some time, and some 
of his descendants are still to be found 
on the island; some of them, however, 
early came to New Jersey, settling in 
Somerset county. Frederick Duryee, 
paternal great-grandfather of our subject, 
was born April 8, 1756, at Blawenburg, 
Somerset county. New Jersey, near Rari- 
tan, where he was engaged in agricultural 
pursuits all his life, and resided up to his 
death. He served in the continental army 
of the Revolution, and it is thought was 
at the battle of Monmouth. His wife, 
Charity Sutphen, born Sept. 9, 1757, bore 
him seven children : George, born Jan. 4, 
1775; Elizabeth, born Feb. 12, 1777; 



658 



Biographical Sketches. 



James, born Feb. 29, 1780 ; William, 
born Dec. 27, 1784 ; Frederick, born Oct. 
28, 1785; Abram, born Oct. 28, 1790; 
Maria, born Oct. 12, 1795. 

William Duryee, grandfather of our 
subject, and a son of Frederick Duryee, of 
Revolutionary fame, was born Dec. 27, 
1784, at Blawenburg, near Raritan, Som- 
erset county. New Jersey. He was for- 
merly engaged in the mercantile business 
at Blawenburg, but removed to Jackson, 
Mich., where he became engaged in mer- 
cantile business and resided up to the 
time of his death at the remarkable age 
of one hundred years. He was a mem- 
ber of the Dutch Reformed church, and 
twice married. By his wife, Sarah 
Groot, who was born July 12, 1786, and 
who died Dec. 14, 1841, were born the 
following children : Elizabeth, born June 
3, 1808; Frederic, born Dec. 3. 1811; 
John M., born July 27, 1814 ; George, 
born Jan. 22, 1818 ; Simon, born Dec. 10, 
1821 ; William H., June 14, 1823 ; Cor- 
nelius, Dec. 1, 1825. 

Isaac Groot Duryee, son of William 
Durj^ee, was born July 29, 1810, at Glen- 
ville, near Schenectady, N. Y., and died 
Feb. 8, 1866. He was educated at a col- 
lege preparatory school at New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, and subsequently en- 
tered Union College, Schenectad}^, N. Y., 
from which he graduated in 1838, and 
afterwards became a divinitj' student at 
Yale and graduated in the class of 1841. 
He became a prominent clergyman of the 
Dutch Reformed church, taking his first 
charge at Fallsburg, Sullivan county, N. 
Y., where he remained in that pastorate 
for ten 3'ears, when he took a charge at 
Glenham, Dutchess county, for two years, 
then came to Schenectady, N. Y., as pas- 
tor of the Second Reformed Dutch 
church of that place for ten years, and 



thence for one year located at Jackson, 
Montgomery county, N. Y. In 1862 he 
became chaplain of the Eightj^-first regi- 
ment New York volunteers, in the active 
service of the late rebellion, and remained 
with the regiment for three j^ears and up 
to the close of the war. He contracted 
a disease in Virginia from which he died 
six months later at Schenectady, N. Y. 
He became imbued with very strong pa- 
triotic sentiments in support of the union, 
and was an enthusiastic anti-slavery man. 
In all his ministerial work he was prac- 
tical, broad-minded and liberal in his 
ideas, of great force of character and 
strong convictions. He married Lydia 
Budington, who was born in New Haven, 
Ct., March 7, 1821, and is still living; she 
is a sister of the late Rev. Wm. Ives Bud- 
ington, formerly pastor of Clinton Avenue 
Congregational church, of Brooklyn, and 
a daughter of William Budington, of New 
Haven, Ct., and they had the following 
children : Helen, wife of Albert H. 
Veeder, an attorney-at-law, of Chicago ; 
Julia, deceased wife of James Davis, a 
journalist of New York city ; William 
Budington, our subject; Isaac, who died in 
infancy ; George E., a druggist of Sche- 
nectady, N. Y. ; Jeannette, died at ten 
years ; Dr. Charles C, a practicing phy- 
sician of Schenectady, N. Y.; Anna W., 
the widow of the late Rev. H. M. Scher- 
merhorn, pastor of the Congregational 
church at Amesbury, Mass., now residing 
in Schenectady ; and Harry B., a drug- 
gist at Schenectady. 

William Budington Duryee, received 
his elementary education in the public 
schools of Schenectady and subsequently 
entered Union College at that place in 
1864; but owing to his father's ill-health 
and subsequent death, he was obliged to 
abandon the advantages of school to 



Biographical Sketches. 



659 



enter upon a clerkship in a drug-store in 
the employ of his uncle, James D. Bud- 
ington, at Freehold, New Jersey. He 
remained with him three years, when he 
became employed a short time upon the 
reportorial staff of the Long Branch 
Neics, but soon resumed his clerkship 
with his uncle and remained two years 
longer. Upon his uncle's death in 1869 
he continued the business for six months 
with Conover & Wolverton, successors to 
his uncle, when, under the caption of W. 
B. Duryee & Co., he established a drug 
business at Hightstown, N. J., where he 
continued for three years, when he re- 
turned to Freehold in 1872. At this 
time he became interested for six years 
in the drug business under the style of 
G. S. Conover & Co. ; on the expiration of 
this time Mr. Conover died, since when 
the business was continued under the 
name of Duryee & Conover. In politics 
he is a democrat, and has served as as- 
sistant commissioner of Freehold the fol- 
lowing years : 1889, '90, '91, '92, '93 and 
'94, at which time he was elected chief of 
the board, and in which position he served 
two years, declining a re-nomination. 
During his term of office, the most impor- 
tant, the most successful and worthy 
administration in the history of Freehold, 
water-works have been erected and a 
complete sewerage system put in. He is 
an active member of the Holland Society, 
being elected Oct. 24, 1889 ; the Royal 
Arcanum, and the Ancient Order of 
United Workmen. He is a member and 
president of the Firemen's Relief Asso- 
ciation, and at one time was one of the 
directors of the Freehold board of trade. 
He is also a consistent member of the 
Presbyterian church at Freehold. On 
May 14, 1878, he married Christiana H., 
a daughter of Edward T. Combs, a farmer 

34 



of Upper Freehold township, but now 
residing at Freehold. They have two 
children : Edward C, and William B., 
Jr. ; Alice B. died in infancy. 



13 VAN DYKE EEID, a prominent 
-L^' retired merchant of South River, 
New Jersey, is a son of John R. and 
Martha D. (Snedeker) Reid, and was 
born at South River, Sept. 30, 1833. 
His paternal grandfather, Richard Reid, 
followed the occupation of a fai'mer all 
his life at Manalapan, New Jersey. His 
political faith was that of an old-line 
whig. He took great interest in religious 
affairs, and was an active member of the 
Presbyterian church as deacon and elder. 
To his marriage were born eleven children: 
David R., Eliza, Gilbert S., Anna, Fanny, 
Daniel D., Amanda, Lydia, William H., 
Ruth R., and John R. John R. Reid, 
father of our subject, was born in Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, and received 
a common-school education. He came to 
South River, from Manalapan, New Jer- 
sey, at an early age, and for many years 
was one of its most active citizens, and 
greatly assisted in the building up of the 
town. For some years he followed the 
occupation of a farmer, but in later years 
he engaged in mercantile business, be- 
came quite prosperous, and the owner of 
a number of sailing-vessels. He took an 
'active interest in political matters and 
allied himself to the Whig-Republican 
party, and at various times held several 
prominent township offices. In 1861 he 
received the appointment of postmaster, 
which office he held for a number of 
years. He was a zealous christian worker, 
a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, one of its officials for many years, 
and a zealous worker in the erection of 



660 



Biographical Sketches. 



the present Methodist church. His death 
occurred April 29, 1880. The death of 
his wife preceded his by many years, 
she having died Oct. 11, 1853. To tlieir 
marriage were born five children, as fol- 
lows : Cornelius Gulick, born Feb. 5, I 
1832, deceased July 3, 1832 ; R. Van ' 
Dyke, born Sept. 30, 1833 ; C. Gertrude, , 
born July 28, 1835, deceased Dec. 14, I 
1891 ; Abijah Snedeker, born Sept. 24, j 
1837, deceased Aug. 31, 1838 ; and Mary 
Frances, born July 9, 1839. 

R. Van D^ke Reid was educated at 
the common schools and Rutgei's College, 
from which institution he graduated in 
1856. In the fall of 1857 he commenced 
teaching in the public school of his native 
village, continuing there and in adjoining 
districts as teacher until 1861. He then 
formed a partnei'ship with his brother-in- 
law, William H. Peterson, under the 
name of Reid & Peterson, afterward 
Reid & Van Schaick, and conducted a 
general mercantile business until 1864, 
when he resumed the vocation of teacher. 
In the spring of 1865 he removed to Red 
Bank, New Jersey, and became pjiucipal 
of the public schools, -svhich position he 
filled acceptaljly for nearly seven years. 
For the next two years he was successful 
as the principal of a private school ; 
then, at the earnest solicitation of the 
trustees, became principal of the schools 
at Parkerville and Fair Haven, New Jer- 
sey, at each place remaining two years. 
In 1880 he became purser on a steamer 
plying between Red Bank and New 
York, and Long Branch and New York, 
where he remained until 1893. He is a 
republican in politics, and was town 
clerk at Red Bank, New Jersey, for two 
years. He has been a member of the 
Metliodist Episcopal church since his 
youth, was superintendent of the Sun- 



day-school in his native town a number 
of years, also of the Sunday-school of 
Red Bank for thii'teen years, and is again 
superintendent of the Sunday-school in 
his native town. He married Sarah Van 
Schaick, daughter of William and Eliza 
Van Schaick, at Shrewsbury, New Jer- 
sey, Nov. 25, 1856. His wife died Feb. 
4, 1886. Tlieir union was blessed with 
one daughter, Eva May, who died Dec. 
2, 1892. After the loss of his daughter 
he returned, in the fall of 1893, to his 
native town, South River, where he now 
resides with an only sister. 



A CHANDLER, senior member of the 
-^--^' firm of Chandler & Maps, exten- 
sive dealers in building materials at Long 
Branch, Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
is a son of A. and Hannah (Emmons) 
Chandler, and was born, Nov. 5, 1849, at 
Long Branch. He received a common- 
school education, and early in life took 
to maritime pursuits, eventually becom- 
ing a captain of sea-going vessels. 

A. Chandler (father) attended the 
public schools, and acquired a fair educa- 
tion. He went to Long Branch, while 
that town was yet in its infancy as a 
summer resort, and was variously occu- 
pied there as a hotel steward and a stage- 
driver. He also gave supervision to 
some farming interests that he owned 
near Matawan, New Jerse}-, to which 
place he went later and settled. In pol- 
itics he was a republican, without assum- 
ing, however, any active part in the af- 
fairs of the party. In religion he was a 
metliodist, and was especially energetic 
in the work of that church at Long 
Branch, and later at the one in Matawan, 
to which he transferred his membership. 
His first wife, Hannah Emmons, bore 



Biographical Sketches. 



661 



him four children : Margaret, deceased ; 
John W. ; A. (subject of this sketch) ; 
and George E., deceased. He was sub- 
sequently married to Elizabeth Woodel, 
who has also deceased. The only child 
of this union, Asher, died in Oct., 1893. 

A. Chandler (the subject) received his 
earlier education in the public schools of 
Long Branch, after which he took a 
course of four years at the Matawan In- 
stitute, New Jersey. He was notably 
proficient in mathematics, and easily led 
all his school-mates in the study of that 
science. After leaving school he was oc- 
cupied at farming, near Matawan, until 
the age of twenty-five years. He subse- 
quently acquired the trade of a butcher, 
and was engaged in that line of busi- 
ness for a time in Matawan. Later, in 
1873, he returned to Long Branch, where 
for three years he successfully carried on 
the business of a dealer in meats. In 
1876 he retired from this occujjation on 
account of impaired health. In 1890 
Mr. Chandler associated himself with T. 
L. Maps, another of the best-known citi- 
zens of Long Branch, in a partnership, 
styled Chandler & Maps. The business 
carried on is an extensive one, both in 
the size of the premises occupied, which 
cover more than four acres, and the wide 
range of business transacted, which em- 
braces a planing mill, and dealing in 
high grades of lumber, in hardware, 
brick, lime and cement, paints, varnishes, 
oils and brushes, coal and wood. The 
firm is enjoying an exalted degree of 
prosperity, and is conducting the largest 
business of its kind in that section of 
New Jersey. 

Mr. Chandler has acquired large inter- 
ests outside of the business he is conduct- 
ing. He is president of the Bosom-Shirt 
Manufacturing Co., a director in the 



Monmouth Manufacturing Co., and a 
heavy stockholder in the Long Branch 
Building and Loan Association, all Long 
Branch enterprises. In politics Mr. 
Chandler is a member of the Republican 
party. In religion he is an active mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church at 
Long Branch, for seven years superin- 
tendent of its Sunday-school, and a mem- 
ber of the official board of stewards since 
the time the church was organized. In 
fraternal societies he is a member of the 
Royal Arcanum, I. 0. 0. F., and the A. 
0. U. W., at Long Branch. 

Mr. Chandler was united in marriage, 
Feb. 4, 1874, to Carrie Gordon, a daugh- 
ter of ex-Sheriff Gordon, of Monmouth 
county. The three children born to their 
union, Charles, Minnie, and George, have 
all deceased. Mr. Chandler is a practi- 
cal business man, whose notable success 
is due to his unrelaxing energy and per- 
severance, to his long experience, which 
enables him to select none but the best 
materials known to his trade, and to 
high-class principles, of which he is an 
exemplar. 

TOHN T. WYKOFF, a prosperous hard- 
^ ware merchant at Keyport, Mon- 
mouth county, and a prominent citizen of 
that town, is a son of William H. and 
Elizabeth Tunis Wykoff, and was born 
Jan. 18, 1858, at Holmdel, Monmouth 
county. The name is of German origin, 
and the immediate ancestors of Mr. 
Wykoff have for many years been ac- 
tively connected with agricultural pur- 
suits in Holmdel township. His grand- 
father, William Wykoff, was born and 
educated near Freehold, and was a well- 
known farmer throughout his life-time. 
He was a democrat in politics, a member 
of the Baptist church, and an active chris- 



662 



BroGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



tian. His children were : William H., 
Jacob, John, Joseph and David. 

William H. Wykoft' (father) was born 
near Freehold, and educated in the com- 
mon schools of that place. During the 
active part of his life he owned and ope- 
rated a fine farm in Holmdel township, 
where he still resides. He has always 
been a staunch democrat in politics, and 
is a member of the Holmdel Baptist 
church. His wife, who was Miss Eliza- 
beth Tunis, is still living, and they have 
had the following children : Mary A., 
John T., Anna G., Florence, David and 
Charles. 

John T. WykoiF (subject) received a 
good early education in the Holmdel pub- 
lic schools. The early years of his life 
were spent in farming in Holmdel town- 
ship. In 1885 he removed to Keyport 
and entered the hardware business with 
E. H. Force, the firm name being Force 
& Wykoft". The firm is a flourishing and 
progressive one, has a finely-equipped 
store, and does an extensive trade in 
the surrounding section of Raritan town- 
ship. 

Mr. Wykoff is a democrat by political 
faith, but does not interest himself ac- 
tively in public aSairs. He is a member 
of the Jr. 0. U. A. M. at Keyport. On 
Oct. 11, 1876, he was man'ied to Miss 
Leora Force, daughter of his partner, E. 
H. Force, of Keyport, and they have one 
daughter, Etta. 



JOHN J. SCULLY, a successful under- 
taker and furniture-dealer of South 
Amboy, New Jersey, an ex-shipmaster 
of more than local repute, is a son of 
Patrick and Julia Hogan Scully, and was 
born Nov. 12, 1859, at Trenton, New 
Jersey. He is of Irish stock, his father 
having been born in the Emerald Isle. 



Patrick Scully (father) came to this 
country, and was employed in a foundry 
and machine shop at Trenton, New Jer- 
sey, for many years. He removed to 
South Amboy, and labored on the coal 
wharves of that city up to the time of 
his death. He was an industrious and 
frugal man. In politics he was a demo- 
crat, and an adherent to the catholic 
faith in things spiritual. He died in 
1892, leaving a widow, who still survives 
him, and resides in South Amboy, and 
four children : John J., Margaret, Julia, 
and Michael J. Their other children, 
deceased, were : Annie, Mary, and Wil- 
liam. 

John J. Scully (subject) attended the 
common schools of Trenton and South 
Amboy, New Jersey, until he was fifteen 
years of age. He commenced earning 
his own support as a water-carrier to the 
laborers on the coal docks. Two years 
later he resigned the bucket and pitted 
his brawn against that of the other indi- 
vidual members on the wharves. He 
remained in that occupation for three 
years and six months, when he took to 
steamboating on vessels engaged in tow- 
ing. This he continued for two and a 
half years, during which time he acquired 
such a thorough knowledge of the marine 
topography of the country traversed by 
the boats as to bring quick promotion 
from deck-hand to pilot. He in time 
became a master, and filled that impor- 
tant position on difterent vessels for some 
years with marked skill and abilit3^ He 
was appointed manager b}' John Scully 
of the coal-shipping department of his 
extensive works, and served thirteen 
years in that capacity to the entire satis- 
faction of that gentleman. 

On Jan. 1, 1892, Mr. Scully entered 
the furnitui-e business; shortly thereafter 



Biographical Sketches. 



663 



adding that of undertaking, buying from 
Mrs. M. M. Martin her business and 
good-will in that line. He located at 
the corner of Stephen's avenue and David 
street in South Amboy. Success has at- 
tended this personal venture in business, 
for he has acquired a very large and 
profitable patronage. In politics he is a 
democrat, and in religion a catholic. He 
was married Jan. 9, 1883, to Margaret 
Lawrence. Their son, Leo, is now at- 
tending the parochial schools. 

Captain Scully, although he has aban- 
doned maritime pursuits, still holds a 
license as a master of vessels, in which 
fact he takes great pride. His promo- 
tions from rank to rank, as well as his 
later success in business, are due to his 
boundless energy and his strong and de- 
termined character. 



/CHARLES E. COATES, superintendent 
^ of the Salamander Works, at Wood- 
bridge, New Jersey, is a native of Eng- 
land. He received a common-school edu- 
cation in his native country, and was 
early apprenticed to the jDottery trade. 
He came to the United States in 1888 
and located at Trenton, New Jersey. 
Mr. Coates is a resident of Woodbridge, 
where he has established a home for him- 
self and family. He is a conservative and 
considerate christian gentleman and an 
attendant of the Episcopal church at that 
place. 

r\TlS RUSSEL FREEMAN, M. D., ex- 
^-^ surgeon of the Tenth regiment of 
New Jersey volunteers in the late civil 
war and the oldest active practitioner in 
Monmouth county, if not in the state of 
New Jersey, is a son of Jonathan and 
Mary (Russel) Freeman, and was born 
Dec. 30, 1809, in Hanover, N. H. 



Among the pioneers of New England 
settlers who entered the rugged and cliff- 
jetted hills of New Hampshire and 
claimed the virgin soil as their heritage 
were the Freemans. That sturdy, frugal 
race of prosperous and intelligent English 
yoemanry who have contributed so much 
brawn and brain to our own great country, 
having forsaken the home of their fore- 
fathers on account of oppression and re- 
ligious persecution, sought the free soil of 
America, where they might enjoy civil 
and religious liberty. 

Prior to 1760 Dr. Freeman's great- 
grandfather received a charter for Han- 
over township, in New Hamjashire, where 
his ancestry resided for nearly a cen- 
tury. They became prominent in affairs 
civilly, politically, and religiously. Both 
his father and grandfather served as se- 
lectmen of the town, j ustices of the peace, 
and members of the legislature ; while his 
father served for forty consecutive years 
as clerk of Hanover township. In 1835 
he married Abbie Willard, a daughter of 
Dr. Samuel Alden, a lineal descendant of 
John Alden, of Miles Standish fame, 
who landed on Plymouth Rock with the 
"Mayflower" crew. 

Dr. Freeman, after acquiring an aca- 
demic education, took up the study of 
medicine in the medical department of 
Dartmouth College, and received his de- 
gree of M. D. in ].843. He soon located 
in the practice of his profession in the 
vicinity of his native town, where he con- 
tinued up to 1847, when he removed to 
Perrineville, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey. Here he soon built up one of the 
largest clienteles in the northern section 
of the county, and continued up to 1852, 
when he transferred his practice to Free- 
hold, and continued it there to April, 
1862. At this time he received from 



664 



Biographical Sketches. 



Governor Olden a commission as surgeon 
of tlie Tenth regiment, New Jersey vol- 
unteers. In 18G3, during the siege of 
Suffolk, Va., by the confederate army 
under Peck's command, he was chief of 
staff on Corcoran's brigade staff, and for 
a time was acting medical director. In 
July of the same year he was sent from 
his regiment to Philadelphia to quell the 
anticipated draft riots, and during that 
winter had charge of the troops stationed 
in the Pennsylvania coal regions. In the 
spring of 1864 he re-entered the regular 
service with his regiment, this time be- 
ing attached to the First division. First 
brigade. Sixth army corps, in the Army 
of the Potomac. He served with credit 
to July, 1865, the close of the war, when 
he was mustered out as chief of staff 
of the First division. Among some of 
the more important of the twenty regu- 
lar engagements participated in by his 
regiment were the following : The Wil- 
derness, Spottsylvania Court^House, Han- 
over Court-House, Petersburg, Winches- 
tei". Cedar Creek, Cold Harbor, and Ap- 
pomattox. Besides he served in many 
other engagements of minor importance 
and numerous skirmishes. During these 
years of faithful service, with its many 
attendant hardships and privations in 
the cause of patriotism and humanity. 
Dr. Freeman conscientiously and assidu- 
ously administered to the wounded and 
d^dng soldiers the blessings of earth's 
grandest profession. 

The war over, he returned to Freehold 
to resume with the advent of peace the 
pursuit of his old and hitherto extensive 
practice. He soon regained his old clients, 
and in due time was enjoying a patron- 
age extending over Ocean, Monmouth, 
Middlesex, and Mercer counties, besides 
special surgical cases from various parts 



of the state. In the latter branch of 
medicine he achieved by reason of his 
wide and extensive experience as sur- 
geon in the arm}' a very high degree of 
proficiency and skill. In consequence 
of this he has quite an extensive surgical 
clientage, and ranks as one of the most 
successful surgeons in the state. Politi- 
call}' he is a republican, and religiously 
a member of the Presbyterian church of 
Freehold. 

He is the father of seven children : 
Rev. Samuel Alden, who is a Presby- 
terian clergyman and pastor of a church 
at Lyndonville, N. Y. ; Abbie Willard, 
who was married to Edward H. Raiguel, 
deceased, but now resides with her father; 
Charles Otis, deceased ; Mary Russel, de- 
ceased ; Harriet E., deceased, and Wil- 
liam and Edward A., both of whom died 
in infancy. 

Dr. Freeman is a man of great kind- 
ness and sympathy, is extremely charit- 
able and of proverbial humanity as a 
physician. As a citizen he is of unim- 
peachable integrity and uprightness of 
character, and justly commands the high- 
est respect and esteem of his community. 



A NDREW ELY, the well-known and 
-^^ popular grocer of Dayton, Middle- 
sex county. New Jersey, is a son of Wil- 
liam and Mary Ann (McDoud) El}^ and 
was born at the old homestead, near 
Dayton, July 12, 1858. Stephen Ely, 
the paternal grandfather, was a highly- 
esteemed farmer of Middlesex county, 
and was actively engaged in tiie develop- 
ment and improvement of what is now 
denominated the " old homestead." Wil- 
liam was born on the farm in 1811, and 
received his early education in the pub- 
lic schools of Dayton. He worked upon 



Biographical Sketches. 



665 



the farm, assisting his father, until the 
latter' s death, after which he came into 
possession of the farm and conducted it 
up to his death. 

William Ely (father) was a man of 
very good ideas, and was very cautious 
and exact in all business transactions. 
He was a consistent democrat in politics, 
but not an active partisan. He was a 
member of the Presbyterian church, and 
manifested unusual interest in all church 
work. His wife, the mother of Mr. 
Ely, is still living at the old homestead, 
in the enjoyment of a ripe old age. 

Mr. Andrew Ely (subject) was born 
on the old homestead farm, and attended 
the common schools of Dayton. He re- 
mained upon the farm until 1880, when 
he heard of Horace Greeley's advice to the 



youn 



g man. 



"To go West." 



He con- 



cluded to follow the sage's counsel, and 
in a short time he found himself located 
in the grocery business in Topeka, Kan. 
Here he remained for five years. After- 
wards he returned east again and located 
at New Brunswick, New Jersey, where 
he followed the same business until May, 
1895. Subsequently he removed to Day- 
ton, New Jersey, and opened the store 
which he is now carrying on at the 
latter place. On Feb. 15, 1895, he was 
appointed postmaster at Dayton, by the 
present administration, and is now hold- 
ing said office. He is a democrat in 
politics and a somewhat active politician. 
His family is identified with the Presby- 
terian church of Dayton, and actively 
interested in all church work. He is a 
member of Goodwill Council, No. 32, 
Jr. 0. U. A. M., of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey. He was married in 1879 
to Miss Carry Payne, daughter of Oliver 
W. Payne, of New York, and they have 
had born to them one child, Eva. 



QTEVEN DANIEL MALONEY, the ef- 
^ ficient superintendent ot the Menlo 
Park Manufacturing Co., and a well- 
known citizen of Newark, is a son of 
James and Catharine Maloney, and was 
born Feb. 24, 1870, at that city. He re- 
ceived a thorough education in the pub- 
lic schools of Newark, after which he 
served an apprenticeship as a machinist, 
to which trade he has applied himself in- 
dustriously and assiduously ever since. 
Having become skilled and proficient as 
a machinist, he became engaged by the 
Menlo Park Manufacturing Co. as super- 
intendent of their plant at Menlo Park, 
in which responsible position he is serv- 
ing at the present time. This company 
is engaged in the manufacture of general 
electrical goods and supplies. Mr. Ma- 
loney's skill as a machinist commends 
him to rank as an expert, and the posi- 
tion which he occupies attests his natural 
ability and mechanical ingenuity as well 
as his technical knowledge of mechanics 
and electrics. He has risen in the em- 
ploy of this company from the bench to 
his present position as superintendent in 
full charge and control of the various de- 
tails of the business. He is an energetic 
worker and keeps himself thoroughly 
abreast of the times in all matters relat- 
ing to mechanics and the progress of elec- 
trical science. The business of the plant 
has been steadily increasing since he as- 
sumed charge, and as he personally super- 
intends the work it can be readily seen 
that the future holds much prosperity in 
store for the success of the business. 



EEV. CHAS. EDWARD HART, D. D., 
professor of English language and 
literature in Rutgers College, New Bruns- 
wick, and an eminent divine, is a son of 



6GG 



Biographical Sketches. 



Walter and Sarah Hart, and was born at 
Freehold, New Jersey. 

After obtaining an elementary educa- 
tian in the local schools he attended a 
grammar school, and the Central High 
school at Philadelphia. Returning to 
his home he prepared for college at the 
Freehold Institute, and then entered 
Princeton, the alma mater of so many 
I'enowned Presbyterian scholars. He 
graduated from college in 1858, and 
passed immediately into the theological 
seminary, from which he graduated in 
1861. His first work was in founding 
the Murray Hill Presbyterian church in 
New York city, where he remained from 
1862 until 1866. He was then installed 
in the North Reformed church at Newark, 
and was pastor there for fourteen years. 
In 1880 he was called to Rutgers College 
to fill the chair of English language and 
literatui'e, and has occupied that position 
ever since. Dr. Hart is a man of deep 
erudition and wide learning. He is popu- 
lar both among his fellow-townsmen and 
the college students, and is a member of 
the Historical Society of New Bruns- 
wick, and the Princeton Club, of New 
York. He was married on June 19, 1884, 
to Miss Lucy H., daughter of Jacob S. 
Carpender and Catherine Neilson. The 
family of Dr. Hart is of English origin. 
The first of his ancestors to come to 
America was Stephen Hart, who accom- 
panied the famous Dr. Hooker, and set- 
tled in Hartford, and then in Farraington, 
Conn. Walter Hart (subject's father) was 
a well-known resident of Freehold, and 
was at one time judge of the common 
pleas of Monmouth county. His wife 
was Miss Sarah Bennett, and she bore 
him five children : Jeanne, wife of D. 
M. Rue; William B., deceased; Emily, 
Charles Edward, and Evalina M. 



pvR. RALPH WILLIS HERBERT, a 
-'-^ prominent physician of Manas- 
quan. New Jersey, is a son of Obadiah C. 
and Mary A. Herbert. His paternal an- 
cestry is English, being a direct descend- 
ant of Francis Herbert, the first repre- 
sentative of that name in New Jersey. 
Francis was a grandson of Philip, fourth 
earl of Pembroke. He settled in Middle- 
town, Monmouth count}^ in 1677, and 
married Hannah, daughter of the cele- 
brated quaker, John Bowne. One of their 
sons, Obadiah, was the grandfather, three 
generations removed, of R. W. Herbert, 
while on the father's mother's side he 
descends from the well-known Huguenot 
family of Provost, Elizabeth Provost hav- 
ing married Conover Herbert, the pater- 
nal grandfather of Dr. Herbert, Oct. 23, 
1833. She is a lineal descendant of 
David Provost, who was born in Holland 
and emigrated to this country in 1624 
and settled at New Amsterdam. The 
name Provost changed with its various 
locations : Prevost in France, the coun- 
try of their love ; Provoost in Holland, 
where their stay was long enough to iden- 
tify them with the people and their com- 
mercial intei'ests, and finallj-, with the 
English habit of America, thej^ dropped 
all superfluous letters which would not 
materially change the euphony of the 
pronunciation. 

William Provost owned a charmed life. 
The danger which surrounded everybody 
he escaped. The massacre of St. Bar- 
tholomew was at its height. The aggres- 
sive Catherine De Medici, striving for 
power, was not warring for religion's sake, 
but working, b}'^ arousing the worst side 
of human antagonism, to place herself at 
the head of the government which was 
not hers by inheritance. Not only did he 
escape, but his intended bride by the same 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



669 



good fortune was his to have and to hold, 
with only the difference that the niar- 
riage was in Holland, perhaps registered 
in Dutch, as occurring in 1574. David 
Provost, above referred to, is their son. 
The Provost line can be traced directly 
to Geneva, where Augustine, the Hugue- 
not, went to escape the terrors of per- 
secution, and it leads, naturally, with 
much interesting honor, to Right Eev. 
Samuel Provoost, the first Protestant 
Episcopal bishop of New York. The 
children of Obadiah C. Herbert were : R. 
W., Frank C, a physician at Plainfield, 
New Jersey ; George B., a dentist at 
Manasquan ; Dora, married to Dr. C. N. 
Cox, a physician, residing in Brooklyn, 
N. Y. ; Eva, married to Frank C. Brown, 
of Brooklyn, N. Y., and Carrie, married 
Randolph Stryker, of Marlboro. 

Dr. R. W. Herbert (subject) was born 
in Marlboro township. New Jersey, 
October 1, 1858. He attended private 
schools during his early years, and sub- 
sequently entered the Peddie Institute at 
Hightstown, New Jersey, which he left 
in 1876. For two years he taught school 
in Monmouth county, and then took a 
three-years' course of study at the New 
York Homoeopathic College, from which 
he graduated in 1881. In May of that 
year he began the active practice of his 
profession at Manasquan. His present 
practice is a large and lucrative one, not 
confined to Manasquan alone, but extend- 
ing to Spring Lake and . Point Pleasant. 
Dr. Herbert has been a member of the 
board of health of Manasquan for five 
years, and of the board of education for 
eight years. In politics he is independ- 
ent and an ardent prohibitionist. He is 
a member of the Baptist church, and for 
ten years has been one of its most active 
trustees. He is noble grand of Excelsior 



Lodge, No. 88, I. 0. 0. F., and past chief 
of Wall Lodge, K. of G. E. He is state 
surgeon of Military Division of K. G. E., 
and examiner for the Endowment Rank, 
K. of P. He is also medical examiner for 
the Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., of 
New York. In October, 1881, he was 
married to Annie S. Morse, daughter of 
Rev. B. C. Morse, of Marlboro, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, and to their 
marriage have been born six children, 
three of whom, two sons and one daugh- 
ter, died in infancy. The others are : 
Carl Morse, Ralph Willis and Harvey 
Conover. 



npiiOMAS C. COLE, a prominent stone- 
-'- cutter of New Brunswick, and a 
thoroughly self-made man, is a son of 
Thomas H. and Sarah (Shawn) Cole, and 
was born in Mansfield township. New 
Jersey. Receiving his early education in 
the common schools of his native place, 
he first applied himself to learning his 
father's trade of shoemaking, which he 
followed for ten years. He then learned 
the stone-cutting trade, and after becom- 
ing proficient in it, went into the business 
for himself, which he has continued ever 
since mth success. He takes a deep in- 
terest in public affairs, and is a republican 
in his political convictions. During the 
civil war he served for nine months with 
one of the New Jersey regiments. He is 
a member of Lodge No. 6, I. 0. 0. F., of 
New Brunswick. Mr. Cole was married 
to Miss Emma Wilson, daughter of Jona- 
than Wilson, and they have two child- 
ren : Nettie E. and Thomas H. 

Thomas H. Cole (father) was born in 
1809, and was a man of common-school 
education, who, by virtue of a studious 
and persevering disposition, elevated him- 
self from the shoemaker's bench to the 



670 



Biographical Sketches. 



Baptist ministry. He was a staunch 
whig of his day, and a well-known mem- 
ber of the order of Odd Fellows. His 
wife was Miss Sarah Shawn, by whom he 
had nine children, as follows : Eliza, Avife 
of Peter Allen ; Marj^ wife of Calvin 
Shoemaker; Darius; Juanna, wife of An- 
drew Beaun ; Thomas C. ; William and 
George, both of whom were in the Union 
army during the civil war; Sarah and 
Harriet. Mr. Cole's father died March 
12, 1877; his mother, May 18,1851. 



WESLEY B. STOUT, Esq., junior mem- 
ber of the firm of R. T. & W. B. 
Stout, one of the most widely-known 
and successful law firms of Monmouth 
county, and a prominent citizen of As- 
bury Park, New Jersey, was born at 
Farmingdale, Monmouth county. Mr. 
Stout is the son of Richard Ten Broeck 
and Elizabeth Beck Stout, and both pa- 
ternal and maternal ancestors were 
among the earliest settlers of Monmouth 
county. The mother's family is of Ger- 
man (Saxony) extraction, and settled at 
Toms River, New Jersej^ ; the paternal 
side combine both English and Holland- 
Dutch origin, and for four generations 
have lived in Middletown township. 
Smith's " History of New Jersey " states 
that the Stout family were prominently 
identified with the pioneer history of the 
county, large owners of timber lands, 
and actively engaged in the Colonial 
wars. Richard Stout, great-grandfather 
of Mr. Stout, was one of the fii'st white 
inhabitants of Middletown township. 

Richard Stout (grandfiither) was a 
coast trader, and finall}' became a large 
land-owner, holding original grants from 
the English crown of some two thousand 
acres. He was also engaged in general 



mercantile business, and as a lumberman 
was especially successful, and was a 
prominent pioneer. He had three chil- 
di'en, one of whom was Richard T., 
father of subject, born at Toms River, 
New Jersey, Jan. 18, 1821, and who re- 
ceived his education at the Academy of 
Newark, New Jersey, and at Ulrich's 
Academy, in Harrisburg, Pa. He then 
devoted his time to reading law, but was 
obliged to desist on account of ill-health, 
when he took up the management of his 
father's large business interests, living on 
a farm near Farmingdale, Monmouth 
county. Mr. Stout, Sr., was also inter- 
ested with Mr. W. B. Osborn, in the 
early development of Ocean Grove ; and 
being interested in the Methodist Epis- 
copal church, he became financially a 
promoter of the progress of that church 
centre. He was a prominent member of 
the community, a progressive citizen, 
financially independent, and a large 
holder of real estate. In political 
opinion, Mr. Stout was a republican, and 
was a strict i^arty man. He married 
Miss Elizabeth Beck, and to them were 
born three sons : R. Ten Broeck, Joseph 
C. W., and Wesley B. Richard Stout 
died May 19, 189-3 ; his wife is still living. 
Wesley B. Stout (subject) passed his ju- 
venile days at Farmingdale, Monmouth 
county, and with other boys of his com- 
munity, was educated in the common 
schools, taking private lessons in music 
and German, lie then entered Penning- 
ton Seminary at Pennington, New Jer- 
sey, and graduated with the class of 
1884, in the Latin scientific course. He 
also spent four years in his brother's — 
R. T. Stout— law office (1879-1883), and 
was admitted to the bar of New Jersey, 
February term, 1883. The law firm- of 
: Messrs. R. T. & W. B. Stout was then 



Biographical Sketches. 



671 



founded, and Mr. Stout has led a busy 
professional career, making a specialty of 
civil and real-estate law, and in this has 
been eminently successful. He is an 
active party worker in local political 
affairs, and a staunch supporter of the 
pi-inciples advocated by the Republican 
party. Mr. Stout is a member of the 
First Methodist Episcopal church, a 
teacher of the Young Men's Bible class 
in the Sabbath-school, and an earnest 
and enthusiastic worker for the cause of 
religion. 

June 6, 1888, Wesley B. Stout mar- 
ried Mary E., the daughter of George R. 
Lord, who develojaed West Asbuiy Park. 
This happy union has been blessed by the 
birth of one son — Richard Weslord. Mr. 
Stout has his residence in West Asbury 
Park, where he owns real estate, and is 
one of the most highly-respected and 
useful citizens of his community. 



rpHOMAS L. MAPS, is a member of the 
-*- firm of Chandler & Maps, manufac- 
turers and dealers in building materials, 
hardware, coal and wood, also a well- 
known manufacturer in the shirt-making 
industry, and one of the most progressive 
and successful citizens of Long Branch, 
New Jersey. He was born at Long 
Branch, July 16, 1849, and is a son of 
James and Emily Maps. The ancestral 
home of this well-known family is in 
Holland, where Frederick Maps," Mapes, " 
was born and received his early educa- 
tion. Having emigrated to this country 
prior to the Revolutionary war, he took 
part in that memorable struggle and at- 
tained the rank of an officer. He reared 
a family of six children, Michael, Wil- 
liam, Solomon, John, Reuben and Sarah, 
who married Michael Maps. Both Fred- 



erick Maps and his wife are buried at 
West Long Branch. 

Mr. Maps (grandfather) was born at 
West Long Branch, and after leaving 
the common schools learned the chair- 
making business, and was at that time 
the only chairmaker in that part of 
the country, consequently was much in 
demand, and did a profitable business. 
Politically he was a whig, and though 
not a member of any church organization, 
was a truly converted chiistian, very 
kind-hearted, and much beloved by all 
who knew him. Grandfather Maps, 
was the father of eight children : John, 
James, George, Nelson, Ellen, Mrs. Elisha 
Taber; Ann, Mrs. W. West; Susan, 
Mrs. C. Hulick ; and Maria, Mrs. Peter 
Slocum. 

James Maps (father) was born at 
Long Branch, New Jersey, in 1820. He 
spent his school days in the common 
schools of his native town, and learned 
the trade of a carriage builder, at which 
he worked in Long Branch for nine years. 
Then he engaged in painting for some 
time, and finally Vi^as employed in a sash 
and blind factory, at Ocean Port, New 
Jersey, where he resided until his death 
in 1875. Politically he inclined to the 
doctrines and principles of the Republi- 
can party, and in religious belief and prac- 
tice was a methodist. To him were born 
two children : Lina M., married to Edwin 
Gifford, and Thomas L. 

Thomas L. Maps (subject) acquired his 
elementary instruction partly in the com- 
mon schools, and then attended a private 
school at Shrewsbury, until he reached his 
seventeenth year. He then learned the 
carpenter trade, and was engaged in build- 
ing and contract work until 1890, when 
he became associated with A. Chandler, 
and the firm of Chandler & Maps was 



672 



Biographical Sketches. 



established. This well-known and pro- 
gressive house deals extensively in the 
best grades of lumber, lime, brick, cement, 
hardware, brushes, paints, vai-nishes, oils, 
coal and wood, and have built up a i-epu- 
tation second to none in this locality. 
Mr. Maps is also interested in the shirt- 
making mdustry, and has a factor}- in 
operation in Long Branch for the manu- 
facture of the same. He is also a stock- 
holder in the Building and Loan Associa- 
tion of the town, and deals considerably 
in bank stock. Mr. Maps casts his vote 
for the candidates of the Republican 
ticket, and is a staunch supporter of the 
same. He is also a prominent mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
and at present is steward of the same. 
Fraternally^ Mr. Maps is connected with 
Hollywood Council, Jr. 0. U. A. M., and 
Oceanport Lodge, No. 61, I. 0. 0. F. 
October 10, 1S83, Eunice, daughter of 
Charles and Mary Hulick, became the 
wife of Thomas L. Maps, and this happy 
marriage has been blessed by the birth of 
two sons and one daughter : Charles H., 
Emily L. and Lester C. Mr. Maps' ca- 
reer has been one of well-deserved success. 
A man of strict integrity and true chris- 
tian character, he is regarded with the 
highest esteem by his many friends, and 
has the unbounded confidence of his 
business associates. 



"A/T W. SCULLY, who has been for 
-'--'-• more than a quarter of a century 
the efficient secretary of the Hillborough 
Fire Assurance Co., at Somerville, Somer- 
set county, New Jersey, is a son of Mi- 
chael and Margaret (Welsh) Scully, and 
was born May 27, 18-39, at Clunsalee, 
County Queens, Ireland. He came with 
his parents to this country in 1849, and 
received his earlier education in the com- 



mon schools of Somerset county. He 
subsequently attended the State Normal 
school at Trenton, New Jersey, from 
which he was graduated in 1859. After 
finishing his education he returned to 
Somerset county, and settled down to 
the profession of school-teaching, which 
he continued for about fourteen years. 
In 1870 he relinquished the ferule in 
favor of the pen, by accepting the posi- 
tion of secretary of the Hillsborough Fire 
Insurance Co., at Somerville. He became 
a successful underwriter, and under his 
shrewd and careful management his com- 
pany has had an uninterrupted course of 
prosperity. Mr. Scully is the honored 
president of the Alumni Association of 
his Alma Mater, the Ti'enton State Nor- 
mal School of New Jersey. He is a de- 
mocrat, a very active party worker, and 
has served as a delegate to various county 
and congressional conventions. He was 
elected a justice of the peace for the town- 
ship of Bridgewater, Somerset county, in 
1869. 

Mr. Scully was married, Nov. 3, 18G4, 
to Mary Frances Bobbins, a daughter of 
Andrew Bobbins, of Hillsborough town- 
ship. To this union were born nine chil- 
dren : Emma, Mattie May, Bertha, a 
school teacher in Long Branch ; Ayers 
C, Robt. E., Wade H., Luetta H., An- 
drew R., and Raymond. 

The paternal grandfather, Daniel Scully, 
was a native of Ireland. He was born in 
Queens county, near Clunsalee, and pur- 
sued the occupation of a farmer all his 
life. He was a firm believer in the doc- 
trines, and a devout member of the 
Catholic church. He died in Clunsalee, 
Ireland. His wife, Catherine Dunn, to 
whom he was married in Clunsalee, bore 
him five children : Thomas, Hugh, Mi- 
chael, John, and Daniel. 



Biographical Sketches. 



673 



Michael Scully (father of subject) was 
born and reared near Cluiisalee, County 
Queens, Ireland. He received a common- 
school education, and became a potter by 
trade, subsequently a farmer. He emi- 
grated to this country in 1849 and located 
in New York city. In April, 1850, he 
removed to Somerset county, this state, 
where he followed the occupation of a 
farmer until his death in 1861. After 
becoming a naturalized citizen of the 
United States he joined the Democratic 
party, and became prominent in local 
politics. He was a member of the Catho- 
lic church, and it was through his efforts 
the first church of Millstone, New Jersey, 
of that denomination, was built. His 
wife, Margaret Welsh, deceased in 1885, 
in her eighty-sixth year. They were the 
parents of eight children : Thomas, Anna, 
mari'ied to Jeremiah Reedy ; John, Mar- 
garet, deceased ; Michael W., Maria, wife 
of John Hunt, of Dunellen ; Patrick, de- 
ceased ; and Margaret, named for her de- 
ceased sister, and married to William 
Fleming, a resident of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey. 

The grandsire of Mary T. R. Scully, 
wife of subject, was Job Robbins, a 
native of Harbourtown. He resided near 
Ringoes, where he owned and cultivated 
a large farm. He pursued this occupa- 
tion during his entire life-time. He was 
a member of the Baptist church at Har- 
bourtown, and in disposition he was un- 
obtrusive and kindly. His wife, whose 
maiden name was Hannah Hart, bore 
him eight children : Elizabeth, married 
to Philip Pearson, of Amwell township ; 
Anna, Sarah, Andrew, Jeane, Rebecca, 
Amelia, and Asa. 

Andrew Robbins, father of Mrs. Scully, 
was born Sept. 26, 1803, at Harbourtown. 
He received a common education in the 



public schools of Amwell township, and 
became a farmer and cattle-drover, which 
occupations he followed until his death, 
Aug. 12, 1865. In politics he was a 
whig, subsequently identifying himself 
with the Republican party. His wife, 
Lucretia Conover, deceased Sept. 26, 
1891. They had twelve children : Han- 
nah, Albert C, Louisa, Rebecca, Esther, 
Catharine, George, deceased in infancy; 
Charles H., Mary Frances, Emma L., 
Jeannie E., and Andrew, deceased in 
infancy. 

TpDWARD S. KLINE, a veteran of 
-*— ^ "Appomattox," now a railway con- 
ductor on the South Branch road of New 
Jersey, residing at Somerville, Somerset 
county, in said state, is a son of Solomon 
and Rebekah (Sidle) Kline, and was born 
June 27, 1846, at Hamburg, Berks 
county. Pa. 

Solomon Kline (father) was born at 
Hamburg, Pa., where he received a com- 
mon-school education, and subsequently 
followed the trade of a wheelwright dur- 
ing the greater portion of his life. He 
was a whig, and a member of the Dutch 
Reformed church. He married Rebekah 
Sidle. They were the parents of six 
children : Amanda, Jacob, Augustus and 
John, the three latter deceased; Ben- 
jamin, killed in the civil Avar, and 
Edward S. 

Edward S. Kline received a common- 
school education in his native town, after 
completing which he enlisted Sept. 13, 

1862, for the nine months' service in the 
One Hundred and Fifty-first regiment, 
Pennsylvania infantry, in the civil war. 
He was sent at once to the front and de- 
tailed as a sharpshooter on April 12, 

1863, and took part in the following en- 
gagements : Franklin's Crossing, Chan- 



674 



Biographical Sketches. 



cellorsville, Gettysburg, and Williams- 
port. He was mustered out July 27, 

1863, and returned to his home, whei'e 
during one school term he was engaged 
in teaching. He then re-enlisted Feb. 1, 

1864, as first sergeant in Compau}^ F., 
One Hundred and Sixteenth Pennsyl- 
vania regiment, and as the war neared 
its close he was promoted to the rank of 
first lieutenant. Commencing with the 
battle of the Wilderness, he stubbornly 
fought his way to Appomattox, and was 
in the thick of the fray at all these in- 
termediate engagements : Tod's Tavern, 
Po River, Spottsylvania, North Anna, 
Fredericksburg, Tatopotomy, Pamunke}^ 
River, Cold Harbor, siege of Petersburg, 
Deep Bottom, Ream's Station, Strawberry 
Plain, and was present at the demolition 
of Weldon railroad. He was wounded 
Aug. 25, 1864, at Ream's Station, and 
sent to Lincoln hospital, AVashington, 
D. C, where, subsequent to his recovery 
and before he was strong enough to re- 
join his regiment, was on Dec.22d detailed 
to special service in the office of surgical 
records. Sergeant Kline returned in 
Feb., 1865, to his regiment, and to more 
battles : Dabney's Mills, Thatcher's Run 
and White Oak Road, Five Forks, 
Sutherland Station, Say lor' s Creek, and 
Farmville. As hereinbefore stated, he 
was present at Appomattox, where he 
witnessed the surrender of Lee, and par- 
ticipated in the grand review of the 
troops. 

Lieutenant Kline was mustered out 
of service July 14, 1865, and returned 
to his home in Pennsylvania. In 1868 
he entered the service of the Central 
railroad of New Jersey as a clerk in the 
car record office at Phillipsburg, New 
Jersey. He served also as a brakemaii 
and freight conductor until 1869, when 



he was made a passenger conductor. In 
this capacity he has remained in constant 
and faithful service, and at present is 
running on the South Bi'anch road ; his 
residence being Somerville. Mr. Kline 
is a member of Post No. 50, G. A. R., at 
Phillipsburg, New Jersey, of which he 
was commander in 1886-87; Delaware 
Lodge, No. 52, F. and A. M., of Phillips- 
burg ; Eagle Chapter, No. 39, R. A. M., 
of which he is past high i^riest; De 
Molay Commandery, No. 6, Knights 
Templar, of Washington, New Jersey ; 
Mecca Temple, No. 1, A. A. 0. N. M. S., 
of New York city ; Bridgewater Council, 
No. 1375, Royal Arcanum, and New Jer- 
sey Central, Div. 307, Order Railway 
Conductors. 

Mr. Kline was united in marriage 
July 4, 1880, to Matilda R. Ward, a 
daughter of William Ward, of Easton, 
Pa., and to their union was born April 
23, 1881, a daughter named Hattie. 
Captain Kline, so called in the railroad 
service, is one of the most popular con- 
ductors on the road. He is genial, oblig- 
ing, and companionable. He is a careful, 
trusted official, and is at all times mind- 
ful of the comfort and convenience of 
the patrons of his train. He is popular 
in masonic circles, and around the re- 
union camp-fire he is always a welcome 
comrade. 



LEVI SCOBEY, a contractor and builder 
of Scobeyville, Monmouth county, 
New Jerse}^ and a man of wide acquaint- 
ance and successful business experience, 
is descended from honorable Revolution- 
ary stock. He was born, March 8, 1832, 
in South Amboy township, Middlesex 
county, this state, and is a son of Charles 
and Nancy (Roberts) Scobey. 
His maternal great-grandfather, Thomas 



Biographical Skktches. 



675 



Roberts, was a Scotchman by birth, but 
that he became an intense American is 
evidenced by the fact that he fought in 
the patriot army, from the beginning to 
the end of the Revolutionary war. He 
was in Sullivan's army in Southern New 
York, and in the Wj^oming valley, Penn- 
sylvania, participated in the battle of 
Monmouth, and was one of Washington's 
"Life Guards." Alexander Scobey, the 
paternal great-grandfather, was a Scotch- 
man by birth, and served in the war of 
the Revolution. The home of the Scobey 
family was in Middlesex county, in which 
county was born Samuel Scobey, grand- 
father of the subject of this record. He 
also has an honorable Revolutionary 
record, serving in the capacity of a 
wagon-boy on the line of wagons that 
conveyed supplies from South Amboy 
township to Bordentown. His children 
were : Charles, Jacob, William, John ¥., 
Hannah R., and Eliza Hyer. 

Charles Scobey (father) was born in 
Middlesex county in 1808, and died at 
Scobeyville in 1872. He learned the 
trade of woodworker and carpenter, and, 
in 1847, removed to the present site of 
Scobeyville, where he purchased a large 
tract of one thousand acres of timber 
land, and for a number of years was en- 
gaged in the manufacture of lumber. 
In the latter years of his life he was en- 
gaged in the grocery business at Scobey- 
ville. Having been one of the leading- 
men in the industrial development of his 
township, it was but natural that he 
played a prominent jpart in its govern- 
ment. He was the township's first as- 
sessor, holding the position until two 
years prior to his death, when his son 
succeeded to the office, and, with the ex- 
ception of two years, held the office ever 
since. While he was not a church-mem- 



ber, yet he was a man of good habits 
and possessed a deep, earnest piety, that 
made him highly respected by a wide 
circle of friends. To his marriage with 
Nancy Roberts were born seven children : 
Levi, Thomas, who died young j Jesse, 
a civil engineer of the Camden and Am- 
boy railroad, who built that portion of it 
extending from Trenton to Monmouth 
Junction ; Charles W., deceased, was a 
merchant ; Mary Elizabeth, a teacher ; 
Margaret, formerly a teacher, now the 
wife of Albert Claj^ton ; and Jane C, a 
teacher. 

Levi Scobey obtained a common-school 
and academic education. In 1854 he en- 
tei'ed upon mercantile pursuits at Colts 
Neck, and was thus engaged until 1863, 
when he took a position as clerk in the 
New Jersey legislature, serving in that 
I'elation two years. Since that time he 
has been engaged in contract grading and 
bridge building. Politically Mr. Scobey 
is a democrat, who believes in a Jackson- 
ian enforcement of Jeffersonian princi- 
ples, and has ever been prominent in the 
councils of his partj^, and alive to the 
work tending to promote its success, 
rarely missing a township, county or 
state convention. He has held the fol- 
lowing township offices in his township : 
judge of election, inspector, assessor, 
school trustee, freeholder, and was town- 
ship superintendent of schools a number 
of years. He was the commission ei', rep- 
resenting the state of New Jersey, in that 
commission which had charge of the 
building of the Gettysburg monument, 
and served as one of the finance commit- 
tee, consisting of five members. He has 
been twice married. His first wife was 
Mary S. "Sherman, a daughter of T. W. 
Sherman, of Colts Neck, and resulted in 
the birth of one child, Alice M., who 



676 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



married John H. Woodruff. His second 
nitarriage was with Katie Vanderveer, and 
one child, Charles Vanderveer, blessed 
this union. 



/~^ H. ROOT, senior member of the wide- 
^-^* Ij-known and progressive firm of 
Root & Debbins, proprietors of the most 
extensive planing-mill business in Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, is an inter- 
esting example of the self-made man. 
He is a son of Albert and Sarah C. Root, 
and was born at Lenox, Mass., Nov. 25, 
1852. He received his early secular 
training in the common schools of his 
native place, and then attended the 
Lenox Academj'' for two and one-half 
years. He then apprenticed himself to 
learn the trade of carpentering, and fol- 
lowed that occupation until he had 
reached the age of thirty years, residing 
in New York state. He then removed 
to Middletown, New Jersey, where he 
engaged in business as a contractor and 
carpenter, and continued for eight years. 
In 1887 he came to Red Bank, and pur- 
chased an interest in the planing-mill 
now operated under the name of Root & 
Debbins. This company now conduct 
one of the largest establishments of its 
kind in New Jersey, and do the most ex- 
tensive trade in Monmouth county. Mr. 
Root is a strong supporter of the Repub- 
lican party, and is much interested in 
the success of the organization, but never 
aspired to political offices. C. H. Root 
married Emily Applegate, daughter of 
Grover Applegate. His strict attention 
to business, and his native energy and 
ability have been the means of achieving 
the well-earned success that has crowned 
his busy career. 

The Root family is of English descent. 
Calvin Root (paternal grandfather) lived 



for many years at Weston, and later at 
Lenox, Mass., where he was a progres- 
sive farmer. He invented the first div- 
ing-bell. In political matters he was a 
democrat. He married a Miss Cook, and 
to them were born two children : Rod- 
ney and Emeline. 

Albert C. Root (father) was born at 
Lenox, Mass., and after attending the 
connnon schools, engaged in agricultural 
pursuits during the greater part of his 
residence at Lenox. As the business 
interests of the town grew, Mr. Root 
found the demand for his farm land in- 
crease, and the old homestead farm was 
cut up into building lots and sold. By 
careful future investments, Mr. Root 
amassed quite a competence. Politically 
he was a democrat. His children were : 
Christiana, Albert C, and C. H. He 
died at Lenox in 1861, but his wife still 
survives. 



TTTINFIELD SCOTT BANKS PAR- 
' '^ KER, an able lawyer of Long 
Branch, Monmouth county, New Jersey, 
is a son of Joseph Banks and Mary A. 
(Van Schaick) Parker, and was born Oct. 
15, 1861, at Jerseyville, in that county. 
The early records of the Parker family 
in this county show^ that about the year 
1665 two In'others, Joseph and Peter 
Parker, sons of Joseph Parker, came 
from Rhode Island, and were among the 
first English settlers. These records also 
detail that Peter, with Eliakiu Wardell, 
John Slocum, and one Halet, were the 
first white people to locate at Long 
Branch, named from the brook, which was 
called by the Indians " Quenhownenaich." 
John Slocum married Meribah, a cousin 
of Peter's, and died in 1702, leaving a 
large part of his plantation to his cousin 
Peter, including the lands now bounded 



Biographical Sketches. 



677 



by Branchport creek, then called in the 
Indian dialect " Whisecockome," on the 
west and the Atlantic ocean on the east. 
Peter took the oath of allegiance to the 
East Jersey proprietors Feb. 27, 1667, 
and was elected and sworn constable 
March 1, 1668, of Shrewsbury. On Oct. 
20, 1670, he was appointed justice of the 
peace, and was commissioned to preside 
over a general court, to take cognizance 
of all civil cases to the value of ^£10, to 
be held at Woodbridge. And on March 
9, 1675, he was especially sworn to pro- 
tect the lords' interests in the province. 
At his death his son Peter inherited his 
plantation and lived thereon. He had 
three sons : John, who was drowned near 
the Highlands ; William, who was known 
as " Boatman Billy," and settled on Rum- 
son Neck, and Peter, who continued to 
live on the homestead. He was captain 
of a "packet boat" running to New 
York, and died in 1793. His children 
were : Robert, John, Benjamin, Lydia, 
Abigail, Deborah, and Joseph. At his 
death his plantation was divided between 
Robert, who took the part adjoining the 
ocean, and Joseph, who took the inland 
portion. Benjamin kept a store at Eaton- 
town from 1796 to 1809, and Joseph, 
called " Lightning Josie," because of his 
agility, was twice married. His first wife 
was Hannah Slocum, daughter of John and 
Rebecca Slocum, and by her he had three 
children : Peter, Richard, and Elizabeth, 
the last named having the misfortune to 
be both deaf and blind. The children 
of his second wife, Sarah Lippincott, 
were : Sarah A. and Elias. Joseph was 
one of the early trustees of the First 
Methodist church of Branchburg, and 
assisted in building the first church edi- 
fice, and was an exhorter in the Methodist 
meetings. 

35 



His son Peter, the grandfather of W. 
S. B. Parker, was born in 1792 at Long 
Branch. He attended the common school 
and a private school at New York city. 
He became an exceedingly well-informed 
man, and was broad and liberal in his 
views. In politics he was a whig, subse- 
quently a republican, and in religious 
affairs, although a member of the Society 
of Friends, he usually attended the 
Methodist Episcopal church. He was 
always a farmer, living at Long Branch 
and in the vicinity of Freehold. Soon 
after coming to manhood he went to 
sea, and spent three years in China 
and other Asiatic countries. About 1816 
he married Rebecca Herbert, daughter 
of Hance Herbert, and by her he had 
eleven children : Hannah Miller, Marga- 
ret Hudnut, Ann Eliza, Harriet, Joseph 
Banks, Hance Herbert, Maria, Catharine 
Connolly, Lydia Frances, and Rebecca, 
and another child which died in infancy. 
. Joseph B. Parker was born July 8, 1 836. 
He received a common-school education, 
and entered into mercantile business 
with David Clark Perrine, and after- 
wards with Judge Shinn. Oct. 4, 1860, 
he married Mary A. Van Schaick, and 
afterwards was engaged in agriculture at 
Shrewsbury and Eatontown and in the 
vicinity of Freehold. In politics he has 
always been a republican. 

The mother of Mr. Parker is descended 
from one of the old Dutch families that 
first came to Monmouth county. Polly 
Logan, some time prior to 1850, married 
one Cowenhoven, and their children were : 
John, Garret, Cornelius, and Sarah, who 
married Daniel G. Hendrickson. Their 
children w^ere: Lena, John, Phoebe, Maria, 
Eliza Ann, Denise, Cornelius, and Sarah. 
Eliza Ann married William Van Schaick, 
a farmer of Shrewsbury, New Jersey, 



678 



Biographical Sketches. 



about the year 1825. His father was 
David Van Schaick, from Van Schaick's 
Mills, near Bennington, Vt., who married 
Hannah Holman, and who was a miller 
for many 3'ears at Oakland Mills, New 
Jersey. His brothers and sisters were : 
Joseph, Josiah, Samuel, David, and Mary 
Ann. The children of this union were : 
Elias, Robert, Josiah, Sarah H., Mary 
A., who married Joseph B. Parker, and 
William Albert. The children of Joseph 
B. and Mary A. Parker were : Winfield 
S. B., the subject; Margaret B., born 
June 30, 1867, and Joseph B., born Jan. 
25, 1876. The latter graduated from 
the Asbury Park public school in 1893, 
and obtained a scholarship for Rutgers 
College. He was employed by the Pru- 
dential Insurance Co. for a short time, 
and died June 28, 1895, the result of an 
accident caused by falling under the 
wheels of an engine while attending a 
fire. 

Winfield S. B. Parker enjoyed a good 
common-school education, afterwards a1> 
tending the Freehold Institute for two 
years, at Freehold, New Jersey, and re- 
moved to Long Branch in 1879, where 
he graduated in two years from the 
Long Branch High School. An engage- 
ment for three years with L. & D. Ed- 
wai'ds & Co., lumber merchants, at the 
latter town then followed, after which, 
on Jan. 6, 1881, Mr. Parker commenced 
to read law in the oflfice of Wilbur A. 
Heisley. On Jan. 17, 1886, he entered 
the oflice of Hon. John E. Lanning, un- 
der whom he finished his term of clerk- 
ship, and during the winter of 1887-88 
attended the New York City University, 
graduating therefrom in 1888 with the 
degree of Bachelor of Laws. He was 
admitted to the bar of New Jersey at the 
February term, 1888, and since that 



time he has been engaged in the active 
practice of his profession at Long Branch. 
At the February term, 1894, he was ad- 
mitted as a counsellor in the supreme 
court of New Jersey. 

He is an able advocate and a ^vise and 
impartial counsellor, and his success in 
the field of labor he has chosen is as- 
sured. For many years he has been en- 
gaged in mercantile pursuits, being the 
senior member of Parker & Slocum, feed 
merchants, from 1885 to 1890, and has 
been extensively engaged in real-est.ate 
enterprises, having erected about forty 
houses in Long Branch. He entered 
into a partnership with George W. Van 
Gelder, Oct. 1, 1894, in the general prac- 
tice of law, and the firm of Parker & Van 
Gelder is local counsel for the Republic 
Savings and Loan Association, the New 
Jersey Building, Loan and Investment 

j Co., and the New Jersey Saving and 
Provident Association. Mr. Parker is a 
member of Oceanic Fire Co., and vice- 
president of the Long Branch Militar}'- 
Band, and a member of the Republican 
party. In secret societies he is a past re- 
gent of Long Branch Council, No. 429, 
Royal Arcanum, and treasurer of Pro- 
gress Council, No. 3, Loyal Additional 
Benefit Association. With all his other 
engagements and occupations Mr. Parker 
has found time to cultivate a fine baritone 
voice, and has been engaged as precentor 
at the Taylor Memorial church at Elbe- 
ron for eleven years. 

Mr. Parker was united in marriage 
Feb. 22, 1887, to Lucretia Frances New- 
ing, daughter of Flavins J. and Eliza Ed- 
wards Newing. To their marriage have 
been born two sons and one daughter : 
Harold, deceased, born March 1, 1888 ; 
Margaret W., born April 18, 1892, and 

I Francis Meredith, born Feb. 12, 1896. 



Biographical Sketches. 



679 



TTTILLIAM L. HARNED, a thriving 
'' grocer of Wood bi'idge, Middlesex 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Isaac M. 
and Martha (Moore) Harned, and was 
born in 1860, in New York city. He ac- 
quired his education in the pubhc schools 
of Woodbridge, and from Professor Mor- 
ris, who conducted a private school. He 
learned the grocery business with Burkett 
& Pattison, and remained with that house 
eight years. He then associated himself 
in the same business with J. H. Hillsdorf, 
remaining for three years and six months ; 
and later, in 1885, built a store and entered 
the grocery trade on his own account. 
In 1887 his store and contents were de- 
stroyed by fire, but he set to work with 
courage undaunted, and in six weeks' 
time a new store occupied the site of the 
ruins. He built up a successful and sub- 
stantial trade, and is on the high road to 
wealth. 

Mr. Harned is a member of the 
Congregational church of Woodbridge, 
and politically is a republican. He has 
never held office as yet, finding business 
more profitable than politics. He is a 
member and past master of American 
Lodge No. 83, Free and Accepted Masons 
of Woodbridge, and its treasurer five 
years ; a member and scribe in St. John's 
Chapter, No. 9, Royal Arch Masons; 
captain-general of the Commandery; a 
member of the Knights Templar, and of 
the Mystic Shrine, Mecca Temple, New 
York city. He is a member and chair- 
man of the house committee of the Ath- 
letic Association of Woodbridge. He is a 
trustee of the Congregational church of 
that town, treasurer of its Sunday-school, 
and a member of the committee formed 
for the purpose of erecting a Sunday- 
school building. He was married to Lulu 
A. Hancock, a daughter of George W. 



Hancock, of Woodbridge, New Jersey, in 
1886. They have one son, W. Leon. 

William Harned, the paternal grand- 
father, conducted for many years a gro- 
cery business, and was known in his day 
and generation as a great methodist. He 
was the father of five children : S. P., 
Mary Ann (Mrs. Samuel Auber), Emma 
(Mrs. E. W. Valentine), Jennie, and 
Isaac M. 

Isaac M. Harned (father) acquired a 
common-school education, and afterwards 
attended college in New York. He was 
associated with his father in the grocery 
business for a time, and subsequently fol- 
lowed painting for a few years. He was 
later, for several years, superintendent of 
the clay mines of William Henry Cutler 
at Woodbridge. Politically he was a re- 
publican, and in religious matters a mem- 
ber of the Congregational church. He 
was a member and senior warden of Am- 
erican Lodge, No. 83, Free and Accepted 
Masons. He married Martha Moore in 
1858. 



/CHARLES H. MUIRHEID, president 
^-^ of the Raritan Dry-Dock Co. of 
Perth Amboy, manager of the extensive 
business interests of John Scully, a prom- 
inent coal-shipper of South Amboy, and 
one of the leading citizens of the latter 
town, is a son of John and Mary (Howe) 
Muirheid, and was born Oct. 12, 1849, at 
Pennington, Mercer county, New Jersey. 
He attended a private school at Trenton 
until he was fifteen years of age, when 
he removed to South Ainboy, and spent 
two years more in completing his educa- 
tion at a private school there. Upon 
finishing his studies he was employed as 
a shipping-clerk for the Camden and 
Amboy railroad at South Amboy, retain- 
ing the same position when the Penn- 



680 



Biographical Sketches. 



sylvania railroad assumed control of the 
former corporation. For a number of 
jeax's he was also assistant to the general 
agent of the Pennsylvania railroad at 
this place. He left the company's em- 
ploy to accept a position as manager for 
John Scully, one of the most extensive 
coal-shippers at South Amboy, and Mr. 
Muirheid has successfully and ably con- 
ducted the aflfairs of this business until 
the present time. He is president of the 
Earitan Dry-Dock Co. of Perth Amboy, 
a flourishing concern with which he has 
been prominently identified since its or- 
ganization. Mr. Muirheid is a democrat 
in politics. He is a leading member of 
Christ's Protestant Episcopal church at 
South Amboy, of which he is warden and 
treasurer. He is connected with St. 
Stephen's Lodge, No. 63, F. and A. M., 
and the Knights of the Golden Eagle. 
On Feb. 18, 1873, he was married to 
Miss Maroma Keeler, and they have two 
children : John, a graduate of the Model 
School at Trenton, who is now pi'epariug 
to enter college, and Charlotte. Mr. Muir- 
heid has always taken an active interest 
in transportation trade, both at South 
Amboy and Perth Amboy, and by his 
energy, perseverance and business abilit};- 
has been largeh" instrumental in develop- 
ing that trade. He is a pushing, enter- 
prising citizen, is popular and respected, 
socially prominent, and possesses the con- 
fidence and esteem of all who come in 
contact with him. 



I 



T D. RANKIN, superintendent of the 
^ • Perth Amboy Dry Dock Co. and a i 
progi'essive business man of Perth Am- 
boy, New Jersey, is a son of Alexander 
and Lydia Harding Rankin, and was 
born on Prince Edward's Island, Canada, 1 



March 27, 1849. Eankin is a Scotch 
name, and indicates the ancestral origin 
of the famih' bearing it. 

Donald Rankin, paternal grandfather, 
was born at Invernesshire, Scotland, and 
as a bo}^ attended the common schools. 
He was a ship-builder b}- ti'ade, and was 
engaged in that business during the full 
course of his active career. His wife's 
maiden name was Miss Cathei'ine Mc- 
Millan, and they reared a family of three 
children, one son and two daughters : 
Alexander, Jessie and Mary. 

Alexander Rankin (father) was born 
at Pic ton, N. S., in 1819, and received 
his intellectual training in the public 
schools of his native place. His business 
was that of ship-builder, and in this he 
continued successfully until his retire- 
ment. 

Mr. Rankin, Sr., was a member of the 
Episcopal church of Alberton, P. E. I., 
and by his marriage with Miss Lydia 
Harding, a daughter of James and Eliza- 
beth Harding, of New London, P. E. I., 
became father to a familj^ of nine chil- 
dren : Elizabeth (Mrs. John Ha_\Tvood), J. 
D., James, Alexander, Kate (Mrs. John 
Williams) of Charlottown, P. E. I. ; Jessie 
(Mrs. Thomas Conquest) of Alberton, P. 
E. I. ; William, Collins, Mar}- Ann (Mrs. 
J. Warren), of Alberton, P. E. I., and Gil- 
man. 

J. D. Rankin, subject of this sketch, 
passed his bo}liood da3-s along the 
shores of Prince Edward's Island, and 
started in life with a common-school edu- 
cation and a mind naturally endowed 
with marked aptitude for a successful 
business career. As a young man he 
learned the trade of shijvbuilding at 
Alberton, P. E. I., became an acknowl- 
edged master in that profession, and 
has by industry and a close and detailed 



Biographical Sketches. 



681 



study, worked himself up to a position 
where brains, good j udgment and execu- 
tive ability are absolutely necessary. He 
is now, as before stated, the superintend- 
ent of the Perth Amboy Dry Dock Co., of 
Perth Amboy, and has in the course of 
his business career accumulated property, 
among which are some vessels engaged in 
carrying general cargoes. Politically Mr. 
Rankin is a republican and fraternally a 
mason, a member of Zetland Lodge, No. 
1100, since 1871. 

Mr. J. D. Rankin married Miss Cathe- 
rine McKay, daughter of George McKay, 
of Alberton, P. E. I., and to this union 
have been born a family of two children, 
one son and one daughter, Gertrude and 
George. Mr. Rankin is a man whose 
good judgment is acknowledged, and he is 
regarded as a progressive and highly- 
esteemed citizen. 



A NDREW CLAUSON, a widely-known 
-^-^ and progressive business man, and 
proprietor of an extensive harness and 
horse-goods store in Perth Amboy, is a 
representative of a highly respectable 
and thrifty German family. He is a son 
of Andrew and Anne Anderson Clauson, 
and was born April 10, 1857, in Ger- 
many. He received a good elementary 
education, partly in the schools of his 
native land. When sixteen years old he 
left his studies to enter a tannery. From 
leather-making he gradually turned his 
attention to leather-working, and adopted 
harness-making as his trade. He de- 
voted himself assiduously to this line of 
labor, working hard to perfect himself in 
the trade. However, he did not actively 
enter it immediately, but after clerking 
in various stores, he removed to Perth 
Amboy. Here he opened a stationery 



store, and maintained it for about two 
years and a half. At the end of this 
time he found himself in a position to 
engage in the business on his own ac- 
count. Accordingly, in 1888, he founded 
his present harness business. Mr. Clau- 
son evinces an active interest in public 
affairs. He is a prominent member of a 
beneficial society, and has contributed 
much to the success of that organization. 
His children consist of two sons and one 
daughter : Andrew, Charles and Mamie. 
Mr. Clauson is popular both in business 
and social circles. 

Hans Clauson (paternal grandfather) 
was a sturdy, vigorous and peace-loving 
farmer of Germany. Little is known of 
him, save that he and his descendants 
have always borne the highest name for 
industry and probity among the residents 
of their native town. He passed away, 
having been the father of three sons and 
one daughter : Thomas, Andrew, Hans 
and Kate. 

Andrew Clauson (father) was a farmer 
near Bunn, Germany, during the greater 
portion of his life. He joined his chil- 
dren in the United States in 1890, and is 
now living in well-earned retirement with 
his son near Perth Amboy. His wife 
was Miss Anne Anderson ; she died in 
1890, after having borne him five chil- 
dren : Hans, Andrew, Thomas, Peter and 
Mary, now the wife of Fred Mauke. 



QEORGE C. LUYSTER is among those 
who have turned their attention 
entirely and successfully to agricultural 
pursuits, within the beautiful and pro- 
ductive boundaries of Middletown town- 
ship, near Middletown, New Jersey. He 
is a son of Hendrick and Margaret Luy- 
ster, and was born, in Middletown town- 



682 



Biographical Sketches. 



ship, Monmouth county, New Jersey, 
Jan. 20, 1846. The Lujsters are of Hoi- 1 
land-Dutch origin, and the paternal 
grandfather was born in Middletown 
township, and, after receiving a common- 
school education, settled down to farming, 
which continued to be his life-long occu- 
pation. In political faith he was a demo- 
crat. The Dutch Reformed church 
always found him a very active and 
staunch supporter of its doctrines and 
material interests. Both the grandfather 
and the grandmother are buried in Mid- 
dletown. The children born to them are 
as follows : Cornelius, Hendrick, and 
David. 

Hendrick Luyster (father) was born in 
Middletown township, and was a life-long 
farmer of that township. Politically Mr. 
Luyster was a democrat, and was actively 
engaged in the work of the Dutch Re- 
formed church of Middletown. During 
the time of his connection with this con- 
gregation, he served the cause by filling 
important offices, and devoted much time 
to furthering the interests of the organi- 
zation. He married Miss Margaret Con- 
over, and to them have been born three 
children : Jane, now the wife of Mr. Isaac 
Story ; William, deceased ; and George 
C. Hendrick Luyster is buried at Mid- 
dletown, at which place the mother still 
resides. 

George C. Luyster grew to manhood on 
his father's fixrm, and received his early 
education in the common schools of his 
native district. Leaving school at the 
age of fifteen years, he farmed for his 
father until he was twenty-three years of 
age, when he launched out for himself, 
and began to manage a farm on his own 
account. Being a young man, possessed 
of push and energy, combined with good 
judgment, he has made his life's calling 



a success, and now ranks with the best 
agriculturists of his section, and is the 
fortunate possessor of a rich and fertile 
farm. In political opinion and belief Mr. 
Luyster is in sympathy with the prin- 
ciijles of the Republican party. In relig- 
ious affairs he is a member of the Dutch 
Reformed church at Middletown. In this 
congregation he has been an aggressive 
member, and has been intrusted with 
several responsible offices. Mr. Luyster 
has been twice married, first to Miss Ma/- 
tilda Scott, daughter of Daniel and Isa- 
bella Scott ; their children were : Hen- 
drick, deceased ; Frank, and William, 
deceased. He married, as his second wife, 
Miss Cordelia Morris. This union has 
been made happy by the birth of one 
child, Fannie. 



TTTILLIAM E. LINDSTEDT, an emi- 
' ' nent dental surgeon of New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, was born in Denmark 
in 1855, and is a son of John E. and 
Augusta Lindstedt. His family is of 
Swedish origin. 

John E. Lindstedt (father) received his 
education at the public schools in Den- 
mark, and came to this country in 1852, 
and established himself in piano manu- 
facturing. He continued in this until 
1891, when he entered the express busi- 
ness, in which he is engaged at present. 
He is a member of the Episcopal church. 
His wife died in January, 1895. To 
them were born seven children : Augusta, 
Mar}^ C, Nillma D., Hulda, deceased, 
John, Jr., Alfred, and William E. 

After graduating from the public schools 
Dr. Lindstedt entered the New York 
Dental College, from which he graduated 
in 1888. He then located in New Bruns- 
wick, and through his exceptional skill 



Biographical Sketches. 



683 



as a dentist and strict attention to busi- 
ness, he has built up a very large and 
extensive practice. His offices are large 
and commodious, and appropriately fur- 
nished. 

Dr. Lindstedt is a member of the Royal 
Dental Society, the New York State Den- 
tal Society, the Central Dental Society, 
and the New York Dental College Alumni 
Association. He is a member of the 
New Brunswick Club, in politics is a re- 
publican, and religiously is an earnest 
member of the Episcopal church of New 
Brunswick. He married Lucy B. Kent, 
daughter of Thomas Kent, Esq., Oct. 29, 
1885, and their children are : William 
E., Jr., Theodore K., and Gladys. 



WALTER WILSON, the well-known 
representative of the firm of Jane- 
way & Carpender, of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey, is a son of Garrett and 
Nancy C. Wilson, and was born April 
16, 1854. His grandfather, Wharton 
W. Wilson, was a native of Somerset 
county. New Jersey. 

Garrett Wilson (father) was also a 
native of New Jersey. He received a 
common-school education and upon at- 
taining his majority he engaged in the 
business of administering and supervis- 
ing estates in Mississippi, to which state 
his parents had moved at an early period. 
He also followed farming in connection 
with his other pursuits, and prospered. 
He was a democrat in politics and en- 
joyed the respect and confidence of the 
community in which he lived in an eminent 
degree. His children are : Walter, Lily 
Cuba, William R., who resides in the 
state of Alabama, and Clifton C. Wilson. 

Walter Wilson was boim on his father's 
farm, in the state of Mississippi, and 



there he was raised and educated in the 
common schools. After having mastered 
the common-school curriculum, he en- 
tered a store at Milestone, Miss., where 
he worked for two years. Concluding to 
seek a better field for himself, he came to 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, and secured 
employment in a clothing store. In this 
position he coiitinued for the next two 
years, or until he secured a clerical 
position in the post-office at New Bruns- 
wick. 

He served in this position from 1871 
until 1881, a period of ten years, when 
he engaged in the hosiery business, and 
for the next eighteen months devoted 
himself to mastering the details of the 
trade. He then went upon the road for 
Messrs. Janeway & Carpender, and in 
their service has been constantly engaged 
ever since. He is an ardent republican, 
always votes for the best men, and is 
conservative in his views upon all politi- 
cal questions. He is a member of the 
Royal Arcanum of New Brunswick. In 
church and Sunday-school work, he is 
also a recognized factor, being a member 
of the First Reformed church of New 
Brunswick, and has been the librarian of 
its Sunday-school for the past twenty 
years. 

He married a Miss Conover, a daughter 
of Mr. John V. and Bertha A. Conover, 
of West Jersey, on June 3, 1879, and 
they have four children. 



A UGUST STREITWOLF, a wholesale 
-'-^ dealer in imported and domestic 
merchandise, at 295 Burnet street. New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of John 
C. Sti'eitwolf, of Nordhausen, Germany, 
whei'e he was born Nov. 7, 1857. His 
ancestors were all natives of Germany ; 



684 



Biographical Sketches. 



his grandfather, Christian Streitwolf, be- 
ing a candlemaker hy trade. His father, 
John C. Streitwolf, was educated at what 
is called the citizens' school in Germany, 
and learned the pi'inting trade, which he 
followed for some time. He then entered 
the German army, served for seven years, 
and during the last war in which that 
country was engaged he was severely 
wounded. He was a communicant of the 
Reformed church, and the father of six 
children, all of whom have since died, 
except the subject of this sketch. 

Mr. Streitwolf received his education 
in the citizens' school of his native land, 
and at an early age found emploj'ment 
in a hotel in Germany, where he spent 
two years and six months, after which, 
in 1868, he came to America and located 
in New York city. 

Mr. Streitwolf afterwards started into 
business at New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
and by diligence and careful manage- 
ment built up for himself an excellent 
trade. He later opened a saloon and 
restaurant on Albany street in said city, 
which he conducted very successfully for 
the next seven years, when he removed 
to No. 295 Burnet street, where he is at 
present located. He has been very suc- 
cessful in his business. He is a very 
active democrat in politics, having served 
as a freeholder of New Brunswick for a 
number of years, and in 1894 was a 
candidate for the legislature of New 
Jersey, but was a victim of the political 
landslide that year and met with defeat. 



Tp H. EMMOXS, proprietor of the 
-*—^' Merchants' Hotel at Long Branch, 
ex-member of the board of commissioners 
of that place, and one of its most pro- 
gressive citizens, is a splendid type of the 



thoroughly self-made man. He is a son 
of Isaac and Rebecca (Crum) Emmons, 
and was born Aug. 19, 1841, at Long 
Branch, New Jersey. His father, who 
had a family of ten children, and who 
was a seaman by occupation, was over- 
taken by misfortune when the subject 
was but a child, lost all his property and 
was reduced to poverty. When nine 
years of age E. H. Emmons, by reason 
of his father's destitute circumstances, 
was thrown upon his own weak resources 
for earning a livelihood. But with char- 
acteristic energy he applied himself in- 
dustriously until he had provided a home 
for his father and mother, who had been 
thus reduced to poverty and practically 
turned out of doors. After accomplish- 
ing this highly creditable purpose of his 
youthful ambition he left home with two 
shillings in his pocket, which he still has 
in his possession, and went to New York. 
Here he maintained himself in various 
industrial pursuits and by odd jobs in all 
kinds of work, a part of the time in the 
oyster business, in which he finally be- 
came for ten years superintendent of 
Reed's oyster house, the largest in the 
city at that time. He subsequently be- 
came interested in the hotel business in 
New York for ten j^ears, and during the 
same time operated the New York hotel 
at Long Branch, which he built in 1871, 
whence he removed in that year. This 
hotel he continued to operate during the 
summer seasons for twenty years. In 
1880 he purchased the Merchants' liotel, 
which he completely modernized and 
practically rebuilt, where he now con- 
ducts a most attractive and the hand- 
somest place of its kind at Long Branch. 
It is located on Broadway, and is the best 
all-the-year-around resort in Long Branch. 
It has thirty rooms, is thoroughly equipped 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



685 



with modern conveniences, and enjoys a 
wide patronage drawn from every section 
of the country. Mr. Emmons gives his 
personal supervision and keen business 
foresight to every detail of the manage- 
ment. In addition to the hotel Mr. Em- 
mons owns ten other properties in various 
parts of Long Branch, two of which are 
located on the spot where, as a poor boy, 
he once dealt in clams. He has in his 
possession and proudly exhibits a number 
of coins which he earned at various times 
during his early struggles. Mr. Emmons 
is a democrat in politics, and has for 
many years been recognized as a leader 
in local political affairs. He served as a 
member of the board of commissioners in 
1885, and received the utmost praise for 
the admirable manner in which he con- 
ducted the affairs of his office. He was 
chairman of the street committee of the 
board, and at the close of his term he 
left a balance of $1500 to the credit of 
the street department, an unparalleled 
accomplishment, and one for which he 
received a vote of thanks from the board. 
He is a member of the Lodge of F. and 
A. M., and of the R. A. Chapter, and has 
filled all the positions in those bodies. Mr. 
Emmons was married in 1862, and has 
had a family of five children : Udora, 
Sarah Melissa, Herman, Ida, Edward, 
and John, deceased. Energy, persever- 
ance and determination, which are usually 
combined under the popular term of 
" grit," naturally form the chief elements 
of Mr. Emmons' character. He has lit- 
erally built up a massive structure out of 
nothing; or, in other words, has devel- 
oped a large modern business, acquired 
extensive property, and won his way into 
the confidence and esteem of his fellow-men 
by sheer innate force and natural ability. 
He is one of the best-known men in 



Monmouth county, has exceptional busi- 
ness talent, is shrewd, keen, active, and 
far-seeing, and possesses qualities of both 
head and heart, which make him both 
loved and respected by every one. 



Xp A. HOFFMAN, superintendent and 
-^ * treasurer of the New Brunswick 
water-works. New Brunswick, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is a son of Jacob 
and Gustina Hoffman, and was born Oct. 
17, 1851, at Robsville, Pa. 

The paternal grandfather, Henry Hoff- 
man, was a native of Germany, where he 
was born. He had a common-school edu- 
cation ; was a farmer and wine-grower at 
his " alten heim," and a member of the 
Lutheran church. He deceased, leaving 
four children : Jacob, Henry, Julia and 
Mana. 

Jacob Hoffman (father) received his 
education at the common fount of in- 
struction, and subsequently engaged and 
remained in the occupation of farming 
during the remainder of his life. In 
politics he was a democrat, and in local 
affairs he served several years as a school- 
director, and as supervisor of roads. He 
deceased in Sept., 1885, and is still sur- 
vived by his wife, Gustina. From their 
marriage resulted ten children : Katha- 
rine, Philip, F. A., Isabel, Fanny, Lewis, 
Miller, Cora, Clarence, and John, de- 
ceased. 

F. A. Hoffman attended the public 
schools until he was seventeen years of 
age. After leaving his studies, he was 
engaged during a period of twenty-five 
years on the tow-path, operating canal- 
boats from New York city to Philadel- 
phia via Trenton, New Jersey. In 1892 
he was appointed to the positions of 
superintendent and treasurer of the New 



686 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



Brunswick water-works. These posi- 
tions he continues to fill with an efficiency 
that is recognized and remarked. Dur- 
ing the four years of his administration 
of this important branch of public ser- 
vice, Mr. Hoffman has carried out exten- 
sive improvements, both in modern ma- 
chinery and enlarged conduits, and it is 
now said of the plant under his direc- 
tion, that it is the model water-works, 
for its size, in the state of New Jersey. 
Too much credit cannot be given Mr. 
Hoffman for his able, intelligent, and, 
above all, his careful management of a 
concern whose wheels must be kept in 
perpetual motion in order that the do- 
mestic affairs of the people be not dis- 
arranged ; that their industrial establish- 
ments may be kept in operation, and 
what is of the most vital importance, 
that their security be not molested by 
uncontrollable conflagration. Mr. Hoff- 
man holds the key that shuts out such 
contingencies, and that any or all the 
occurrences have not come to pass, is due 
in greater measure to him than the 
people are prone to consider. In politics 
the subject is an active democrat, promi- 
nent in local affairs, aiad takes an abiding 
interest in the welfare of the town. In 
fraternal affairs he is a member of two 
orders in New Brunswick : K. of P., and 
B. P. 0. E. Mr. Hoffman was married 
in Sept., 1881, to Jeanne Vansickle. 
They are the parents of two children : 
Florentine and F. A., Jr. 



/~\ LIVER H. BROWN, the recent as- 
^-^ semblyman-eloct from Monmouth 
count}^, and the veteran mayor of North 
Spring Lake, is also one of the most 
enterprising and substantial business men 
of that thriving seaport town. He was 



born near Farmingdale, Dec. 12, 1852, 
and received little or no educational ad- 
vantages in school. He belongs to that 
creditable class that Americans gladly 
esteem as self-made men. At the age 
of nineteen years he entered upon a clerk- 
ship in a country store at New Branch, 
New Jersey, where he remained two 
3'ears, after which he entered the larger 
and more important mercantile establish- 
ment of John A. Githens, at Asbury 
Park, where he continued for eight years 
as the competent manager of the busi- 
ness. In the meantime Mr. Brown made 
a European tour, visiting many of the 
more important points of interest, and 
later, in 1889, made a subsequent trip 
abroad, both of which trips had the effect 
of broadening his views and very materi- 
ally promoting his business ideas and 
qualifications. In 1881 he launched his 
first business venture on his own account 
on the small marginal savings from his 
previous ten years' earnings as a clerk 
and manager. His business prospered 
from the start, and he was obliged to in- 
crease his facilities to keep pace with the 
constantly-increasing trade, until within 
ten years he had built-up the largest and 
most successful mercantile business on 
the coast. In 1889 he established a 
branch at Lakewood, which is the largest 
of its kind in Ocean county. He has at- 
tained a wide-spread reputation as an art 
connoisseur, and many homes in Phila- 
delphia and other cities contain selections 
from his establishment. He was one of 
the organizers of the borough of North 
Spring Lake, and has ever since served 
as its efficient mayor. He was one of the 
organizers of the First National Bank of 
Asburj'^ Park, the Monmouth Trust and 
Safe Deposit Co., and the Lakewood 
Trust Co., being vice-president of the 




(^p-y^^'^y^^^^^r^^^^-^^^i^ 





^ Q^^ 



/^joto^'^-o 



Biographical Sketches. 



689 



first and a director in all of them. He is 
a director in the Deal Beach Land Co., 
and is interested in the coasting trade, 
being part owner of several schooners, 
one of which, the " 0. H. Brown," bears 
his name. He is a trustee of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church and superintendent 
of its Sunday-school. Fraternally he is 
a member of the Asbury Lodge, No. 142, 
F. and A. M. While thus potent and ac- 
tive in local industrial as well as civil and 
religious enterprises, he is best known 
and chiefly prominent in political life, 
having been elected Nov. 3, 1896, to the 
general assembly of the State of New Jer- 
sey from Monmouth county by a republi- 
can majority of two thousand four hun- 
dred votes, the largest ever given to any 
candidate for assembly on the republican 
ticket in the county. 



WILLIAM H. MORRtS, Jr., a leading 
funeral director of Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, and a prominent 
manufacturer and highly-esteemed citi- 
zen of Long Branch, where he resides, is 
a son of Borden and Deborah (Herbert) 
Morris, and was born Oct. 26, 1855, at 
Eatontown, that county. He received 
his early education in the public schools 
of Long Branch, and afterwards learned 
the cabinet-making and upholstering trade 
under his father, in whose employ he re- 
mained up to his father's death, at which 
time he succeeded to the proprietorship 
of the business. Under his management 
the business has been developed into one 
of the most extensive establishments of 
the kind in Monmouth county. In con- 
junction with this manufactory in 1876 
Mr. Morris established his present exten- 
sive undertaking business, and as a result 
of twenty years' close application and 



careful attention in this important branch 
of his business he has acquired an ex- 
perience and a superior training which 
entitle him to rank among the most suc- 
cessful and popular undertakers and em- 
balmers in the state. His attractively- 
appointed show-room and general offices 
are located at No. 131 Broadway, in the 
Morris building, while his manufacturing 
establishment, devoted to all kinds of 
bedding and upholstery work, is located 
on Mill street. "While Mr. Morris is best 
known in connection with his own per- 
sonal business, as above described, he is 
also potent and an important factor in 
the support of various other local enter- 
prises in which he finds time to devote 
considerable energy to their welfare. He 
was the projector and chief promoter of 
the Baum shirt factory, with which 
he has remained actively identified ever 
since, and it has proven one of the most 
profitable and successful business indus- 
tries for the employment of labor at Long 
Branch. He was also the organizer and 
is the present superintendent of the Glen- 
wood Cemetery Association. As a busi- 
ness man he is enterprising and progres- 
sive, and is considered one of the most 
substantial and reliable citizens of Mon- 
mouth county. Politically he is a demo- 
crat, but has never sought nor held of- 
fice. He is a member of Long Branch 
Lodge, No. 78, Free and Accepted 
Masons ; Standard Chapter, No. 35, R. 
A. M. ; Knights of Pythias; Empire 
Lodge, No. 174, 1. 0. 0. F. ; A. 0. U. W.; 
Holly wood Council, Jr. 0. U. A. M., and 
Council No. 42, Eoyal Arcanum. Mr. 
Morris was married in 1881 to Ida H. Per- 
rine, a daughter of John Perrine, of New 
York, and to their union have been born 
two sons and one daughter : John Edgar, 
Clifton L. and Florence. 



690 



Biographical Sketches. 



Grandfather Morris was born at Eaton- 
town, Monmouth county, and was a tailor 
by occupation all his life. He was the 
father of eight children : William, John, 
Borden, George, Joseph, Ellen, Jane, and 
Louisa. 

Capt. Borden Morris (father) was born 
at Eatontown in 1832, and received his 
education in the common schools of that 
township. He learned the cabinet-mak- 
ing trade, and in 1855 located at Long- 
Branch in the undertaking business. At 
the breaking out of the war he enlisted 
in Company B, Twenty-ninth regiment, 
New Jersey volunteers, for nine months, 
and became sergeant of his company, 
and soon won the commission of captain. 
After the war was over he returned to 
Long Branch and resumed his former 
business. Li politics he was a democrat, 
and always active in the interests of pro- 
moting his party's welfare in all issues 
whether local, state, or national. He 
served as coroner of Monmouth county. 
Fraternally he was a member of Wash- 
ington Lodge, No. 9, F and A. M., at 
Eatontown, and Standard Chapter, No. 
25, at Long Branch. He married Deb- 
orah Herbert, who still survives him 
and is the mother of two children, Wil- 
liam H. and Edmina. 



/CHARLES HENRY WOLCOTT, pro- 
^-^ prietor of the well-known Wolcott 
hotel at Freehold, New Jersey, and a 
prominent citizen of that town, is a son 
of Henry H. and Harriet (Morse) Wol- 
cott, and Avas born July 10, 1834, in 
Millstone township, seven miles from 
Freehold. His ancestry is English on 
the paternal and Scotch on the maternal 
side. The first of his paternal progeni- 
tors to settle in this section were Isaac 



and Esek Wolcott, who located in Ocean 
and Eden townships in colonial days. 
They were of Quaker stock. His paternal 
grandfather, Arthur Wolcott, was a pro- 
gressive farmer all his life, near Eden- 
town. He married Jane Stanford, by 
whom he had six children : Jacob, Rich- 
ard, Henry H., Amos, Jesse, and Burden. 

Henry H. Wolcott, father of the sub- 
ject, was a native of Eden township, and 
was educated near Long Branch. For 
thirty years he conducted a general store 
on the old Baldwin property at Millstone. 
From 1850 until 1855 he was in the mer- 
cantile business, in co-partnership with 
James Lair, at Charlestown Springs, Mill- 
stone. He then sold out his interest, and 
was proprietor of a hotel at the same place 
until 1862, and then moved to Tom's 
River, where, in 1863, he built the "River- 
side House," which he conducted until 
1873, assisted by his son Asher. 

In politics he was an old-line whig, was 
justice of the peace in Millstone township 
for forty-five years, and was also school- 
trustee and occupant of various other 
township offices. He was a conveyancer 
and a general man of afiairs in Millstone 
township. He was one of the leading 
members of the Perrineville Presbyterian 
church. In 1828 he was married to Miss 
Harriet Morse, daughter of Asher Morse, 
proprietor of a hotel and farm in Mill- 
stone township, and also owner of a dis- 
tillery. By this marriage there were 
seven children : Andrew Jackson, de- 
ceased; Mary Eliza, wife of Clark Vaughn, 
of Hightstown ; Lydia Ann, wife of Chas. 
Garrett, of New York ; Charles Henry, 
subject ; Amos, a jeweler in New York 
city ; Asher, a hotel man and farmer, at 
Charlestown Springs ; and Anna, wife of 
Daniel Conover, of Freehold. 

Charles Henry Wolcott, received a 



Biographical Sketches. 



691 



limited education in the district schools 
of Millstone township. When fourteen 
years old he left home, and spent two 
years on a packet-boat plying on the 
Hudson river. He then returned home, 
and was employed in his father's store at 
Charlestown Springs for two years. In 
1852 he became a clerk in the Washing- 
ton Hotel, Freehold, and subsequently 
spent three years in a commission house 
at New York. In the spring of 1857 he 
opened a restaurant and oyster-house at 
the corner of Canal and Greenwich 
streets. New York city, which he con- 
ducted successfully until the winter of 
the succeeding year, when he sold out 
and returned to Millstone township. He 
has been engaged in the restaurant and 
hotel business at Freehold since 1861. 
The present Wolcott Hotel was built by 
Mr. Wolcott in 1876. * 

Mr. Wolcot is also owner of Wolcott's 
Willow Park, established in the spring 
of 1895, the only pleasure resort in Free- 
hold. It comprises two acres, and is pro- 
vided with a lake, pavilion, carrousel, 
and other popular forms of amusement. 
He takes a great interest in fine horses, 
and was one of the original members of 
the Freehold Driving Association. He 
is a democrat, and was a constable in 
Millstone township for four years, and 
freeholder of the borough of Freehold in 
1892. 

He is a member of Castle No. 51, 
Knights of the Golden Eagle ; also of the 
Ked Men. Besides owning his hotel 
property at Freehold he owned and ope- 
rated his maternal grandfather's distil- 
lery in Millstone township. He was twice 
married. His first wife, whom he wed- 
ded in 1862, was Miss Phoebe A. Travers, 
daughter of James Travers, of Spotts- 
wood; she died in 1879, after bearing 



him one son, Henry Oscar, now mail 
agent in the railway mail service. 

His present wife was Miss Hannah E. 
Phillips, daughter of Alfred J. Phillips, of 
Brooklyn, whom he married in Novem- 
ber, 1880, and by whom he has had one 
son, Joseph Edward, a student in Media 
Academy, Pa. Mr. Wolcott is widely 
known and popular. He is a genial, 
hospitable host and a shrewd, energetic 
business man. He is influential in local 
politics, and is one of the most active 
local workers for the success of his party. 



TACOB O. BUETT, an extensive baler 
^ and dealer in hay, a shrewd enter- 
prising man of Freehold, and the head of 
various business enterprises, is a son of 
Jacob 0. and Eliza A. (Potts) Burtt, and 
was born on Aug. 9, 1845, near English- 
town, Middlesex county. New Jersey. 
His early education was obtained in the 
public schools of Gravel Hill and English- 
town ; but he left his studies when seven- 
teen years of age to enter the employ of 
Shriver & Conover, general merchants at 
Freehold, in the same building where in 
after years he was to be in business for 
himself. His position was that of mes- 
senger, delivery, and general utility boy. 
He was paid the munificent sum of 
twenty-five dollars a year, and slept 
under the counter in the store. But one 
year was spent in this way, at the end of 
which time he secured a position with a 
house in Newark, New Jersey, at nine 
dollars per week. For three years he re- 
mained here, when upon the firm closing 
out their business, he went to Rochester, 
N. Y., and started a photograph gallery. 
While in that city he was married on 
Jan. 28, 1868, to Miss Louise C. Page, 
a daughter of C. D. Page, a well-known 



692 



Biographical Sketches. 



inventor and lime-burner of that place. 
From Rochester Mr. Burtt removed to 
New York city, wliere during five or six 
years he conducted a grocer}'. He re- 
turned to Englishtovvn in 1869, and be- 
came associated with his father in the 
mercantile business up to 1882, when he 
came to Freehold and started his present 
business, in which he has ever since been 
engaged. He built a large hay press in 
Englishtown in 1873, and at present 
operates the largest steam press in New 
Jersey, at Hightstown. In 1892 he 
formed a co-partnei'ship with W. H. 
Ingling, under the style of Burtt & Ing- 
ling, and purchased the general store of 
Neafie & Johnston at Freehold, which 
they conducted as partners until 1896, 
when Mr. Burtt sold his interest to Mr. 
Ingling, who still conducts the business. 
For five years Mr. Burtt was associated 
with Peter Thompson in the retail boot 
and shoe business at Freehold, and up to 
1889. With Dr. H. H. Warner, of War- 
ner's Safe Cure fame, as president of the 
company, he was interested in brick 
manufacture under the style of J. 0. 
Burtt & Co., at Rochester, N. Y. Sena- 
tor A. E. Albright was afterwards made 
president, and Mr. Burtt vice-president. 
The business of the company was the 
manufacture of brick by a new process, 
of which C. D. Page, his father-in-law, 
was the patentee. JMr. Burtt was also 
one of the chief promoters of the Roth- 
childs' shirt factor}^, and in securing its 
location at Freehold, and as a stock- 
holder, having served as a stockholder 
until the business was placed upon a 
firm footing. He has been one of the 
directors of the Central Bank of Free- 
hold ever since its organization in 1890. 
Politically he is a democrat. He is a 
member of the board of health and one 



of its inspectors, and its present secre- 
tary. He was one of the first members 
of the board of trade of Freehold, and 
is one of the judges of appeals on cases 
of equity in taxation. He is at present 
a trustee, a steward, and a member of 
the committee on church property in 
connection with the Freehold M. E. 
church, and is one of its most substantial 
members. He is a member of Olive 
Branch Lodge, No. 16, F. and A. M. 
Mr. and Mrs. Burtt have one child, 
Louisa Miranda. 

The great-grandfather Burtt came to 
this country some time prior to the Revo- 
lution from England, along with two 
brothers, and located near Morristown, 
New Jersey. Jacob Burtt (grandfather) 
was born at Morristown, where he Avas 
a prominent citizen and proprietor of a 
well-known hostelry, and became one of 
the esquires of that town. He was a 
major under General Washington's com- 
mand during his famous retreat across 
New Jersey, was at the battle of Mon- 
mouth, and fought gallantly in other en- 
gagements of that war. He was a promi- 
nent Mason. He married Miss Jemima 
Harris, July 9, 1803, who was born Aug. 
20, 1784, and they had six children : 
Mary Thompson, still living at the age 
of ninety years ; Ellison, married to Mi- 
randa Sherman ; Cyrus, Jacob 0., Selah, 
and Theodore. He died at the age of 
forty-eight years, and his widow, who 
afterwards married a Mr. Edwards, died 
in 1864, at the age of eiglity years. 

Jacob 0. Burtt, Sr., was born at Mor- 
ristown, New Jersey, Oct. 17, 1810. He 
was a wheelwright by trade, which he 
followed the earl}^ part of his life at that 
place. He afterwai-ds removed to New- 
ark, where he became associated with 
Seth Boyd in the iron business for six 



Biographical Sketches. 



693 



years. During this time he purchased a 
farm nearEnglishtown, Middlesex county, 
upon which he removed later. He mar- 
ried, Sept. 1, 1832, Miss Eliza A. Potts, 
a daughter of Thomas Potts, and they 
resided upon this farm until Mr. Burtt 
engaged in a general store business at 
Englishtown. He disposed of his store 
in 1875, and engaged in the hay, feed 
and coal business at Ocean Beach, until 
his wife's death, in 1884, when he re- 
tired, and resided with one of his daugh- 
ters, Hester E. Reed, until his death, 
Jan. 10, 1894, at the ripe age of eighty- 
four years. His children were : Sarah 
Rebecca, Pullen, Thomas P., James C, 
Mary E., Henrietta T., deceased in in- 
fancy; Jacob 0., Susan A. Maynard, 
deceased ; and Hester E. Reed. Mr. 
Burtt was a zealous member of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal church, and for eighteen 
years was superintendent of the Sunday- 
school at Englishtown. 



JOHN TRAFFORD ALLEN, one of the 
^ leading hardware and lumber mer- 
chants at Red Bank, Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, is a son of Robert Allen, 
and was born in Shrewsbury township, 
near Red Bank, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey. 

Robert Allen was born in Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, and, after a limited 
education, acquired in the common schools 
of his district, he followed the business 
of his life. He was a republican in polit- 
ical faith, and in spiritual matters was a 
member of the church. He was married, 
and his wife is deceased. The names of 
the children, whom he left at the time of 
his death, are : Robert, Jr., and John 
Traflford, subject of this sketch. 

John T. Allen attended the public 



schools. He subsequently established a 
business of his own, as a dealer in hard- 
ware and lumber, his trade extending 
from year to year until he became recog- 
nized as the leader in his line of indus- 
try, and one of the most accomplished 
and successful of business men. He pos- 
sesses a large fund of information, is 
thoroughly posted in all the political is- 
sues of the day, that affect the continents 
of Europe and America, and keeps abreast 
of his contemporaries in all matters of 
current history. He takes an active 
part in local republican politics, and in 
all mattei's pertaining to the enduring 
welfai-e of his native town he ever evinces 
the deepest interest. 



y\E. FRANCIS McCONAUGHY is de- 
-'-^ scended, on his father's side, from 
a sturdy Scotch ancestry, and on his 
mother's, from an ancient house of the 
English gentry, with a coat of arms and 
a long pedigree. The former were of the 
Presbyterian faith ; the latter of Puritan 
principles ; to both of wliich their de- 
scendants have maintained a steadfast 
adherence. By two separate lines on his 
father's side he is of Scotch origin, and 
by two also on his mother's he is Eng- 
lish. 

The doctor is the sixth in descent from 
Robert McConaughy, the first immigrant 
of the name to these shores, who landed 
at Chester, Pa., in 1733, and settled near 
Gettysburg, at Hunterstown, in what was 
then part of York, now Adams county. 
Pa. Robert came from the highlands of 
Scotland, where his family were members 
of the Clan Campbell, of which Alexan- 
der Campbell, the late duke of Argyl, 
has been the leading representative in 
our times. 



694 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



Robert had three sons, Robert, Samuel 
and David, of these Samuel, who lived 
and died in Adams county, was the father 
of ten children, of whom the eldest, born 
in 1753, was also named Robert, who lo- 
cated m Westmoreland county, Pa., mar- 
ried in 1784 Jane Thomson, whose 
father, James Thomson, was the son of 
a Glasgow Scotchman and had come to 
this counti'y in 1771 and settled first in 
Franklin county, Pa., then in Westmore- 
land county, and finally in Kentucky, 
where he died in 1817. 

This third Robei't McConaughy died 
in Westmoreland county. Pa., in 1818, 
and his wife, Jane, in 1838. They had 
nine children, of whom another Robert, 
grandfather to the doctor, was the sixth, 
born in 1797 in Westmoreland county, 
whence he removed in 1846 to Ohio, 
where he lived till his death in 1868, 
in Northfield, Summit county, near 
Cleveland ; his wife, Rebecca Nesbit, 
born in 1802, married in 1822, and 
died in 1862. They had three children, 
of whom Nathaniel, the father of the 
doctor, was the second, born in 1825, 
married to Miss Julia E. Loomis in 1858 
in her twenty-fourth year, and the doctor 
is the second son of their six children, 
five of whom are now living. 

Julia E. Loomis, mother of the doctor, 
is the seventh in descent from Joseph 
Loomis, of Braintree, England, who came 
to this country in 1638 and settled in 
Windsor, Conn., in 1639, where his son, 
Nathaniel, and his grandson, Hezekiah, 
resided, and from which his descendants 
have spread over all the north and north- 
west, to the number of now probably 
about 20,01)0. His great-grandson, Noah, 
removed from Windsor to Harwinton in 
1735, and he and his son, Isaiah, contin- 
ued to live there. Isaiah's son, Elisha, 



removed from Harwinton to New" Haven, 
where he engaged in mercantile pursuits. 
Elisha was born in 1780, removed into 
the Western Reserve in Ohio, settling at 
Twinsburg, Summit countj", where on 
Oct. 11, 1825, he was married to Eliza 
Mills, a relative of the late Samuel J. 
Mills. Of their five children, Julia Eliza, 
the youngest, born Jan. 1, 1834, was 
married to Rev. Nathaniel McConaugh}-, 
June 14, 1858, and died Aug. 29, 1885. 

Dr. Francis McConaughy was born, 
Dec. 31, 1863, at Millville, New Jersey, 
where his father was then pastor of the 
Presbyterian church. He came to Som- 
erville at the age of eight years, wdiere 
he acquired an academic education, and 
then spent a few years in business pur- 
suits, after which he took a complete 
course of study in medicine, graduating 
at the New York Homoeopathic Medical 
College in 1890. He first settled at 
Westfield, New Jersey, but, after a j'ear 
or tAvo there, finding an opening in Som- 
erville, the home of his bo^^hood, he re- 
moved thither, and succeeded to the prac- 
tice of his former preceptor and friend. 
Dr. Arthur Kenney. On Oct. 11, 1893, 
he was married to Miss Mabel Probasco, 
of Williamsburg, Va. He is a member 
of the great consistory of the Second 
Reformed church at Somerville, and an 
active worker in eveiy form of christian 
effort. His father is a retired minister, 
a graduate of Western Reserve College 
and Princeton Theological Seminary. 
His mother was a highly cultivated and 
refined lady, a well-known and popular 
religious writer for thirty years, author 
of fourteen books and nearly eight thou- 
sand articles for the press. 

Hon. David McConaughy, the son of 
the first immigrant on his father's side, 
was a member of the committee of safety 



Biographical Sketches. 



695 



during the Revolution, and an official ad- 
viser of Washington in that great strug- 
gle, a man of both local and national 
prominence during his whole life. He 
had been sheriff of York county, under 
commission from George III., dated 1765, 
and was, for several years before the 
Re^'olution, a member of the colonial 
legislature, and, for several years after 
the war, was a member of the legislature 
of Pennsylvania, after it became one of 
the United States. He exerted a wide 
and wholesome influence in those stirring 
times. 

Rev. William M. Thomson, D.D., author 
of "The Land and the Book," missionary 
to Syria from 1833, was probably the most 
prominent member of the Thomson con- 
nection, in which there were thirty min- 
isters of the gospel. 

Prof. Elias Loomis, of Yale College, 
the distinguished mathematician and as- 
tronomer, may stand as representative of 
the Loomis family, and Samuel J. Mills, 
already referred to, as that of the Mills 
branch of the four-fold lineage. 



TpHEDERICK G. ROBINSON, a promi- 
-L nent hosiery and knit-goods manu- 
facturer, and a well-known citizen of New 
Brunswick, is a son of Frederick and 
Mary (Bassett) Robinson, and was born 
Oct. 13, 1833, at Hinckley, Leicester- 
shire, England. He js of Scotch descent, 
although his ancestors have for several 
generations resided in Leicestershire. 
His paternal grandfather, George Robin- 
son, was a manufacturer of hosiery at 
Hinckley, and was also prominent locally 
as a musician. His wife was Ann Lam- 
bert, by whom he had five children : 
Frederick K., Samuel, George, Ann, and 
Mary. 

36 



Frederick K. Robinson, the subject's 
father, was born at Hinckley, in 1801, 
and worked with his father until 1848, 
when he came to the United States and 
learned the newly-developed art of rib- 
knitting on hosiery goods at Germantown, 
Pa. In 1849 he engaged in business at 
New York city, which he conducted suc- 
cessfully for nine years. He removed to 
Norfolk, Va., in 1858, and in conjunction 
with his only son, Frederick, the subject, 
was engaged upon contract work for the 
Norfolk Hosiery Co., until the time of his 
death, which occurred in Norfolk, in 1860. 

Frederick G. Robinson, the subject, 
received a common-school education in 
England. He then learned hosiery knit- 
ting with his father, and came to the 
United States with the latter in 1848. 
He was engaged upon contract work, 
and subsequently as superintendent for 
the Norfolk Hosiery Co., at Norfolk, Va., 
until his father's death in 1860, when he 
removed to New York city. Here he 
conducted a butcher business, at first 
independently, and afterwards in co-part- 
nership with John Higland, for a year, 
and was subsequently an auctioneer for 
about the same length of time. He 
next went to Newark, New Jersey, where 
he was proprietor of a laundry for a short • 
time, and in 1863 becaine superinten- 
dent of the Rankin Knitting Mills, of 
that city, which position he retained for 
seven years. He removed to New Bruns- 
wick in 1870, and was superintendent of 
the New Brunswick and Norfolk Knit- 
ting Co.'s mills for three years. 

The foundations of Mr. Robinson's 
present extensive business were laid in 
1873, when he started independently in 
a small way, with only one machine. 
He now has twenty-five machines and 
gives employment to a number of people 



696 



BlOGKAhHICAL SKETCHES. 



at bis mill, Nos. 17, 19 and 21 Robinson 
street, New Brunswick, wbicb property 
he owns. Tbe establisbment produces 
all kinds of hosiery and knit goods, par- 
ticular attention being paid to fine cardi- 
gan jackets, theatrical hosiery and sport- 
ing knit clothing. 

Mr. Robinson is president of Ivy Leaf 
Lodge, No. 103, Sons of St. George, and also 
a member of the Grand Lodge, and district 
deputy grand president of that organiza- 
tion. He is a republican in politics, and 
was nominated for alderman from the 
Sixth ward. New Brunswick, in 1892, 
only failing of election because this ward 
is the democratic stronghold of the city. 
He is a member of St. James' Methodist 
Episcopal church, and a teacher in the 
Sunday-school. Li 1847 he was married 
to Miss Theodora Mary Tinsley, of New 
York city, by whom he had two daugh- 
ters : Mary, wife of S. M. Hubbard, of 
Englishtown ; and Theodora, wife of C. 
S. Stryker, of Blawenburgh, New Jersey. 

Mr. Robinson is a shrewd, progressive 
business man, active in political work, 
devoted in his support of the church, and 
of charitable organizations, and both 
popular and respected among all who 
know him. He has built up a thriving 
and successful business from small be- 
ginnings b}^ thrift and perseverance, and 
is proud of his title to be called a thor- 
oughly self-made man. 



TTON. I<. A. THOMPSON, president of 
-'—'- the New Jersey state senate, and 
a prominent citizen residing at Soraer- 
ville, Somerset county, New Jersey, is a 
son of Calvin and Margaret (Voorhees) 
Thompson, and was born July 19, 1845, 
at Basking Ridge, that county. He was 
educated in the public schools of Basking 



Ridge, and subsequently taught six years 
at Bernardsville. In 1877 he removed 
to Somerville, where he established an 
extensive millinery and fancy goods 
business, which he conducted up to 1894. 
He was elected sheriff of Somerset 
county in 1880 for a term of three years, 
and served as president of the board of 
commissioners of Somerville during 1883 
and 1884. He was elected senator in 
1884, re-elected in 1887, and again in 
1893, and returned in 1896 and, upon 
the organization of this body in that 
year, was made its presiding officer. 
During his long term of sei'vice he has 
been known as one of its most aggressive 
and important members, taking an active 
part in all the legislation and serving upon 
all the most important committees. He 
was chairman of the committees on corpo- 
rations, unfinished business, and state 
prison, and a member of the committees 
on finance, agriculture, and agricultural 
college, treasurers' accounts, commerce, 
and navigation during his term of 1895 
alone. In legislation Senator Thompson's 
policy has been one of moderation, and 
seeks for the passage of measures con- 
tributing to the general welfare rather 
than for sectional or party profit, and his 
bold independence and aggression direct 
his best eiForts to substitute public per- 
manent good for temporary party gain. 
Senator Thompson was united in mar- 
riage Dec. 29, 186 9,. to Sarah Dunham, a 
daughter of Benjamin Dunham, of Mil- 
lington. New Jersej-. This estimable 
Avoman deceased Oct. 11, 1883, after hav- 
ing borne him two children : May, the 
wife of Charles Roberts, and a younger 
daughter. Bertha. Personally Mr. Thomp- 
son is of good appearance, and possesses 
a genial sunny nature, and is popular 
even among his political ojiponents. In 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



697 



his business relations he has been suc- 
cessful, and is the owner of considerable 
real estate in Somerville. 



A NDREW SCHANTZ, of the firm of 
-^--*- Schantz & Eckert, manufacturers 
of machines and engines on Front street, 
Perth Amboy, New Jersey, is a son of 
Francis and Mary (Eichelberger) Schantz, 
and was born in Philadelphia, Pa., April 
1, 1851. 

The paternal grandfather, Andrew 
Schantz, was a native of Weingoten, Ger- 
many, and being a man of liberal educa- 
tion and marked ability in public affairs, 
rose to the dignity of mayor of the 
above city, and became a man of con- 
siderable property. His children con- 
sisted of four sons : Francis, Charles and 
Lewis, both dead ; and Marcus, who is 
engaged in the hotel business at Newark, 
New Jersey. Andrew Schantz died about 
1820. 

Francis Schantz (father) was born in 
Weingoten and was educated in the Ger- 
man schools of his birthplace. He emi- 
grated to America when a boy. He be- 
came interested in contracting, and oper- 
ated largely and successfully at both 
Philadelphia and at Perth Amboy, New 
Jersey, where he worked out large con- 
tracts in the excavation of streets and 
sewers. Politically Mr. Schantz was a 
democrat, and fraternally a member of 
Manhattan Lodge, F. and A. M. His 
five children were : Marcus, superintend- 
ent of the Perth Amboy Brick and Fire 
Proof Manufacturing Co. ; Francis, a tin- 
smith of South Amboy ; Andrew, Lewis 
and Mary (Mrs. John Applegate). Father 
Schantz died in 1893, and his wife in 
1872. 

Andrew Schantz attended the public 



schools of Perth Amboy, and then ap- 
plied himself to learn the trade of ma- 
chinist, at which he worked until he 
reached the age of eighteen years, when 
he became an engineer on board a trad- 
ing vessel, and he followed the water 
until 1880, when he returned to Perth 
Amboy, and in 1882 entered into partner- 
nership with Mr. Eckert, and this firm, 
doingbusinessunderthecaption of Schantz 
& Eckert, engaged in the manufacture of 
various kinds of machinery and engines. 
Under the management of these enter- 
prising and able men the business is 
steadily increasing. Mr. Schantz is a 
supporter of the Democratic party, and a 
member of the Presbyterian church at 
Perth Amboy. 



Tj^EANK L. TUTTLE is a promising and 
-*- popular young business man, and is 
manager of the Asbury Park branch of 
the house of W. R. & J. E. Tuttle, house- 
furnishing supplies, whose headquarters 
are in Danbury, Conn., where the busi- 
ness of the present firm was established 
in 1878. 

Frank Lewis Tuttle is of English an- 
cestry, and is a son of William R. and 
Jennie Birch Tuttle, having been born at 
Bethel, Fairfield county. Conn., March 
10, 1870. Mr. Tuttle's family have 
been identified with the business world 
for generations back, and William R. 
Tuttle (father) was born at South Nor- 
walk, Conn., and there was educated in 
the common schools, after which he pro- 
ceeded early in life to master the details 
of his present line of business, and, as a 
commission dealer, he has been emi- 
nently successful and prosperous. Wil- 
liam R. Tuttle married Miss Jennie 
Birch. 



698 



BiOGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



Frank L. Tuttle passed his early life at 
Bethel, Conn., and attended the common 
schools of that place, and graduated from 
the town high school in 1885. He then 
entered the commission store as an em- 
ployee of his father, and when twenty- 
one years of age, had learned the trade 
of hat-finisher in 1891. The following 
year, 1892, Mr. Tuttle came to Asbury 
Park and took charge of that branch of 
his father's business, and has since been 
successfully managing the same. This 
enterprising house now requires six clerks 
and employees to attend to the wants of 
its patrons, and is increasing in popu- 
larity and proportions. Politically, Mr. 
Tuttle maintains an independent posi- 
tion. In social and fraternal circles, he 
is widely known and popular. He is a 
member of Company A, Third regiment. 
New Jersey infantiy, Corinthian Castle, 
No. 47, Knights of the Golden Eagle; 
Jr. 0. U. A. M. ; Wesley Engine Co., | 
No. 1 ; and has very successfully man- ' 
aged a number of amateur theatrical 
enterprises for the benefit of local organi- 
zations. 

On Oct. 14, 1893, he was joined in 
marriage to Miss Francis Brant, a daugh- 
ter of Edward M. Brant, of Asbury Park, 
and this union has been blessed by the 
birth of two boys : Frank Raymond and 
EdAvin Brant. Mr. Tuttle has all the 
natural endowments essential to success. 



OAMUEL T. VANDERVEER, a sub- 
^ stantial farmer near Colt's Neck, 
Monmouth county. New Jersey, is a son 
of Arthur and Elizabeth (Traftbrd) Van- I 
derveer, and was born in Holmdel town- 
ship, Monmouth county. New Jei'sey. 
He descends from a Holland-Dutch fam- 
ily, which emigrated to this country 



some time during the eighteenth cen- 
tury. 

The paternal grandfather was a farmer, 
a soldier of the Revolution, a democrat, 
and a member of the Dutch Reformed 
church. His children were : Arthur, 
Elias, Jacob, and David. 

Arthur Vanderveer (father), after ac- 
quiring a common-school education, be- 
came a farmer at Colt's Neck, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey. He subsequently 
removed to Holmdel. He was a member 
of the Dutch Reformed church, and 
never held public office, contenting him- 
self with belonging to the rank and file 
of the Democratic party. Nine children 
were the result of his marriage with 
Elizabeth Traffbrd : Cornelia A., who 
married William Straitzer; Jacob H., 
Jane W., who became Mrs. John E. 
Johnson ; Mehitabel, Samuel T., Cor- 
nelius, Abraham, Charles, and Elias. 

Samuel T. Vanderveer, after attend- 
ing the public schools and obtaining a 
fairly good education, became a farmer, 
and has so remained up to the present 
time. He owns a good, large estate 
about two miles from Colt's Neck, in the 
same community, where he has had a life- 
long residence, and where he is held in 
the highest esteem as one of nature's no- 
blemen. In politics, hereditary instinct 
made him in early life a democrat, and 
in latter years he found no necessity- for 
changing. He has been township com- 
mitteeman for twenty-five years, and has 
also served as a school trustee and over- 
seer of roads. In fraternal fellowship he 
is a granger. 

Mr. Vanderveer was married in 1850 
to Katharine Dedrick. To their mar- 
riage have been born seven children : 
Marj-, Kate, Anna D., Jane, Fannie, 
Emily, and Arthur. 




at^><<, !^cy 



OCAi-vCV'^ 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



701 



T EWIS M. CODINGTON, ex-slieriff of 
-'-^ Somerset county, New Jersey, now 
treasurer and manager of the Standard 
Gas Fixture Co., and a dealer in real- 
estate, residing at Somerville, is a son of 
Thomas and Julia A. Codington, and was 
born Aug. 29, 1848, in Warren township. 
Rev. Dr. Messier, in his history of Somer- 
set county, says that the Codingtons lo- 
cated in this county are descendants of 
Thomas Codrington, who was sheriff of 
New York city during the years of 1691 
and 1692, and who at the expiration of his 
term of office removed to Somerset county 
and settled upon eighteen hundred and 
seventy-seven acres of land acquired as 
follows : On May 14, 1681, the first land 
title of the county named was given by 
Konackama and Queromak, two Indians, 
for a value of one hundred pounds, re- 
ceived in merchandise. The grantees 
were P. Carteret, then governor of New 
Jersey ; John Palmer, of Staten Island ; 
Gabrielle Minville, Thomas Codrington, 
John White, John Delavalle, Richard 
Hall, and John Boyce, all of New York 
city. The land conveyed extended from 
Bound Brook ; thence along the Raritan 
river on the north side of Middlebrook ; 
thence northward to a certain Stony 
Hill; thence eastward to Metesses Wig- 
wam, at the mouth of Cedar Brook, 
where it unites with Green Brook, to the 
place of beginning. One thousand of 
Thomas Codrington's portion of eighteen 
hundred and seventy-seven acres were 
hard by the historical Chimney Rock 
and the mountain. The pioneer resided 
during the remainder of his life on his 
lands along Middlebrook, to which he 
gave the Indian appellation of " Racka- 
wakahaka," the Anglo-Saxon translation 
of which is " A Loamy Flat," by a run- 
ning brook or by a rapid noisy rivulet. 



L. M. Codington, after receiving his 
education in the common schools, assisted 
his father in the management of the farm 
until he attained his majority. When 
in 1868 his father, having been elected 
sheriff of the county by the democracy, 
appointed the son to be his deputy, and 
he served in that capacity to the end 
of his father's term to the entire satisfac- 
tion of the people and the sheriff". He 
afterwards became deputy county clerk, 
and in connection with which he estab- 
lished an insurance business at Somer- 
ville, which he has continued ever since. 
In 1881 his ability won for him the re-' 
cognition of the surrogate, who, although 
differing with Mr. Codington in political 
views, appointed him to a clerkship in 
his office, where he remained in faithful 
and efficient charge until he was nomi- 
nated for surrogate by his party. The 
republicans nominated the surrogate 
whose term was expiring, and at this 
juncture the surrogate and his clerk were 
for the first time confronted by opposing 
interests. This embarrassing state of 
affairs was soon relieved by his resigna- 
tion and withdrawal from the surrogate's 
employ, after clearing his desk of public 
interests. At the election Mr. Codington 
was defeated by a small majority, and 
subsequently engaged in the insurance 
business on a larger scale, supplementing 
his own by purchasing a half-interest 
in the insurance firm of Carmer & Co. 
Later he acquired by purchase the entire 
control of the business which he yet re- 
tains. He served as deputy-sheriff under 
Sheriff Tunison, and in 1889 was elected 
sheriff of Somerset county by a majority 
of more than six hundred votes. His 
administration of that office was credit- 
able and satisfactory, and when he retired 
therefrom he carried with him the un- 



702 



Biographical Sketches. 



animous respect of the people, irrespec- 
tive of party. Mr. Codington is still 
managing his insurance business, to which 
he has joined extensive operations in real- 
estate. He was the projector and pro- 
moter of the Standard Gas Fixture Co., 
of Bound Brook, New Jersey, a corpora- 
tion that employs an average of seventy 
hands, and whose product finds ready 
sale throughout the United States and 
British America. He is the largest share- 
holder in this company, acts as its general 
manager and treasui'ei", and supervises 
its affairs. He has been a member 
of the board of education of Somerville 
since 1885, and its treasurer and secre- 
tary during most of this time. He was 
one of the projectors of and aided in the 
formation of two local building and loan 
associations, and has served as president 
of one, and as a member of the finance 
committee of the other, from the time 
of their organization. These associations 
have contributed materially to the per- 
manent improvement of Somerville and 
Raritan, and in his connection with them, 
and through his holdings of real-estate 
at Plainfield and Raritan, he has aided a 
large number of men of moderate means 
to provide themselves a home. Mr. Cod- 
ington has recently projected and organ- 
ized the Kenney Sanitary Manufacturing 
Co., of which he is treasurer. This com- 
pany has commenced the manufacture 
and sale of an entire new device of great 
merit, with their office and salesroom in 
New York. He is also a director in a 
number of other organizations. 

Having connected himself with the 
First Baj^tist church of Somerville in 
1870, he is one of its strongest sup- 
porters, and continuously since 1874 has 
occupied official positions. 

He is a public-spirited, enterprising, 



progressive citizen of Somerville, and of 
the count}^ which his sturdy forefather, 
Thomas Codrington, reclaimed from the 
aborigines over two centuries ago. Mr. 
Codington was married, Dec. 11, 1873, 
to S. Clara, a daughter of Pethuel Mason, 
of Somerville, and to their marriage have 
been born three children ; Perley Mason 
Codington, who is now managing a lai'ge 
business in New York ; Marietta Evelyn 
Codington, and Julia Adelaide Codington. 



A LEXANDER GULICK is an active 
-^-^ figure in political circles, and stew- 
ard of a college club of New Brunswick. 
He is a son of Peter and Ann (Boi'ss) 
Gulick, and was born, Jan. 25, 1832, at 
Flemington, New Jersey. He was edu- 
cated in the local schools of Flemington, 
and is a well-informed man, in spite of 
the fact that he left school when fourteen 
years old. His early life was spent upon 
a farm in Middlesex county. In 1860 
he became steward of the poor farm, and 
retained the position for twenty-five yea,TS, 
his administration during that long period 
being marked by the highest degree of 
integrity and fidelity. In 1885 he was 
appointed warden of the count}^ jail at 
New Brunswick, and served for two 
years and eight months, under Sheriff 
Fick. He then engaged in the grocery 
business for a short time. In 1891 he 
was made the steward of a college club, 
one of the leading organization's of New 
Brunswick, and has continued in that 
position ever since. Mr. Gulick has 
always been j^rominently identified with 
local politics, his affiliations being with 
the Republican party. He was a mem- 
ber of the Republican count}^ executive 
committee for a number of years, and 
has held various other offices. He has 



Biographical Sketches. 



703 



served as a delegate to Republican state 
conventions. He is no less active and 
influential in religious matters, being a 
prominent member, and president of the 
board of trustees, of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church of New Brunswick. He is 
a member of the local lodge, No. 19, F. 
and A. M. He was married, in Dec, 
1859, to Miss Lydia K. WykofF, daughter 
of Elias Wykoflf, and their union has 
been blessed with four sons and a daugh- 
ter : Charles W., Elmer, Alexander, 
Jr., Clarence, and Ann, wife of Henry 
Bennett. Mr. Gulick is a man of high 
repute among his fellow-citizens, and of 
unblemished character. 



TpDWIN PIERCE LONGSTEEET, a 
-'-^ prominent attorney-at-law, practic- 
ing at Manasquan, and counsel for Wall 
township, Monmouth county. New Jer- 
sey, was born in Manasquan June 12, 
1864, and is a son of Andrew J. and 
Anna M. (Clark) Longstreet. On his 
paternal side he is English, and on the 
maternal side of Irish descent, his mother 
being a daughter of William Clark, a 
well-known sea-captain of Manasquan, 
who owned a large tract of land at 
that place, which is now being sold for 
building lots. Captain Clark died in 
1885. Andrew J. Longstreet, father 
of subject, was also a sea-captain, and 
owned a number of vessels engaged in 
the coasting trade. He retired from the 
sea in 1876, and accepted a position in 
the United States Life Saving Service, 
with the station at Manasquan. He re- 
sides in Manasquan, is a large owner of 
real estate, was one of the organizers, 
and is now a stockholder in the First 
National Bank of Manasquan. He mar- 
ried Anna M. Clark in 1862, and to their 



marriage have been born six children : 
Edwin Pierce, William C, in the employ 
of the Pennsylvania Railroad Co. as 
agent; John A., engaged in the insur- 
ance business ; Frederick V., Theodore 
0., and Carrie B , all of whom are now 
students at school. 

Edwin Pierce Longstreet attended the 
public schools at Manasquan, and subse- 
quently entered the Freehold Institute, 
from which he graduated in 1886. He 
then entei'ed the service of the Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad Co. as agent, and remained 
with it three years, when in 1889 he 
began reading law in the office of H. H. 
Wainwright at Manasquan. He con- 
tinued his law studies for four years, and 
was then admitted to the New Jersey 
bar, and opened an office at Manasquan 
for the general practice of law. Six 
months after his admission to the bar he 
was appointed counsel for Wall township, 
which office he still occupies. He has 
held the office of city clerk at Manasquan 
for seven years. In politics Mr. Long- 
street is a democrat, and for so young a 
man holds a particularly prominent posi- 
tion in his party, and has been elected 
delega,te to several state and county con- 
ventions. He is a member of the Pres- 
byterian church. He is also a member 
of the K. of G. E. ; A. 0. U. W , of 
which he was recorder for three years ; 
and Chosen Friends, No. 76, Jr. A. M. 
He has been a member of the fire depart- 
ment of Manasquan since its organiza- 
tion, and is vice-president and assistant 
foreman of the Chemical Engine Co. He 
was one of the incorporators of the local 
telephone company, shore line. 

Mr. Longstreet married Sophia S. Long- 
street, daughter of Captain James A. 
Longstreet, and their union has been 
blessed with two children : Edwin and 



704 



Biographical Sketches. 



Marie. Mr. Longstreet is regarded as 
one of the most talented and energetic 
young men in his town, and there is 
every promise of a highly successful 
future for him. 



"TTENRY E. ARMSTRONG, a thriving 
-*—'- and well-known farmer near Holm- 
del, Monmouth county, New Jersey, is a 
son of Johnson and Elizabeth Armstrong, 
and was born March 8, 1856. 

Aaron Armstrong, the paternal grand- 
father, was born in Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, where he received a com- 
mon-school education, and carried on the 
occupation of a farmer during his entire 
life-time. He was the owner of a good 
farm, was thrifty and frugal in his habits, 
and became a very well-to-do man. In 
politics he was a republican, and in re- 
ligion he took an active part in the af- 
fairs of the Baptist church of Freehold, 
New Jersey, of which he was a member, 
and one of its founders. His wife, who 
died in 1889, bore him five children : 
Johnson, deceased ; Nelson, Helen, mar- 
ried to William Ball; Marion, and Louise. 
He died, in 1886, at Freehold. 

Johnson Armstrong (father) was born 
in 1825, at Freehold, New Jersey. He 
attended the public schools of that town, 
and he has never left the county of his 
nativity. Agriculture became his occu- 
pation, which he .successfully pursued for 
many years on two large farms that he 
still owns. In politics he was, in former 
years, an active supporter of the Repub- 
lican party, and, though w^ell advanced 
in years, he retains a lively interest in 
all matters pertaining to the v/elfare of 
that organization. In religion he is, and 
has been for many j-ears, a member of 
the Baptist church. The fruits of his 



marriage were eight children : Ella, mar- 
ried to L. Hans ; Aaron, Fannie, de- 
ceased ; John L., Elizabeth, Lillie, Jud- 
son, and Henry E., the subject. Mrs. 
Armstrong deceased in 1891, at Atlantic 
Highlands, Monmouth county, New Jer- 
sey. Her husband survives, and is liv- 
ing in quiet retirement in Freehold town- 
ship. 

Henry E. Armstrong attended the 
public schools of Freehold township, until 
he reached the age of eighteen years, 
and, for twelve years thereafter, remained 
at home, and assisted his father in the 
management of his agricultural interests. 
In 1886 he purchased a farm in Atlantic 
township, Monmouth county, on which 
he remained in successful tillage until he 
disposed of those lands, and bought a 
farm, located near Holmdel, where he is 
now residing. Mr. Armstrong is a re- 
publican, and an energetic worker, at all 
times, for the success of his party. In 
religious faith and worship he is a mem- 
ber of the Refoi'med church, in which he 
has held, among other offices, that of 
deacon. He is connected with the fra- 
ternal organization known as the Junior 
Order United American Mechanics, and 
is a member of Holmdel Council, No. 
132, of that association. Mr. Armstrong 
married, in 1881, Louise Taylor, a daugh- 
ter of Michael and Sarah Taylor. To 
this union have been boni one son and 
one daughter, named, respectively, for 
father and mother, Henry, Jr., and Sarah. 



WILLIAM CARSON, a leading farmer 
of Marlboro township, and a prom- 
inent political leader of Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, is the son of Dis- 
brow and Jane Carson, and was born in 
Holmdel township, Nov. 8, 1835. 



Biographical Sketches. 



705 



The Carson family are of German an- 
cestry, the paternal grandfather having 
been born in Germany. Upon coming 
to America, he settled at Hightstown, 
New Jersey, where he was engaged in 
farming and the management of a grist 
mill. When the fall of the seven patri- 
ots upon Lexington's green stirred the 
hearts of the American people, grand- 
father Carson marched with our Revolu- 
tionary heroes, and served several years 
in the glorious fight for freedom and 
American independence. Politically he 
was a whig, and in religious faith a Pres- 
byterian. To him and his much-esteemed 
wife were born four children : Anthony, 
Rachael, Margaret (Mrs. Israel Purdy), 
and Disbrow. Grandfather and grand- 
mother Carson died in Mercer county. 

Disbrow Carson (father) was born at 
Hightstown, New Jersey, in Dec, 1796. 
Upon leaving school and reaching man- 
hood, he engaged in the one great occu- 
pation of that day — farming — and fol- 
lowed that all his days near Marlboro. 
He supported the Whig party with his 
ballot, and worked earnestly in the cause 
of the Dutch Reformed church, in which 
he held various offices. He married 
Miss Jane Vanderveer. A family of seven 
children have been born to this union : 
John v., Garrett V., Mary Jane (Mrs. J. 
N. Welsh), Robert, William, Anna V. 
(Mrs. P. C. Du Bois), and Disbrow A. 
Father Carson died in Marlboro town- 
ship in 1880, one year after the demise of 
his wife. 

William Carson attended the district 
schools of his native township, and then 
spent one year in a private school at 
Freehold. When fifteen years of age he 
left school and began life as a clerk in a 
general store at Marlboro, where he re- 
mained for three years. During the 



ensuing three years he managed a grist- 
mill, and then engaged in the butchering 
business at Marlboro for a like period of 
time. He then turned his attention to 
farming, and has since continued to make 
that the principal occupation of his life. 
In this, as in many other things, Mr. 
Carson has been successful, and, at pres- 
ent, owns and operates one hundred and 
forty acres of fine farming land in Marl- 
boro township. In political affairs, Mr. 
Carson has attained the rank of a leader, 
and in lieu of his valuable services, has 
been the recipient of many honors in the 
line of local, county and national offices. 
He has been a local official for the past 
ten years, and assessor of the district for 
four years, and during the Harrison 
administration was appointed deputy 
revenue collector of the district in which 
he resides. Mr. Carson is a great friend 
of education and the public schools, and 
devotes much time to their advancement. 
At present he is pi'esident of the board 
of education of Marlboro township. 

Mr. Carson is a believer in the doc- 
trines of the Reformed church, and is 
actively engaged in the work of the same. 
His wife's maiden name was Elinor Her- 
bert, daughter of William and Gertrude 
Herbert. They were married Jan. 16, 
1862, and to them was born one daugh- 
ter, Gertrude H., who has since become 
the wife of W. H. Ely. 



TTTILLIAM C. JACQUES, a prominent 
' ' restaurant-keeper of New Bruns- 
wick, ex-member of the state assembly, 
alderman from the Third ward. New 
Brunswick, and ex-chief of the 'fire de- 
partment of that city, is a son of Samuel 
and Abigail (Timmons) Jacques, and was 
born March 20, 1857, at New Brunswick. 



706 



Biographical Sketches. 



His paternal grandfather was an exten- 
sive and successful contract teamster and 
property-owner in New Brunswick, was 
an active democrat in politics, and a 
member of the Episcopal church. He 
died Feb. 19, 1875, having been the 
father of four children : Maria, Samuel, 
Carrie, and Emeline. 

Samuel Jacques was born and educated 
in New Brunswick, and in early life 
leai'ned the ship-cai-penter's trade, but 
subsequently became a baker, and for 
thirty years conducted the largest retail 
and wholesale baking business in the city. 
He was a democrat in politics, and a mem- 
ber of the Methodist church. His chil- 
dren were : Sarah, William C, John L., 
and George J. 

William C. Jacques was educated in 
the public schools of New Brunswick. 
At the age of fifteen years he entered the 
office of Manning & Son, furniture deal- 
ers, as office boy and clerk, remaining 
with them for three years. He then 
joined his father, and was superintendent 
of the latter's baking business until 1886. 
In that year he established a restaurant 
on Peace street, which he conducted suc- 
cessfully for five years, moving to his 
present location. No. 74 Dennis street, in 
1891. 

Mr. Jacques is a staunch democrat, 
and his political career, although short, 
has been an active and honored one. He 
was elected alderman from the Third 
ward in the spring of 1888, and has held 
the office continuously since that time, 
having been chairman of the board of 
aldermen in 1894 and 1895. In the fall 
of 1889 he was also elected a member of 
the state assembly from Middlesex county, 
and served on the following committees : 
Riparian rights, of which he was chair- 
num ; corporations, and docks and water 



fronts. During his legislative career he 
introduced the bill providing for a new 
bridge over the Raritan river at the foot 
of Albany street. New Brunswick, and 
pushed it successfully to a final passage. 

He is a member and ex-foreman of 
Western Hose Company, No. 1, and since 
1878 has been a member of the engine 
company, of which he was assistant fore- 
man for two years. He was first assist- 
ant chief, and in 1886 was elected chief 
of the New Brunswick fire department, 
serving for two years. Mr. Jacques is a 
member of Good Will Council, Jr. 0. U. 
A. M.; Lodge No. 30, Knights of Pythias; 
the Exempt Fire Association ; New 
Brunswick Lodge, No. 324, B. P. 0. E. ; 
the New Brunswick Boat Club, and the 
Washington Social Club. He is a mem- 
ber and active supporter of the Metho- 
dist church. 

On Oct. 12, 1874, he was married to 
Miss Charlotte Reym, by whom he has 
had four children : John L., William C, 
Jr., Milton R., and Florentine H. 

Mr. Jacques is one of New Brunswick's 
best-known and most influential men. 
His sterling success both in business and 
politics has given him an enviable posi- 
tion in the community, and he is respect- 
ed for his energetic progressive qualities, 
and his fidelity to public interests in his 
various official capacities. 



JOHN HENRY HEYER,a dealer in flour 
and feed at Holmdel, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is a son of John V. 
M. and Sarah Conover Heyer, and was 
born March 9, 1831, in Freehold town- 
ship, Monmouth county. New Jersey. 
The Heyer family is of Dutch origin, and 
' its first immigrant ancestor came to this 
country from Holland. 



BioGRAPHicAiv Sketches. 



707 



John H. Heyer, the paternal grand- 
father, was born in Freehold township. 
He received a common-school education 
and carried on the occupation of a farmer 
and a weaver all his life at his native 
place. He was a soldier in the war of 
the Revolution ; was engaged in the bat- 
tle of Monmouth, and gallantly fought 
on other historic battle-fields. In politics 
he was a democrat. He died at Free- 
hold. His children were : Kortenius, 
Betsy, who married Hendrick Bennett, 
and John V. M., all deceased. 

John V. M. Heyer was a native of 
Freehold township, where he was born in 
1793. He learned the trade of a weaver, 
which he pursued in connection with 
agriculture. He was a teamster during 
the war of 1812. Politically he was a 
democrat and a local office-holder in his 
township. In religious matters he was 
an active member of the Dutch Reformed 
church. 

His death, April 9, 1852, was suc- 
ceeded by that of his wife, Feb. 19, 1858. 
They had three children : Joseph C. 
and Kortenius, both deceased, and John 
Henry, the subject of this sketch. 

John Henry Heyer attended the pub- 
lic schools and subsequently learned the 
trade of a blacksmith. He later became 
an expert wheelwright and carriage- 
builder, and for a number of years ope- 
rated a grist-mill. He is now engaged 
in the flour and feed business at Holm- 
del. 

He enlisted in 1862 to battle for the 
preservation of the Union, and as captain 
of Company G, Twenty-ninth regiment 
of New Jersey volunteers, he fought 
at Chancellorsville, Fredericksburg and 
later in the Shenandoah Valley. Cap- 
tain Heyer is a democrat, and an ac- 
tive member of the Dutch Reformed 



church. He was a member of the board 
of freeholders for twenty-four years, and 
in addition he has held other local offices 
in his township. 

He was married Feb. 12, 1866, to 
Emeline Sickels, a daughter of Elias and 
Hannah Sickels. They had four chil- 
dren : Mary S., born Nov. 21, 1857, now 
deceased ; Joseph C, born May 21, 1859 ; 
Mary E., born Sept. 4, 1867, and Henry 
C, born June 3, 1867, now deceased. 



~p\ANIEL E. PATTERSON, a leading 
-'-^ business man and progressive and 
influential citizen of Freehold, is a son of 
David and Anna (Southard) Patterson, 
and was born at Freehold, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, Nov. 7, 1862. 

David Patterson, the son of Teddy- 
Patterson, an early resident of Freehold, 
was born at that town and resided there 
all his life. He was a popular and well- 
known hotel-keeper, and in 1846 became 
the owner and proprietor of the old 
Washington hotel, now known as the 
Monmouth House, of which he was pro- 
prietor uninterruptedly for a period of 
thirty-six years. In addition to this he 
was also largely engaged in the whole- 
sale liquor business and the manufactur- 
ing and bottling of mineral waters. Al- 
ways an active and loyal democrat in poli- 
tics, Mr. Patterson has, however, never 
been an office-seeker, but has filled the 
offices of constable, overseer of roads, and 
freeholder. His marriage to Anna South- 
ard resulted in the birth of six children : 
Hudson, deceased ; Matilda, the consort 
of Mr. Williams ; Clark, died in boy- 
hood ; Anna, deceased in infancy ; Dan- 
iel E. (subject), and David, deceased. 

Daniel E. Patterson was educated in 
the public schools and Freehold Insti- 



708 



Biographical Sketches. 



tute, graduating from the latter in 1881 
at the age of nineteen. Immediately 
after graduation he engaged in the un- 
dertaking business in New York city. 
Here, however, he remained but a short 
time — about one year — when he went 
to look after the varied business inter- 
ests of his father. In 1888 he, in 
partnership with his brother, Hudson 
Patterson, engaged in the wholesale 
liquor business. They di'd business un- 
der the style of Patterson Brothers, until 
the death of Hudson Patterson, in 1894, 
since which time he has conducted the 
business alone. He is also engaged in 
manufacturing. Thrifty and prosperous, 
he owns the Patterson business block, a 
magnificent brick structure, situated on 
South street, and considerable realty in 
other parts of the town. He is a member 
of the Ancient Order of United Work- 
men and Knights of Pythias. He is also 
foreman of the hose company with 
which he has been actively identified for 
the jjast four years. 



TTTILLIAM N. THOMPSON is a well- 
' ' known business man of Freehold, 
New Jersey, and a son of Abijah and 
Abigail (Spencei') Thompson, and was 
born July 23, 1860, at Allentown, Mon- 
mouth county. He is of English an- 
cestry, and his mother was the daughter 
of John and Amy Spencer, the latter of 
of whom died recently, near Allentown, 
at the advanced age of one hundred and 
seven years — a most remarkable case of 
longevity. Tliis family was of consider- 
able prominence. 

Abijah Thompson (father) received his 
education in the district schools, and dur- 
ing his early and middle life followed 
farming, and subsequently the carpenter 



trade. In 1871 he moved to Freehold, 
and carried on contracting and building, 
in which he became quite successful and 
prominent. In 1886 he removed to Asbury 
Park, continuing in the same business, 
which he actively followed until within 
one year of his death, which occurred in 
the spring of 1891. He was an active 
christian, and a prominent member of the 
West Grove Methodist church, at Asbury 
Park. His marriage brought to him four 
children : Edward, now a contractor and 
builder at Asburj^ Park ; Mary, deceased; 
William N., and Amy. 

William N. Thompson was educated 
near Freehold, and after his graduation 
from the public schools, attended for a 
term the Tennent school in the "old Ten- 
nent church." At the age of fifteen years 
he began his business life in the humble 
calling of a newsboy on the Pennsylvania 
railroad, and after one year's service 
entered Bawden's foundry, at Freehold, 
where he was taught the trade of a 
moulder. He followed this trade for nine 
years, leaving it in 1885 to establish him- 
self in the kindling-wood business in 
Fi-eehold. He succeeded in building up a 
large and profitable business, and in 1890 
built a well and private water-works on 
his property, and embarked in the bus- 
iness of street-sprinkling. Since the sum- 
mer of 1891 he has also been engaged in 
the ice business. He is a pushing, ener- 
getic business man, and has been success- 
ful in everything he has undertaken. 
He employs eight teams, besides a num- 
ber of truck horses, and five men. He is 
the owner of a small farm near Freehold, 
in addition to his town propert3^ 

He has a fondness for horses and driv- 
ing, and is one of the charter members of 
the Freehold Driving Association, organ- 
ized in 1896, and is on its executive com- 



Biographical Sketches. 



711 



niittee. He is strongly interested in the 
success of this association, and gives it 
much of his personal time and attention. 
In his politics he is a democrat, but can- 
not be considered a politician. He is 
now an exempt fireman of the local de- 
partment, having served ten years with 
Engine Company No. 10. On May 1, 
1895, he was elected a town commissioner 
of Freehold. 

Mr. Thompson married, in 1880, An- 
netta Chambers, of New Prospect, Mon- 
mouth county, a daughter of William 
Chambers, a farmer, and a man of con- 
siderable prominence locally. She died 
in 1890, two children. May and Ella, sur- 
viving her. 

A CTON CIVIL HARTSHORNE,alead- 
-^^ ing member of the Monmouth 
county bar, and a prominent business 
man and citizen of Freehold, New Jer- 
sey, is a son of Richard S. and Eleanor 
G. (Morris) Hartshorne, and was born, 
Oct. 12, 1843, on the old homestead in 
Freehold township, two and one-half miles 
from the village on the Smith burg turn- 
pike. His boyhood days were spent upon 
his father's farm, and he received a very 
meagre scholastic training in the district 
schools of his native township. In April, 
1859, he entered the county clerk's office 
as a copyist, walking back and forth from 
his home, two and one-half miles distant. 
He remained in this position up to the 
spring of 1866, and, during the last five 
years, he officiated in the capacity of 
deputy county clerk, and attended chiefly 
to searching and preparing abstracts of 
titles. In 1866 he was solicited by Gov- 
ernor Joel Parker to register with him 
as a student of law, which he accord- 
ingly did in that year, where he served a 
regular clerkship, and, at the February 



term, 1870, of the supreme court of New 
Jersey, was duly admitted as an attor- 
ney-at-law and solicitor in chancery, and, 
at the February term, 1876, was admitted 
as counsellor ; he is also a notary public, 
supreme court commissioner, and special 
master of the court of chancery. 

On the first of May, 1875, under the 
name and style of Robbins & Hartshorne, 
he formed a partnership with Hon. Chil- 
ion Robbins, ex-judge of the court of 
common pleas of Monmouth county, 
which firm continued up to the death of 
Mr. Robbins, May 24, 1885, since which 
time Mr. Hartshorne has continued the 
practice alone. 

During his earlier life Mr. Hartshorne 
spent considerable time in home and 
foreign travel, having, in 1868-69, made 
a tour of the Southern states, upon which 
he met his future wife, a granddaughter 
of ex-Governor and- ex-United States 
Senator Bibb, of Alabama. Thereafter 
his southern trips were frequent, until 
Nov. 28, 1877, he made the happy find 
of his first visit, Georgie E. Bibb, who 
was the daughter of the late George B. 
and Catharine Bibb, his wife, at Carlow- 
ville, Ala. But before Mr. Hartshorne 
had been bound by matrimonial ties, in 
the fall of 1871, he made, in company 
with Dr. D. McLean Forman, a European 
tour through England, France, Italy, and 
Egypt, and the islands of Sicily and 
Malta, passing through the Suez canal, 
and ascending the pyramid of Cheops, 
spending six months in visiting various 
places of interest. The following sum- 
mer, in company with the present vice- 
chancellor of New Jersey, Hon. Henry 
C. Pitney; Hon. Henry S. Little, ex-pres- 
ident of the senate ; Aaron R. Throck- 
morton, then surrogate of Monmouth 
county; Dr. John Vought; Jonathan 



712 



Biographical Sketches. 



Loiigstroet; and James Land, he made a 
second trip, visiting all the British coun- 
tries, Belgium, France, German}^, and 
Switzerland. Under the authority of a 
special act of legislature, he was appointed 
h}' Governor Joel Parker a commissioner 
to represent the state at the Vienna ex- 
position, held in 1873. 

Mr. Hartshorne was one of the prime 
movers and promoters of the Decatur 
Land Co., organized Jan., 1887, with a 
capital of $5,000,000, for the purpose of 
purchasing and developing over 21,000 
acres of mineral lands in Alabama and 
Tennessee, and 5,500 acres surrounding 
and adjacent to old Decatur, upon which 
and adjoining old Decatur they laid out 
the city of New Decatur. While old 
Decatur, at the time of the founding of 
New Decatur, had 1,200 inhabitants (now 
about 4,000), the new city has sprung up 
like magic, with almost unprecedented 
growth, until now it has a population of 
5,000 inhabitants, and, in point of survey 
and general lay of the city, far transcends 
old Decatur, both making practically 
one cit}' of 9,000 inhabitants. Among 
the important industries they have lo- 
cated in the new city are the extensive 
Louisville and Nashville railroad car shojis, 
covering fifty-eight acres, with buildings 
and tracks, and employing 900 hands; the 
Oak Extract Co.'s plant, covering twenty 
acres, located there in 1888, the largest 
in the world, there being only two in the 
United States ; the United States Rolling 
Car Co.'s plant, covering fifty acres, with 
a capacity for (unployment of 1,000 men ; 
a tannery, under process of construction, 
which, when completed, will be the larg- 
est in this country, covering thii'ty-five 
acres, with a capacity for tanning 1,000 
hides a day ; besides numerous smaller 
industries of minor importance, and all 



paying out for labor over $100,000 
monthly. Mr. Hartshorne is a director 
of the Decatur Land Co., and one of the 
executive committee of five who manage 
the affairs of the company; also a director 
of the New Decatur Ice Co. ; the New De- 
catur Light and Power Co. ; the New 
Decatur Natural Gas and Petroleum and 
Mining Co. ; and president and director 
of the New Decatur Electric Street Rail- 
way Co. In his home associations and 
business relations he is prominent, and 
active in the practice of his profession, 
making a specialty of collection business 
and settling of estates. As a preceptor 
in law he enjoys the distinction of hav- 
ing had admitted from the office of Rob- 
bins & Hartshorne and his office a greater 
number of attorney s-at-1 aw than any 
other lawyer of the county, if not of the 
state. Among the number are Judge J. 
Clarence Conover, the present law judge 
of Monmouth county ; Hon. Aaron E. 
Johnston, one of the leading criminal 
lawyers of the count}^; Benjamin P. 
Morris; John T. Rosell ; William A. 
Barkalowe, attorney for the Central Rail- 
road of New Jersey ; Frank P. jNIcDer- 
mott ; Joseph McDermott ; and Frederick 
Augustus Ileisley ; all of whom are prac- 
ticing and are successful and able men of 
the profession, with the exception of Mr. 
Heisley, who is now^ studying for the Epis- 
copal ministr}^ At present he has three 
students in his office. Locally he is pres- 
ident of the board of water and sewer 
commissioners of Freehold, and a direc- 
tor of the board of trade. He is a direc- 
tor and has been secretary of the Free- 
hold Mutual Loan Association for over 
twentj-seven 3'ears. Besides a fine in- 
come from his legal profession, he has 
large real-estate holdings in farms, houses, 
and lots in various parts of the county, 



Biographical Sketches. 



713 



and in Alabama. He owns the old home- 
stead, two and one-half miles from the 
town of Freehold, which he has by ma- 
terial improvements made one of the most 
valuable and handsome farms in Mon- 
mouth county. The confidence which 
Mr. Hartshorne enjoys as a business man 
has been demonstrated on various occa- 
sions, when he has been solicited by large 
corporations to negotiate and engineer 
different transactions and deals involving 
large amounts of money ; notably the se- 
curing of an option for the purchase of a 
southern railroad for New York bankers, 
which, after inspection of the books, roll- 
ing-stock, and road-bed, was, on the rec- 
ommendation in his report, given up. 
Mr. Hartshorne possesses a wonderfully 
keen and subtle business tact, coupled 
with a shrewd executive ability, which 
makes him a dexterous manipulator at 
driving good bargains and deals. The 
secret of Mr. Hartshorne's success as a 
lawyer and business man can be attributed 
to industry and perseverance that know 
no tiring, his love for hard work with 
unfailing energy, and to the careful, zeal- 
ous, and faithful prosecution of the in- 
terests of his clients. As a citizen he 
stands high, and is deservedly popular. 
He is an active and zealous member of 
St. Peter's Protestant Episcopal church, 
and has served as a vestryman for the 
past eighteen years. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Hartshorne have been born three chil- 
dren : Acton G., who died at the age of 
four and one-half years ; Katharine B. ; 
and William B. Mr. Hartshorne resides 
on Main street. Freehold. 

Richard Hartshorne, the original Amer- 
ican progenitor of the family, came from 
England to this country in 1670, and lo- 
cated at the Highlands, Middletown 
township, Monmouth county. New Jer- 



sey. He was the first lawyer in the 
county, and a very prominent man. 
Without tracing the several links of his 
descent, it is sufficient for this purpose to 
know that the subject, Acton Civil Harts- 
horne, is probably of about the ninth 
generation of his direct progeny. 

Richard Salter Hartshorne (grand- 
father) was born on the old Highlands 
homestead, and operated a general store 
at Middletown village, but subsequently 
purchased a farm, store and mill near 
Freehold. In 1808 he removed to Mid- 
dletown Point, now Matawan, where, in 
the firm of Van Mater & Hartshorne, he 
carried on a general store for ten years. 
They were also owners and operators of 
small sailing vessels, carrying freight and 
passengers between New York and the 
Point. While residing liei'e he rebuilt 
the old mill near Freehold, all of which 
property he retained, and while workmen, 
were engaged in digging the foundation 
they happened upon a very rich deposit 
of marl, the first discovered in that part 
of the county. These deposits were op- 
erated with -great profit and became 
known as the " Hartshorne Marl Pits." 
In 1818 he sold out his business interests 
at the Point to resume the occupation of 
the farm and mill near Freehold, where 
he remained in active business up to his 
death. Richard Salter Hartshorne, a son 
of Richard Salter, Sr., and father of 
Acton C, was born at Matawan (then 
Middletown Point), Jan. 6, 1814. He 
married Eleanor Morris, a daughter of 
Isaac Morris, a prominent contractor and 
builder of New York city, at which time 
he was engaged with E. W. Van Voor- 
hees, in the firm of Van Voorhees & 
Hartshorne, in the oil business at New 
York city, and remained in this business 
up to 1842, when he sold his interest, 



714 



Biographical Sketches. 



and purchased a form two and one-half 
miles west of Fi'cehold which he contin- 
ued to operate up to 1871, when he re- i 
moved to the town of Freehold, still re- 
taining and operating his farm. On July 1, 
1872, while storing hay away in the barn, 
he slipped and fell a distance of twenty 
feet to the floor, sustaining injuries which 
resulted in his death twenty-eight days 
later. He left a widow and the follow- 
ing children : Kichard Morris, died March 
24, 1885 ; James Theodore, Acton C, the 
suljject of this sketch ; George Sj^kes, a 
farmer at Mulhurst ; Susie Ella, the wife 
of William S. Throckmorton, deceased, 
who was a prominent attorney and coun- 
sellor-aHaw, of tlie Monmouth county 
bar and resided at Freehold up to his 
death. 



JOSEPH HOUGHTON, a well-known 
and prosperous grocer of New Bruns- 
wick, and an ex-alderman of that city, 
is a son of Dennis and Margaret (Dorty) 
Houghton, and was born in 1843 at 
New Brunswick, where he received a 
public-school education. When thirteen 
years old he entered a grocery store as 
clerk, remaining in that position for four 
years, and subsequently spent four years 
as a tinsnnth. In 1872 he established 
his present grocery store on Neilson 
street. New Brunswick, where he has 
conducted a highly successful and profit- 
able business ever since. Mr. Houghton 
has always been a staunch and active 
democrat in politics, and was elected hy 
that party as an alderman, serving from 
1884 to 1888. His popularity is attested 
by the fact that he had a majority of be- 
tween 300 and 400 votes, running ahead 
of the remainder of the ticket. He has 
been foreman of an engine company. 
Mr. Houghton is a devoted member of 



St. Peter's Roman Catholic church, of 
New Brunswick. In 1871 he was mar- 
ried to Miss Mary A. Wellen, daughter 
of Mr. Wellen, of New Brunswick, and 
they have had seven children : Mary 
Agnes, Margaret E., Edward J., Sarah 
A., James, Arthur, and Fannie. 

Mr. Houghton's success in both busi- 
ness and political life has been due to his 
strong, energetic character and enter- 
prising disposition. He served his con- 
stituents faithfully and with good judg- 
ment during his term on the board of 
aldermen, and is deservedly popular and 
respected among all who know him. 

He is of good, sturdy Irish descent. 
His paternal grandfather, Mr. Houghton, 
came to the United States from Ireland, 
and was a successful farmer during the 
greater part of his life, and was a mem- 
ber of the Roman Catholic church. He 
died, leaving four sons : Pati'ick, Edward, 
James, and Dennis. Mr. Houghton's 
father, Dennis Houghton, was a native 
of Ireland, came to this country, and 
was a biakeman in the employ of the 
Central railroad of New Jersey until the 
beginning of the civil war. He then 
went to New Orleans, where he died. He 
was a democrat in politics, and a Roman 
catholic in religion. His family com- 
prised two sons and a daughter : Joseph, 
Michael, and Catherine. 



A H. HOLMES is one of the most 
-^^* prominent farmers and active 
political men of Wickatunk, Marlboro 
township, Monmouth county. New Jersey. 
He is a son of Jonathan and Matilda 
Holmes, and was born in Marboro town- 
ship Oct. 15, 1835. 

The paternal grandfather, Samuel 
Holmes, was born in Marlboro township, 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



715 



his family being one of the first company 
of Holland-Dutch settlers to come into 
that part of the state. 

He was a farmer in Marlboro town- 
ship, where he lived all his life. He was 
a democrat, and a member of the Baptist 
church. His children were : Jonathan, 
Mary (wife of Enoch Allen), and Sarah 
(wife of Henry P. Conover). Grand- 
father and Grandmother Holmes both 
are buried in the churchyard in Marl- 
boro township. 

Jonathan Holmes (father) was also 
born on the old homestead farm in Marl- 
boro township, in 1808. He was a far- 
mer and tanner by occupation. 

He took a very prominent part in the 
public concerns of Marlboro township, and 
was an active worker on the side of the 
Democratic party. Believing in the re- 
ligious principles upheld and practiced 
by his parents, Mr. Holmes, Sr., was 
closely allied and deeply interested in 
the affairs of the Marlboro Baptist church, 
of which he was an active member. 

The children were : Lozell, Mary (wife 
of Disbrow Carson), John W. (deceased), 
Samuel (deceased), and A. H. 

Jonathan Holmes died at Marlboro, in 
1894, his wife having preceded him by 
one year. 

A. H. Holmes attended the district 
schools of Marlboro, and later entered 
the Glenwood Institute at Matawan, New 
Jersey. 

Since leaving school, Mr. Holmes has 
devoted his time and attention princi- 
pally to agriculture in his native town- 
ship, where he ranks as one of the ad- 
vanced and progressive men of his line. 

Although deeply engrossed in the man- 
agement and . successful development of 
his agricultural interests,he finds time to 
devote to the public concerns of his dis- 

37 



trict. He is a democrat, and a member 
of the Dutch Reformed church. 

A. H. Holmes was first married to 
Sarah C. Schanck, daughter of Tyler and 
Elinor Schanck, and on May 27, 1861, 
he married Margaret S. Schanck, a sister 
of the first wife. 



TOHN BANKER,^ the popular grocer, 
^ and alderman of the Second ward, 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Frederick William and Elizabeth Clara 
(Lentz) Banker and was born in that 
city, May 2, 1869. He comes from Ger- 
man ancestry, his father, Frederick Wil- 
liam Banker, having been born in Ger- 
many, and when a young man, about 
twenty-four or twenty-five years of age, 
emigrated to America and located in New 
Brunswick, where he started in the gro- 
cery business. He was an active and 
energetic man, and by attention to his 
business, persevei'ance and industry, 
achieved a successful career as a business 
man. He was a self-made man and well 
deserved the esteem in which he was 
held by the citizens of New Brunswick. 
He was always a strong republican, and 
took an active interest in politics. He 
was a member of the German Lutheran 
church of New Brunswick. He was 
married to Miss Elizabeth Clara Lentz, 
and they had born to them the following 
children : Frank, John, William, Clara, 
and Barbara. The father died in 1894, 
in the forty-eighth year of his age. 

Johir Banker (subject) received his 
preliminary education in the public 
schools and in the high school of New 
Brunswick, after which he attended a 
German school for a time. After leaving 
school he entered his father's store and 
assisted in the business untU 1888. He 



716 



Biographical Sketches. 



then entered into the wholesale liquor 
business on his own account, which he 
conducted for the ensuing three j-ears. 
He then retired and later took his father's 
business, which he has carried on ever 
since ; the store having a most prosperous 
trade, one of the largest, if not the lai'g- 
est, in the Second ward of New Bruns- 
wick. 

Alderman Banker has always been a 
very staunch republican, and an active 
party worker. In the spring of 1895, 
he was elected an alderman from the 
Second ward by a majority of one hun- 
dred and twenty-five votes, the ward be- 
ing strongly Democratic at that time. 
He is also an active and enthusiastic fire- 
man. In 1894 he was a candidate for 
the position of assistant engineer and 
was elected by a majority of one hundred 
and one. He was captain of the fire 
patrol for two years. In 1895, he was 
elected second assistant engineer of the 
department, and in 1896, first assistant. 

Alderman Banker is identified with a 
number of fraternal organizations in all 
of which he takes an active interest. He 
is a member of Washington Commandery, 
Order of United American Mechanics; 
and of Onega Tribe, No. 88, Independent 
Order of Red Men, of New Brunswick. 
He is a member of the German Lutheran 
church of New Brunswick, and, as was 
his father, an active church worker. 

Alderman Banker was married to Miss 
Elizabeth C. Colston on March 9, 1888, 
and they have had born to them a son 
and a daughter, Willie J. and Sophia 
Florence. 



TTTILLIAM F. HARDING, musician 

' ' and prominent business man of 

New Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 

Francis and Mary Harding, and was born 



at New Brunswick, January 1, 1867. 
His grandfather, William Harding, was a 
native of England, and early in life 
learned the trade of shoemaking, which 
he followed till the day of his death. 
He was twice married, and four children 
survived him : Kate, Mary, Francis, and 
John. 

Francis Harding (father), following the 
example set him by his father, also 
learned the trade of shoemaking, which 
he successfully followed for a number of 
years, when, on account of his zealous 
and effective services to the Democratic 
party, to which he belongs, and of which 
he is both an active and efficient mem- 
ber, and his special adaptability to the 
position, he was appointed chief of police 
of the city of New Brunswick, which 
position he now holds to the credit of 
himself and satisfaction of his fellow- 
citizens. 

William F. Harding received all the 
educational benefits which the public 
schools aflbrded, and after his graduation 
he accepted a position with the Consoli- 
dated Fruit-Jar Co. of New Brunswick, 
and by faithful attention to the interests 
of his employers, rose step bj^ step until 
he reached the responsible position of 
foreman, which position he holds at 
present. In addition to the duties of that 
position, he assumed the I'esponsibility of 
entering into the undertaking business 
on his own account in 1896, and has suc- 
ceeded in building up a business which 
bears every promise of being a success- 
ful and lucrative one. 

He is a democrat, and an active worker 
for his part}', and popular among his 
fellow-politicians. He is also a member 
of the order of Red Men, and of the brass 
band of New Brunswick. His acquaint- 
ances and friends are many, and he is 



Biographical Sketches. 



717 



regarded by them with the respect and 
esteem due to an energetic, straightfor- 
ward, genial man. 

He married Elizabeth Bradley, daugh- 
ter of Patrick Bradley, Oct. 7, 1889, and 
to them have been born two daughters, 
Mary and Elizabeth. 



TTENRY C. KRAMER is a notable ex- 
-*— L ample of the thoroughly-equipped 
modern business man. He is one of the 
directors of the Middlesex Shoe Co. and 
foreman of that corporation's extensive 
plant in New Brunswick, and is probably 
one of the best-known and most influen- 
tial among the many self-made men of 
this busy city. He is a native of- New 
York city, where he was born in 1848, 
being a son of Peter and Susan Kramer. 
The public schools of the metropolis fur- 
nished his early education, and subse- 
quently he learned the shoemaker trade 
with his father. 

Beginning at the bottom he worked 
his way conscientiously through every 
step of the business, laying the founda- 
tions for that thorough mastery of all its 
details which contributed so much to the 
a.ttainment of his present position. He 
worked with his father until 1871, in 
which year he removed to New Bruns- 
wick, where his elder brother, John, was 
already established in the shoe business. 
Connecting himself with this brother he 
worked at his trade for three years, and 
finally, in 1874, left him and started in 
business for himself. This he maintained 
for several years, at the end of which 
time he sold out. His next position was 
with the Fulter Shoe Co., where he 
worked industriously for several years. 
He then became connected with the Mid- 
dlesex Shoe Co., well-stocked not only 



with all the expert knowledge that the 
making of shoes requires, but also with 
many advanced ideas which put him 
ahead of the average well-equipped 
worker, and rendered him invaluable to 
a progressive firm. At the end of a year 
and a half he took charge of the cutting- 
room of the Middlesex Shoe Co.'s factory, 
the most important department of mod- 
ern shoe-making, and so rapid was his ad- 
vancement in the upper grades of the 
business that in 1873 he was made a di- 
rector of the company and foreman or 
manager of the entire establishment. 

He is a member and an ofiicer of the 
Methodist Episcopal church, and active 
in the discharge of his religious duties. 
He is a member of the I. 0. 0. F. He 
married Miss Maud Elizabeth Drake. 

In social as well as business affairs Mr. 
Kramer is a man of wide popularity. He 
is respected everywhere for his liberal 
and progressive principles, and is looked 
upon as one of the solid citizens of New 
Brunswick. 

Peter Kramer (father) in early life was 
a broker in Newark, New Jersey, but 
afterwards adopted shoemaking as a 
trade, and is now successfully established 
in the shoe business in New York city. 
He is a republican and an active member 
of the Baptist church. He was married 
and has had born to him four sons and 
one daughter : John, Henry C, Peter, 
Samuel and Emily. 



TpDWARD OAKES, one of the best- 
-'— ^ known citizens of Atlantic High- 
lands, Monmouth county, is proprietor of 
the Columbus House at that place, and 
an active worker in the local fire depart- 
ment. He is a son of Patrick and Brid- 
get (Swift) Oakes, and was born May 15, 



718 



Biographical Sketches. 



18G1, at Holmdel, Monmouth county. 
He is of sturdy Irisli ancestry, his father, 
Patrick Oakes, having come to this coun- 
try from Irehmd. He located in Holm- 
del townshijj, Monmouth county, and 
Avas a prosperous and progressive farmer 
there for forty-five years. His children 
were seven in number : Ellen, deceased ; 
Mary, Edward, Ann, John, Thomas, and 
Kitty. 

Edward Oakes, subject of this sketch, 
spent his early life on his father's farm in 
Holmdel township, and attended the 
winter sessions of the Holmdel district 
schools, by which means he obtained a 
solid elementary education. In 1871, 
when ten years of age, he was initiated 
into the hotel business as a bell-boy and 
messenger at the Swift House, Highlands 
of Navesink, a general hotel with a spe- 
cial summer season. Mr. Oakes re- 
mained connected with this hostelry until 
1892, during which time he attained the 
positions of cashier and manager, and 
gained a thorough insight into every de- 
tail of modern hotel-keeping. In Nov., 
1892, he removed to Atlantic Highlands, 
and on Jan. 20, 1893, opened the Colum- 
bus House, that name being chosen on 
account of the World's Fair celebration 
being held that year. The hotel is the 
only commercial house in the town, is 
advantageously located, admirably main- 
tained, and has prospered in a high de- 
gree. Mr. Oakes' political affiliations 
are with the Democratic party, and he 
takes an active and influential part in 
local affiiirs. He is especially intei-ested 
in fire department matters, and is an 
organizer and charter member of Hose 
Co., No. 2, formed June 30, 1893, of 
which he has been foreman to the present 
time. He is a diligent member of the 
Middletown Firemen's Relief Associa- i 



tion, and served as vice-president of that 
organization for two years. He is a 
charter member and director of the local 
board of the Mutual Guarantee Building 
and Loan Association. 

He married Miss Catherine Baring, by 
whom he has had five children : Wil- 
liam, Mary, Bella, Gertie, and Daniel C, 
besides one deceased in infancy. 

Mr. Oakes is distinguished for his 
active interest in all matters relating to 
the welfare of Atlantic Highlands, and 
he has contributed in no small degTce to 
the progress of that flourishing com- 
munity. He is energetic and industrious 
jn his business aftairs, gives a thorough 
personal supervision to the maintenance 
of his hotel, and has made it within a 
few years one of the leading and best- 
known houses in this section of New 
Jersey. He is genial and courtly in dis- 
position, brimming over with that true 
hospitality that is such a rare but requi- 
site quality in a host, and is universally 
loved and respected. 



'yHOMAS MURRAY.— East Brunswick 
-L can boast of few more solid, sub- 
stantial, and enterprising citizens than 
Thomas Murray. Born of Scotch parent- 
age, his career has been distinguished by 
the sturdy, industrious, and energetic 
qualities which are the distinguishing 
characteristics of the Scotch people. 

Mr. Patrick G. Murray, grandfather of 
Thomas Murray, emigrated from Scot- 
land in 1815, and settled near the town 
of Delhi, Delaware county, state of New 
York, where he became a farmer, al- 
though his occupation in his native coun- 
try had been that of a shepherd. His 
education was limited, but as the Scot- 
tish schools are very practical and thor- 



Biographical Sketches. 



719 



ough he was possessed of sufficient cul- 
ture to serve his life's purposes. Although 
never active in politics, he was allied to 
the old-line Whig party. In religion he 
was a Scotch presbyterian, a life-long 
member of that church, and for many 
years one of its active deacons. Of his 
children there were five : Robert, now 
deceased; James M., John, William, 
judge of the supreme court for the Fifth 
district of New York ; Jane, now Mrs. 
Eussell, and David, who graduated as a 
physician, but is now deceased. 

John Murray, the third child, and the 
father of Thomas Murray, was born in 
Delaware county. New York, and re- 
ceived a common-school education. Al- 
though never an active politician, he 
took a great interest in the fortunes of 
the whigs, having followed his father in 
his political faith, afterwards, by a natu- 
ral transition, joining the republicans. In 
his religious faith he also followed in bis 
father's footsteps, being a life-long mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church. 

Not contented with farm life he en- 
gaged in contracting, making a specialty 
of bridge-building, and so thoroughly 
was his work done and contracts exe- 
cuted that some of the frame bridges 
which he erected as early as 1856 are 
in a good state of preservation. In 1866 
he moved to Sayresville, New Jersey, 
and entered into the brick manufactur- 
ing business in partnership with his 
brother Robert, in which he was very 
successful, retiring in 1880 from an ac- 
tive business with a handsome compe- 
tence. To him were born four children : 
William M., a lawyer, politician, and lit- 
terateur, now living at Spokane Falls, 
Washington ; Isabella, Thomas, and Jen- 
nie, deceased. 

Thomas Murray, son of John and El- 



len (Middlemus) Murray, was born June 
18, 1847, in Delhi, Delaware county. 
New York state. After graduating from 
the public schools he entered the Dela- 
ware Academy, finishing his education 
there at the early age of fifteen. He im- 
mediately entered on his business career, 
engaging with his father, who was then 
executing some bridge contract work at 
Saginaw, Mich. Here he remained from 
1862 till 1865, when he returned to 
Delaware county. New York, and en- 
tered into bridge-building and general 
contracting. In 1866 he came to New 
Brunswick, and in the winter of that 
year he entered Rutgers College and 
took a special course in civil engineering, 
graduating in the class of 1869. Remov- 
ing to Paterson, New Jersey, he engaged 
in the brick business, remaining there 
two years, when he removed to New 
York city, succeeding there the firm of 
Dunger & Co. in the real-estate and auc- 
tion business. Here he remained until 
1879, when he entered into the business 
of contracting for the building of docks, 
bridges, etc. In this business he was emi- 
nently successful. When, in 1888, appre- 
ciating the great possibilities of the future 
in electrical engineering, he entered into 
special relations with the Thomson- 
Houston Co., of Boston, and engaged in 
electrical contract work. In June of the 
following year he entered into partner- 
ship with J. D. Murray in the building 
and equipping of electric railroads, and 
did a wonderfully extensive business. 
He has the satisfaction of knowing that 
he has never delayed a contract for a 
day. One of the especial monuments to 
Mr. Murray's enterprise was the negoti- 
ating and planning of the New Bruns- 
wick trolley system. Of this he was not 
only superintendent of construction, but 



720 



Biographical Sketches. 



also aided largely in securing the neces- 
sary capital. 

In politics he has always been an inde- 
pendent republican, and although not a 
member of the Presbyterian church, has 
regularly attended its services. Since 
1881 he has resided on New Road, East 
Brunswick, where he owns one hundred 
and twenty acres of land, which he is 
developing into a beautiful suburb, called 
"Highland Pai'k." This includes river 
and railroad junctions and manufactur- 
ing sites. On a part of this land the 
Waldrons Machine Works are now build- 
ing. The beautiful house occupied by 
Mr. Murray and his family is called 
" Livingston Manor." 

Mr. Murray was married on March 2, 
1869, to Helen Wycoff, by whom he has 
had three children : Florence (Mrs. J. V. 
Harvey) ; Emma, and Ella. 

Notwithstanding his busy life, as evi- 
denced above, Mr. Murray is still actively 
engaged in business as a contractor, and 
bids fair to be so for many years to come. 



JOHN ELLIS, police magistrate, and a 
succes.sful loan and collection agent, 
at Atlantic Highlands, Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, is a son of Rev. John and 
Grace (Manuel) Ellis, and was born Jan. 
19, 1841, at Ironton, Lawrence county, 
Ohio. He is of mixed ancestry — Welsh 
and English. 

Rev. John Ellis, father of subject, w^as 
a minister of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, and an active member of the Oliio 
conference. He was locally identified 
with the Methodist Episcopal churches, 
in and around Ironton, Ohio, for a num- 
ber of years, and liis ministrations were 
productive of mucli good. He was a man 
of excellent literary tastes and training, 



a writer of note, liberal in his views, well 
versed in theology, and a valued con- 
tributor to several foreign and domestic 
magazines, published in the interests of 
the churches. His marriage with Grace 
Manuel resulted in the birth of five chil- 
dren : Thomas, John, Richard, Alfred and 
Charles. 

John Ellis (subject) passed his early 
boyhood in Ironton, Ohio, and later re- 
moved to New York city, where he re- 
ceived his education in the public schools. 
In 1858 he accepted a situation in the 
the old Park Bank, now the National 
Park Bank, situated on Broadw^ay, New 
York, within a stone's throw of the Astor 
House and the Post-office. He remained 
seventeen years as a clerk for the bank, 
and in 1875 he removed to New Jersey, 
engaging in business as a collection 
agent and notary public for banks and in 
general. In 188-3 Mr. Ellis removed to 
Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, where 
he lived in retirement from active bus- 
iness during a period of five years. In 
1888 he was elected justice of the peace, 
and he is also the police magistrate of his 
town. In addition to his public duties 
he handles and settles estates, and con- 
ducts a general loan and collection 
agency. He is an active and careful 
man of business, conservative and sys- 
tematic in his methods, and a useful and 
progressive citizen of Atlantic Highlands. 
Mr. Ellis resides on Avenue D, Atlantic 
Highland.s, with his wife and two daugh- 
ters : Margaret Welch and Hortense. 



TDATRICK BURNS, deceased, the late 
-*- popular postmaster of Raritan, New 
Jersey, was a son of John and Margaret 
Burns, and was born in Ireland in 1846. 
His paternal grandfather was a farmer, 



Biographical Sketches. 



721 



and died in 1850. Their children were : 
John, Daniel, Michael, Patrick, Jere- 
miah, Mary, married to Thomas Malone, 
and Julia. John Burns (father) was edu- 
cated in the public schools of his native 
county, and lived and died a tiller of the 
soil. His son came to this country in 
1867. He was the father of eight chil- 
dren : Patrick, Michael, deceased ; Dan- 
iel, John, Jeremiah, Mary, Margaret, 
deceased, and Julia. After completing 
his education at the public schools Pat- 
rick Burns commenced life in the gro- 
cery business, and continued in that 
business up to his death. He had a nat- 
ural taste for politics, and, uniting with 
the democrats, became a zealous and un- 
tiring worker for his party. So conspicu- 
ous was his zeal, which did not outrun 
his accomplishment, that his services 
were appropriately rewarded by Presi- 
dent Cleveland upon his first election 
with the appointment to the postmaster- 
ship of Earitan. 

Upon the change of administration 
Mr. Burns naturally lost his position, 
but was re-appointed upon President 
Cleveland's re-election, a signal approval 
of his administration of the affairs of his 
office during his first tenure of it. This 
re-appointment gave universal satisfac- 
tion to the citizens of Raritan, the com- 
mon verdict being that he gave the best 
postal service of any man ever appointed 
to the office. In addition to his grocery 
business and postmastership Mr. Burns 
also fulfilled the duties of justice of the 
peace, and acceptably filled that office 
for five vears and up to his death, Oct. 
13, 1896. 

Mr. Burns was a Roman Catholic. In 
November, 1874, he was married to 
Mary Hickey, daughter of Phijip Hickey, 
and to them were born eight children : 



John, Jeane, Daniel, Mary, Philip, Pat- 
rick, Margaret, and Anna. 



/CAPTAIN B. S. TOTTIN, by reason of 
^-^ his church, military and political 
records one of the genuinely popular 
men of Somerset county, is a son of 
Abram S. and Anna (Smith) Tottin, and 
was born Jan. 26, 1837. Lafferd Tottin 
(grandfather) was a member of the Re- 
formed church. In politics he was an 
old-line whig. He married a Miss Skill- 
man, and their children were : Abram 
S., Maria, Lucy, John Simpson, Joseph, 
Silas, Sarah, Randolph, Rachel, and 
Catherine. 

Abram S. Tottin (father) was a farmer, 
an elder and deacon in the Dutch Re- 
formed church, and in politics was iden- 
tified with the whigs until the birth of 
the Republican party, after which he 
gave his undivided support to the up- 
building of that organization. His chil- 
dren were : Benjamin S., Lafferd, Abram 
S., and John L. 

Captain B. S. Tottin attended the dis- 
trict schools until he was about twenty 
years of age, working on his father's 
farm during the summer months. After 
leaving school, he taught two winter 
terms, and served as township superin- 
tendent of schools several vears. He 
was captain of Company K, Thirtieth 
regiment New Jersey volunteers in the 
civil war. The regiment was attached 
to the Army of the Potomac, and ren- 
dered valuable service until the expira- 
tion of its term of enlistment. Captain 
Tottin's company won distinction at the 
two battles of Fredericksburg and the 
battle of Chancellorsville. After his re- 
turn from the war, he was engaged in 
business until 1874, when he was elected 



722 



Biographical Sketches. 



slieiifF of Somerset county. The county 
at that time was strongl}' democratic, 
but Captain Tottin carried it bj" a hand- 
some majority. Mr. Tottin so faithfully 
and satisfactoril}- acquitted himself of the j 
duties of the office that he was re-elected 
by an overwhelming majority. Upon ' 
the expiration of his second term, he 
engaged in the lumber business in New j 
Brunswick. In 1881 he was again 
offered the nomination of sheriff, but 
owing to pressure of business he was 
forced to decline. In 188-3 he returned 
to Middlebush to reside, but continued in 
the lumber business at New Brunswick ' 
until 1888, since when he has been pur- 
chasing agent for the Lawrence Cement 
Co., of New York. He has been a mem- 
ber of the Reformed church for forty 
years, and has served as elder and dea- 
con for many years in the Middlebush 
church. 

In 1861 he married Miss Mar^' Louisa 
Van Doren. Their children are: George 
D., Charles L., WiUiam R., deceased; 
Maria Louisa, Arthur B., Willard, R. V. 
D.. and Frank. 



~r\R. JAMES J. REED, one of the lead- ! 
-*-^ ing, most skillful, and successful 
physicians and surgeons of Northern 
New Jersey, ex-mayor of Sea Bright, 
and a thirty-second degree mason, is a son 
of the late William and Sarah A. (Joline) 
Reed, and was born Aug. 31, 1860, at 
Long Branch, Monmouth count}^, New 
Jersey. Dr. Reed is of Scotch-English 
extraction, but owing to the untimely- 
death of his grandfather, Robert Reed, , 
before collating the genealogical chron- 
icles of his ancestry, the writei''s efforts 
to trace beyond the grandsire, have been 
next to fruitless. It is known, however, 



that Robert Reed was a resident of Balti- 
more, Md. 

William Reed (father) was born Oct. 
15, 1832, near Baltimore, Md., and at 
the age of ten years migrated with his 
parents to Long Branch, New Jersey, 
where he completed his education. He 
was first engaged in the livery business, 
and afterwards in house painting and 
contracting until retirement. He en- 
listed in the Third regiment. New Jer- 
sey militia, for three months in the civil 
war, and at the expii-ation of his term, 
in July, 1861, re-enlisted in Company A, 
Twenty-ninth regiment. New Jersey vol- 
unteers, in which he served nine months. 
In 1862 he enlisted for the third time, 
and followed the fortunes of his comrades 
of Company G, New Jersey cavalry vol- 
unteers, until the close of the war. Po- 
litically Mr. Reed was a democrat. Re- 
ligiously he was identified with the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church, and as a member 
he was an earnest and faithful worker 
and a liberal contributor to its support. 
He was married in 1858 to Sarah A. 
Joline, a daughter of James Joline. Mr. 
Reed deceased in 1893, and is survived 
by his widow, who resides at Long 
Branch with her son Edward and daugh- 
ter Jarannah. They were the parents 
of eleven children, seven of whom lived 
to mature years : William L., the present 
postmaster of North Long Branch; Dr. 
James J., Jarannah, the only daughter ; 
Walter S., druggist, a graduate of the 
New York College of Pharmacy, of North 
Long Branch ; Daniel, grocer and fruit 
dealer, at Sea Bright; Dr. Charles A., a 
dentist at Sea Bright, and Edward, tele- 
graph operator and station agent for the 
Central R. R. of N. J., at Branchport. 

Dr. James J. Reed acquired a thorough 
education in the public schools of his nOr 



Biographical Sketches. 



725 



tiVe city. In 1878 he commenced as a 
drug clerk at Long Branch. Five years 
subsequently he passed his examination 
before the state board of pharmacy very 
successfully, then associated in partnership 
with Stephen D. Woolley, and operated 
a drug store at Asbury Park for ten years. 
He first studied medicine under Drs. H. 
W. Garrison and H. S. Kinmouth, at 
Asbury Park. After completing the re- 
quired course of reading he marticulated 
in the College of Physicians and Surgeons 
at New York citv, from which in 1887 he 
was graduated with honors. Immediately 
after receiving- his diploma and degree 
he located in practice at Sea Bright. 
During the winter months the doctor has 
quite a large practice in New York city 
among some of the wealthiest residents. 
In addition to his medical practice he 
owns a large drug store at Sea Bright 
and second to none in beauty in the state. 
Dr. Reed is a democrat, a liberal and 
broad-minded one, who votes for princi- 
ples rather than for party. In borough 
affairs he always takes a deep interest, 
and has occupied some of the most im- 
portant offices. He was elected a mem- 
ber of the board of commissioners in 
1890, and served three years. In 1894 
he was elected mayor of Sea Bi-ight, and 
served the term of one year. He has 
been president of the board of health 
since 1890. He was mainly instrumental 
in securing for Sea Bright its present 
effective system of sewerage and for the 
passage of the bill incorporating the town 
as a borough in 1889. In secret society 
matters he is a member of Long Branch 
Lodge, No. 78, P. and A. M. ; Standard 
Chapter, No. 35, R. A. M. ; Carson Com- 
mandery. No. 15, Knights Templar; 
Mecca Temple, Nobles of the Mystic 
Shrine, New York, and has attained his 



thirty-second degree in the New York 
Consistory ; Long Branch Council, No. 
429, Royal Arcanum ; Seaside Lodge, 
No. 47, Knights of Pythias; Sea View 
Lodge, No. 228, I. 0. 0. F., of North 
Long Branch ; Ashland Council, No. 28, 
Jr. 0. U. A. M., of Sea Bright; Crystal 
Wave Council, No. 54, D. of L., of North 
Long Branch. In the Knights of Pythias 
order he ranks as past chancellor and as 
past district deputy, and in the Jr. 0. U. 
A. M. he is notably prominent. In the 
subordinate council of this order Dr. 
Reed has occupied every office from out- 
side sentinel to past councillor, and has 
represented his council in the State Coun- 
cil of New Jersey. In 1890 he was dep- 
uty state councillor of his district, and 
in 1890 was chosen national representa- 
tive at the annual session of the State 
Council. In 1893 he was appointed dep- 
uty national councillor for New Jersey, 
and in 1894 was re-appointed. In 1895 
he was elected to the high and honorable 
office of state council treasurer. Dr. Reed 
has been already mentioned as a national 
councilor possibility in the near future, to 
which exalted rank in the order a host of 
juniors would gladly see him raised. He 
has been urged to stand for the assembly 
of New Jersey, but this honor he has 
invariably declined. He is a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church, and a 
member of the Epworth League. He 
also delivers orations before conclaves 
of his secret orders. Personally and so- 
cially he is affable and genial. Dr. Reed 
was united in marriage May 7, 1882, to 
Carrie E. Ferry, a daughter of Captain 
S. W. Ferry, of Ocean Port, New Jersey, 
and to their union have been born three 
children : Howard B., born March 18, 
1883; Walter C, born March 24, 1889, 
and Helen E., born Nov. 24, 1S92. 



726 



Biographical Sketches. 



CHARLES GREENWALD, chief of the 
fire department of New Brunswick, 
and an influential politician of that cit}', 
is a son of Henry and Dora (Chundt) 
Green wald, and was born, March 20, 
1863, at New Brunswick. He was edu- 
cated in the common schools of New 
Brunswick. Until twenty-one years of 
age he followed the shoemaker's trade. 
He became a member of the Phoenix 
hose compan}^, was secretary of that or- 
ganization for a number of years, and, in 
1884, was elected a member of the engine 
company, and appeared as foreman of the 
hose company. He was elected second 
assistant in 1891, first assistant in 1892, 
re-elected to that position in 1893, and 
was finally elected to his present position, 
as chief of the fire department, in 1894, 
by one of the largest majorities ever 
given a candidate for that office. 

Mr. Greenwald is a democrat in poli- 
tics, and exercises a strong influence in 
municipal affairs. He is a member of the 
order of Elks. Under his administra- 
tion the New Brunswick fire department 
has attained a high degree of excellence 
in equipment, discipline, and efficiency. 
He is prominent in politics, and popular 
socially. 

His fiither, Henry Greenwald, was a 
shoemaker all his life at New Brunswick, 
was an active democrat in politics, and a 
member of the Reformed church. His 
wife was Miss Dora Chundt, by whom he 
was the father of ten children : Rose, 
Kate, Charles, John, Lily, William, Mar- 
garet, Lulu, Leonard, and Maze. He 
died Nov. 16, 1889. 



TpRANK L. HIXDLE, D. D. S., a promi- 
-'- nent dentist, and an influential 
business man of New Brunswick, is also 
an extensive real-estate owner in Pater- 



son, New Jersey. He is the second son 
of John H. Hindle, and was born at Pat- 
erson. New Jersey. 

His father, John H. Hindle, recently 
deceased, who was a life-long resident of 
Paterson, received a common-school edu- 
cation, and began life as a poor boy ; but 
met all obstacles to his success with such 
determination that he soon won confi- 
dence and a business standing. Being a 
public-spirited man, Mr. Hindle served as 
one of the original members of the Nep- 
tune steam fire company, as a member of 
the chosen board of freeholders, and as 
president of the Phelps guards. He was 
also an active member of the order of 
Red Men, a large stockholder in the First 
National Bank of Paterson, and was ap- 
pointed by the court as morgue-keeper of 
the county. Mr. Hindle was engaged in 
the undertaking business, and kept the 
finest horses, carriages, and funeral ap- 
pliances that money could buy. He was 
a republican in politics, and a man who 
had many friends, and his opinion com- 
manded the highest respect of his neigh- 
bors, as he always gave ever}' question 
careful consideration, and had sufficient 
force of character to act upon his honest 
convictions. He was fifty-five years of 
age at the time of his death, and left a 
wife and four children : Charles B., Frank 
L., and two daughters, both married. 

The boyhood of the 3'ounger son, Frank 
L. Hindle, the subject of this sketch, 
was passed in Paterson, New Jersey, his 
native city. He attended the public 
schools, and afterwards took a course of 
study with Prof James McManus. At 
an early age he chose dentistry as his 
profession, and, after the death of his 
father, entered the Philadelphia Dental 
College, where he won the degree of 
D. D. S. After practicing dentistrj^ for 



BioGRAPHicAiv Sketches. 



727 



several years, Dr. Hindle undertook a 
special course of study and practical 
work, under the instruction of Dr. Walter 
Starr, of Philadelphia, a specialist in 
crown and bridge work. He spent a 
large sum of money for a special training, 
that he might rank among the best in 
his profession. He afterwards associated 
himself with Dr. Levee, of Orange, New 
Jersey, who was one of the leading prac- 
titioners in the state, and subsequently 
with Dr. Holbrook, of Newark, a leading 
member of the State Dental Society. In 
Sept., 1891, Dr. Hindle came to New 
Brunswick, forming a partnership with 
Dr. James G. Palmer, at 421 George 
street, his present office. In April, 1893, 
he succeeded to the entire practice, since 
which time he has not only retained the 
practice that had been built up by Dr. 
Palmer, during an eighteen years' resi- 
dence in New Brunswick, but he has 
largely increased the same, and has ac- 
quired such an enviable reputation that 
he now enjoys one of the finest practices 
in the state. 

Dr. Hindle is also a large stockholder 
in the First National Bank of Paterson, 
the Cedar Lawn Cemetery Co., the Gas 
Co. of Paterson, and, with his brother, 
Charles B. Hindle, is extensively inter- 
ested in real estate. His marriage to 
Miss Catharine Deshler, daughter of Mr. 
James Deshler, of New Brunswick, was 
celebrated on Oct. 18, 1894. 

Dr. Hindle is skillful in his profession, 
popular socially, and enjoys the confi- 
dence and esteem of a large clientele and 
circle of friends. 



/CHARLES A. SCHENCK, general man- 
^-^ ager and cashier of the National 
Tube Boiler Works, of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey, is a son of Henry V. D. and 



Mary A. (Marshall) Schenck, of New 
Brunswick, and was born in that city 
March 16, 1860. 

The Schenck family is of Holland or 
Dutch ancestry, which gave to this coun- 
try so large a proportion of its early 
settlers. In the emigration which flowed 
to the new western country early in the 
eighteenth century, large numbers came 
from Holland and the Rhenish provinces, 
or the Palatinate. These were not in- 
duced to emigrate so much by glowing 
accounts received of the new country, as 
through religious persecution. Among 
these people was the ancestor of the 
Schenck family, who located with his 
companions in that section of the colo- 
nies then designated as The Jerseys. 

Henry V. D. Schenck (father of sub- 
ject) was born in 1837, and was educated 
in the common schools of his native 
place and at the private school of a Mr. 
Walker. A few years after completing 
his education, he opened up a grocery 
store in New Brunswick, and enjoyed a 
very successful business career until the 
breaking out of the civil war in 1861. 
He then closed out his business and went 
South, locating at Alexandria, Virginia, 
where, as a sutler or commissary, he 
sold supplies to the army for about a 
year. He then returned to New Bruns- 
wick and accepted the position of general 
agent for the State of New Jersey with 
the Singer Manufacturing Co. This posi- 
tion he held for the next twenty-five 
years, and retired with the fruits of a 
well-earned and successful business ca- 
reer. He is a staunch republican in 
politics, and enjoys the confidence of his 
party in an eminent degree. He served 
on the board of aldermen for fifteen 
years, and has been chairman of both 
the police commissioners and the excise 



728 



Biographical Sketches. 



board. He has been a member of Rose- 
ful church, New Brunswick, for the past 
twenty-two years, and for fifteen years 
has served as its treasurer. He is an 
earnest and consistent christian, and 
takes an active intei'est in all church 
work. He is also an enthusiastic mason 
and a Knight Templar of Damascus 
Commandery, No. 5, of Newark, New 
Jerse}'. He married Miss Mary A. Mar- 
shall, and they have had born to them 
the following children : Elizabeth and 
Cliarles A. 

Charles A. Schenck received his pre- 
liminary education in the common schools 
of New Brunswick, later attended the 
high school at Newark, and graduated 
therefrom in the class of 1878. After 
leaving the high school, he secured a 
position with the Singer Mauufacturing 
Co. as an office boy. He soon won pro- 
motion, and by his active and progressive 
spirit, manifested in the interest of his 
employers, gained for himself their un- 
bounded confidence. He worked his way 
up until he became its cashier and had 
entire charge of its large army of can- 
vassers, together with all its state busi- 
ness besides. He remained in the em- 
ploy of this company for seven years, 
after which he resigned for the purpose 
of going into business for himself in the 
city of Boston, Mass. He established in 
the latter city what was then a novel 
idea in a business line, but which at the 
present time has found its way into every 
large city in the country — the towel sup- 
ply business. His firm was the original 
concern to put this idea into full practi- 
cal operation. He continued at the head 
of the business for two years, when he 
sold out his interest in what was then 
one of the most [jrosperous and profitable 
businesses in the city, having all the 



most improved machinery and the finest 
stock of supplies to be found anywhere. 
After retiring from this business he came 
back to Newark, New Jersey, and en- 
gaged in the laundry business in that 
city for the next three years. After- 
wards, having disposed of his interest in 
the same, he returned to New Bruns- 
wick, where he accepted the position of 
bookkeeper for the National Tube Boiler 
Works on June 16, 1890. This position 
he occupied until 1893, when he was ap- 
pointed cashier of the company, and on 
the death of Mr. W. W. Kelly, then the 
general manager of the company, in 
1894, he was appointed general manager 
and cashier to fill the vacancy. 

The National Tube Boiler Works em- 
ploy about one bundled and twenty-five 
men, and manufacture all styles of 
boilers, together with a full line of every 
description of machinery. The company 
has complete control of the several 
patents taken out by Mr. Kelly, the late 
general manager, and their goods have a 
widely-extended market, shipments being 
made to almost every point in this coun- 
try. They also enjoy a considerable ex- 
port trade. 

Mr. Schenck is an affiliant of the 
Republican party, but not an active 
worker. He has no time upon his hands 
to devote to politics, business demanding 
it all. He is a member of the Freling- 
huysen Lancers Association of Newark, 
and of the Royal Arcanum of New 
Brunswick. He is a devout and earnest 
christian gentleman, and a member of 
the First Reformed church of New 
Brunswick. 

Mr. Schenck was married in Septem- 
ber, 1 888, to Miss Nellie E. Cook, and 
they have had born to them a daughter, 
Vera Madeline. 



Biographical Sketches. 



729 



"DETER W. FEICK, ex-sherifT of Mid- 
-*- dlesex county, New Jersey, residing 
at New Brunswick, is a son of Peter and 
Ann (Retzel) Frick, and was born in 
1855, in New York city. 

Peter Frick, his father, after acquiring 
a common-school education, learned the 
trade of a baker, which he followed suc- 
cessfully, in New York city, until his 
death, Jan. 19, 1890. In political mat- 
ters he was a democrat, and in religious 
faith and practice was a member of the 
Lutheran church, in the city where he 
lived and died. The results of his mar- 
riage to Ann Retzel were two children : 
M., who deceased in 1860, and Peter W. 

Peter W. Frick received a liberal edu- 
cation, at first from the New York gram- 
mar schools, later from a business college, 
and subsequently attended the Charlotte 
Institute for a time, after which he was 
placed under the instruction of a private 
tutor. He at an earl}' age gave evidence 
of the possession of a mechanical bent of 
mind, but beyond the construction, for 
personal diversion, of sundry articles and 
general tinkering in his leisure hours, 
Mr. Frick never developed a faculty that, 
perchance, would have given him a front 
rank in engineering. He started in the 
grocery business, at which he remained 
for a period of seven years. He then 
abandoned mercantile life for several 
years, and turned his attention to agri- 
culture, which he followed successfully 
for six years in Middlesex county. Mean- 
while, his constantly growing popularity, 
superinduced by his genial, whole-souled 
disposition, allied^ to his display of politi- 
cal tact, caused him to be regarded by his 
friends in the Democratic party as suit- 
able timber out of which to make a suc- 
cessful candidate for sheriff of Middlesex 
county. Accordingly, in 1887 he was 



tendered the nomination for that respon- 
sible and influential office, which he 
accepted, and after a gallant race was 
triumphantly elected. He entered upon 
the duties of the shrievalty, as though to 
the manor born, served throughout his 
term with efficiency, and retired at its 
close with the reputation of having been 
the most popular sheriff" that had ever 
served the people of Middlesex. Mr. 
Frick is now engaged in business in New 
York city, where his usual success and 
good fortune still attend . him. He re- 
sides in NewBrunswick, being unable to 
detach himself from the soil on which he 
built his career, or to sever the bonds of 
pleasant fraternity with its people. He 
remains a staunch and consistent demo- 
crat in politics, and in religious matters 
is an active member and trustee of the 
Methodist Episcopal church at New 
Brunswick. He is a member of the 
Royal Arcanum of that town ; a member 
of the New Brunswick Gun Club and of 
the New Brunswick Boat Club. 

Mr. Frick was united in marriage, July 
21, 1884, to Margaret, a daughter of 
Joseph Van Mater, and to their union 
have been born four children. 



T EWIS A. BELLIS, an expert black- 
-^-^ smith of Somerville, Somerset 
county, with a wide reputation as a shoer 
of fine trotting and road horses, is a son 
of L. and Lydia (Rowland) Bellis, and 
was born, March 22, 1859, at Somerville. 
His grandfather, Richard Bellis, was a 
prominent farmer all his life, his children 
being : Garrett, L., John, and William. 

L. Bellis (father), who is now living in 
retirement at Somerville, was an exten- 
sive drover and cattle-dealer during his 
active career, and conducted a very sue- 



730 



Biographical Sketches. 



cessful business. He is a democrat in 
politics, and has been a vigorous partici- 
pant in county aflairs in the past. His 
wife (subject's mother), who was Miss 
Lydia Rowland, is also still living. Their 
children were : LcAvis A. ; Daniel, de- 
ceased ; and Martha H. 

Lewis A. Bellis (subject) received his 
elementary education in the public schools 
of Somerville, and likewise attended a 
private school there for one year. At the 
age of sixteen years he started life as clerk 
in a grocery store, an experience which 
lasted him nine months. In 1876 he 
began the stud}' of blacksmithing with 
R. H. Layton, at Somerville, remaining 
Avith the latter for five years. He then 
spent three years in traveling among 
western cities, working in some of the 
best shoeing shops in the countr}", and 
acquiring an intimate knowledge of the 
best and most modern methods of horse- 
shoeing and general smith work. In 
1884 he returned to Somerville, and en- : 
tered into partnership with his former | 
employer, R. H. Layton, which connec- ! 
tion lasted for eight years. 

In 1892 Mr. Bellis established an in- 
dependent shop, and since that time he 
has built up a reputation as one of the 
most expert horse-shoers in New Jersey. 
In fact he is noted among horse-fanciers 
and racing-men outside of the borders of 
the stat*;, and he is frequently called to 
New York, Philadelphia, and other points 
to shoe valuable racing stock and road 
honses. He also does an immense local 
business throughout Somerset and .adjoin- 
ing counties. His shop is constantly- 
visited by many well-known horse-men, 
and is equipped with all the most modern 
appliances and improvements. 

Mr. Bellis is an active democrat in pol- 
itics. He is an officer in the New Jersey 



National guard, of Somerville, having en- 
tered the ranks of that organization as a 
pri\'ate eight years ago. He is a mem- 
ber of the West End hose company of 
Somerville, and is prominent in the In- 
dependent Order of Foresters, and the 
Improved Order of Red Men. In April, 
1884, he was married to Miss Emma C. 
Hendrickson, and they have one son, 
Richard H. 

Mr. Bellis is a notable example of a 
man who has made a successful specialty . 
of an usually common-place business. He 
is intelligent, energetic, and enterprising, 
always on the watch for new ideas and 
improvements, and a man of wide popu- 
laritj' and esteem. 



A NDREW LANE, miller and dealer in 
-^-^ general merchandise, at Neshanic, 
New Jersey, is a son of John C. and 
Mar}- Ann (Hageman) Lane, of Reading- 
ton, New Jersey, and was born at the 
old homestead at that place. His early 
ancestors came from Holland. Some 
fifty years prior to the Revolutionary war 
three brothers settled on Long Island. 
Two of these subsequent!}' removed to 
New Jersey. From these two brothers 
nearly all the Lane families in the 
countr}' trace their descent. The one 
who located at Readington settled on the 
farm owned at present by James Lane, 
and which has always been in possession 
of the family. At the time of the Revo- 
lution this ancestor entered the colonial 
army and served with distinction as a 
lieutenant and captain. 

Cornelius Lane (grandfather) married 
Julia Van Bleet, member of a well-known 
family residing at Readington at that 
period. He enlisted during the rebellion 
of Aaron Burr, but only reached Pitts- 



Biographical Sketches. 



731 



burg, Pa., when the trouble was ended. 
Both he and his wife died at Readington 
at advanced ages, highly respected and 
greatly esteemed. 

John C. Lane (father) was also a na- 
tive of Readington, born in 1807, resided 
on the old homestead, and followed farm- 
ing all his life. He was a supporter of 
the Democratic party, but never took 
any active part in its political move- 
ments. He was an earnest and life-long 
member of the Reformed church at Read- 
ington, and an active official for many 
years. He married Miss Mary Ann 
Hageman, daughter of Andrew Hage- 
man, a respected farmer of Princeton, 
New Jersey, and they had eight chil- 
dren : Cornelius, Andrew, Martha, Sarah 
Jane, Mary Elizabeth, James, Phoebe, 
and Gilbert. 

Andrew (subject) was educated in the 
public schools of Readington, and after 
leaving school was apprenticed to the 
carpentering trade. He worked at his 
trade until 1870, when he bought the 
"Coil Mills" (flour and feed), together 
with the general store connected there- 
with, where he has been engaged ever 
since. In 1876 he built a new mill in 
place of the old mill, which is now 
known as the "Neshauic Mill." He was 
the first person to introduce the roller 
process into the state of New Jersey in 
the grinding of flour, and the product of 
his mill has a widely established reputa- 
tion throughout the country. 

Mr. Lane is a well-known factor in the 
commercial and financial circles of Som- 
erset county, New Jersey. He is a di- 
rector of the Bound Brook First National 
Bank, as also of the Bound Brook Water 
Co. He is a prominent democrat, and 
actively identified with all the move- 
ments of that party. He was at one 



time his party's candidate for state sen- 
ator, but was defeated by the meagre 
majority of 66 votes only. He is 
a highly esteemed member of the Re- 
formed church and one of its elders. 
His family consists of three children : 
Martin, a lawyer, residing at Millville, 
New Jersey ; Mary, and Lizzie, married 
to Alvine Bohn, mechanical engineer, 
employed at Syracuse, New York. He 
and his wife still reside at Neshanic, and 
all his time is devoted to his milling in- 
dustry and to his general store. He is 
one of the substantial men of the com- 
munity, a most excellent judge of good 
flour, in the production of which he 
justly talces great pride, and in financial 
circles ranks with the highest in point of 
credit and business standing. 



TT^DGAR W. FARLEY, the well-known 
-'— ^ and popular secretary to the super- 
visor of the Central Railroad Co. of New 
Jersey, was born May 8, 1862, at Anan- 
dale. New Jersey, and is a son of L. and 
Jennie (McCarthan) Farley. 

His paternal grandfather, Joshua Far- 
ley, after receiving a common-school edu- 
cation, applied himself to the study of 
law. After his admission to the bar he 
practiced many years at Flemington, 
New Jersey, and achieved considerable 
prominence as a local practitioner. He 
was an influential member of the Repub- 
lican party and an active worker in the 
Methodist Episcopal church, of which he 
was a prominent member. 

The father of our subject, L. Farley, 
was educated at the public schools. Upon 
his graduation he learned the trade of a 
blacksmith, but after following this trade 
for a number of j^ears he relinquished it 
to adopt the avocation of a farmer, and 



732 



Biographical Sketches. 



in this pursuit he passed the most of liis 
life. lie was a republican in his political 
faith, and an active and earnest member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church. He 
died May 30, 1894. The death of his 
wife occurred May 19, 1892. Two sons 
were born to their marriage : Edgar W. 
and William M. 

Edgar W. Farley graduated from the 
public .schools, and for six nxonths there- 
after attended a business college. He 
then studied electrical engineering, and 
followed this profession for eight ^ears 
successfully. In 1891, he removed to 
Somerville, and for a short time was 
eniplo3ed in a blacksmith shop. This 
employment he resigned to accept the 
responsible position of secretary and 
clerk to the supervisor of the Central 
Railroad Co. of New Jerse}- at Somer- 
ville, which position he has since most 
creditably filled. 

Mr. Farley is assistant engineer of the 
Somerville Engine Co., No. 1, and a 
member of the Improved Order of Red 
Men, No. 125, at Easton, Pa. 



r^ EORGE A. DILTS, ex-sheriff of Som- 
^-^ erset county and proprietor of a 
large general stoi-e at Somerville, is a son 
of H. R. and Ann (Galds) Dilts, and was 
born June IG, 1860, at Raritan. Somerset 
county, New Jersey. His paternal grand- 
father, H. Dilts, was a native of and 
during early life a prosperous farmer in 
Raritan township, Somerset county. He 
subsequentl\- engaged in business at Rar- 
itan, and was for many j^ears a prominent 
citizen of that town. He was a member 
of the Baptist church at Raritan, and 
an active christian. His children were : 
H. R., Kate (wife of A. Ford), Charles B., 
and Lizzie. 



I 

H. R. Dilts (father) was one of the 

earliest settlers at Rai'itan, and was an 
extensive carpenter and builder for fifty 
years there, having erected a large pro- 
portion of the residences, business struc- 
tures, and public buildings in Raritan 
and Somerville. He is now retired from 
j active business, and lives quietly in a 
handsome residence at Raritan. During 
early life he was an active republican in 
politics, and was at one time freeholder 
of Bridgewater town,ship. He is a mem- 
ber and deacon of the Raritan Baptist 
church, in which he has, at various times, 
occupied most of the offices. His wife 
was Miss Ann Galds, by whom he had 
six children : W. D., George A. (the sub- 
ject), H. D., Charles G., Oliver C, and 
AC. R. 

George A. Dilts, subject of this sketch, 
was educated in the public schools at 
Raritan. When thirteen years of age he 
left school, and was clei'k in a store for 
six months. He then returned to his 
studies for a time, at the end of which he 
again went into a store, where he spent 
four years. Later, he became bookkeeper 
in a wholesale house in New York city, 
remaining there for several years, after 
which he .spent a year and a half in the 
real-estate business. In 1882 he estab- 
lished his present general store at Rari- 
tan, and still retains a profitable interest 
in that business, in connection with his 
brother. 

Mr. Dilts is an active republican in 
politics, and is one of the leaders of his 
part}' in Somerset county ; at the same 
time retaining the good-will and friend- 
ship of rival parties. He was elected 
sheriff of Somerset county in 1892, and 
served until 1895. He is a member of 
the Lodge of F. and A. M., and Lodge 
No. 42, 1. 0. 0. F., of Somerville, and has 



Biographical Sketches. 



733 



been treasurer of the fire company for 
ten years. He is also a member of the 
Bachelors' Club of Somerville. He was 
married Oct. 17, 1889, and has one 
daughter, Maud, born May 9, 1893. 

Mr. Dilts is well known and popular 
throughout Somerset county, and during 
his term as sheriff gave the county an 
admirable business-like administration. 
He is influential in politics, a shrewd, 
energetic business man, and a progressive 
citizen. 



T3 H. LAYTON, who has been for 
-L^' many years a prosperous black- 
smith at Somerville, Somerset county, 
and an influential citizen of that town, 
is a son of Daniel and Sarah (HoflF) Lay- 
ton, and was born April 21, 1845, at 
Somerville. The Layton family is of 
English origin, but for several genera- 
tions past have been prominent in Som- 
erset county. 

Peter Layton, the paternal grand- 
father, was a prosperous farmer all his 
life in the upper part of the county, near 
Bedminster. He was a democrat in 
politics, a staunch patriot, and in early 
life served actively in the American army 
during the Revolutionary war. He was 
an active supporter of the church at 
Bedminster. He was married, and had 
five children : Daniel, Eleanor, Elizabeth, 
Sarah, and Anthony. He died Jan. 28, 
1836 ; his wife followed him Jan. 18, 
1855. 

Daniel Layton (father) was born in 
Somerset county, near Somerville, and 
was educated in the public schools at the 
latter town. He was an industrious and 
successful carpenter throughout his life- 
time. In political faith he was a demo- 
crat, and participated actively in local 
politics ; his decided, common-sense opin- 

38 



ions invariably commanding respect and 
influence. He was a very active member 
of the Presbyterian church, and during 
his lifetime successively filled all the 
offices in the chui'ch. His wife was Miss 
Sarah Hoff', by whom he had eight chil- 
dren : Peter, born Aug. 4, 1829 ; Dennis, 
born Aug., 1832 ; Elizabeth, born Aug. 
22, 1836; Robert, born Aug. 3, 1839; 
John, born July 15, 1842 ; R. H., born 
April 21, 1845, and Henry, born Aug. 2, 
1848. He died Aug. 9, 1880, bearing 
with him the respect and esteem due a 
long career of well-doing. 

R. H. Layton (subject) was educated 
in the Somerville public schools. During 
boyhood he worked on a farm near 
Somerville. When eighteen years of age 
he entered a blacksmith shop, and spent 
one year there learning the elements of 
the trade. Three additional years were 
passed in another shop, after which Mr. 
Layton established his first independent 
shop at Somerville in 1868, in connection 
with Mr. Conover, under the firm-name 
of Conover & Layton. His partnership 
prospered for some years, when it was 
dissolved, and Mr. Layton formed a new 
connection with Mr. Shafer, the firm 
being Layton & Shafer, which has con- 
tinued until the present time. Their 
business comprises general blacksmithing 
and repair work, and has grown to be 
one of the most extensive and lucrative 
in the county. Mr. Layton is considered 
an expert in his trade, and his services 
are sought after from all surrounding 
sections. 

Mr. Layton has always taken an active 
part in local politics on the democratic 
side, and has served as one of the com- 
missioners of Somerville for three years. 
He is a member of the lodge of F. and 
A. M. of Somerville, and has been prom- 



73-1 



Biographical Sketches. 



inentlj identified with the order for 
twenty -eight years. 

On February 18, 1874, he was married 
to Miss Charlotte Dilts, a daughter of 
Jacob Dilts, of Somerville. 

Mr. Layton is a progressive, public- 
spirited citizen, a careful business man, 
and a high-class, conscientious workman. 
He is well known in nearly every part 
of Somerset county, is popular and re- 
spected, and is regarded as one of those 
solid, influential men who form the true 
foundations of a community. 



DR. FRED. V. THOMPSON, a success- 
ful and popular physician of As- 
bury Park, New Jersey, late of Belmar, 
was born at Freehold, New Jersey, Sept. 
12, 1866, and passed the days of his | 
childhood there. He is a son of Dr. Charles ! 
H. and Rhoda A. (Holmes) Thompson. 
At the age of ten years he was sent to a 
private school at South Amboy to begin 
his education. He remained two years 
at this school, being transferred to ano- 
ther at Asbury Park, whei-e he remained 
one year, at the end of which period he 
entered the Freehold Institute at Free- 
hold, New Jersey. On the termination 
of his five 3'ears' course of study at this 
institution of learning, he entered the 
medical department of Columbia Col- 
lege, at New York city, and studied there 
for three years. He then entered the 
Long Island college hospital, and after 
studious application graduated therefrom 
in 1890, immediateh' thereafter associa- 
ting himself in practice with his father, 
who was in the active practice of medi- 
cine at Belmar, with whom he remained 
up to the spring of 1896, when he came 
to Asbury Park. He is recognized as 
being one of the most careful pin sicians 



in that section, and his practice is a large 
and steadily -growing one, while his offi- 
cial connection with some of the most 
influential institutions in the county is 
indicative of the estimation in which he 
is held. He is physician to the board of 
health of Belmar, and examining physi- 
cian for the Pennsylvania Mutual Life 
Insurance Co., the New York Life Insur- 
ance Co., the Metropolitan Life Insurance 
Co., of New Y'ork, and the Ti-avelers' 
Life Insurance Co., of Hartford, Connect- 
icut. 

He is a member of the Monmouth Co. 
Medical Societj-, and Ocean Lodge, No. 
89, F. and A. M., at Belmar, and is 
the present secretary and a past master 
of that organization. He is a member of 
the Protestant Episcopal church, and a 
member of the vestry of the Church of 
the Holy Apostles, and has served as 
secretary of the vestry for the past two 
years. He is active in church work, and 
a free giver of both his time and money 
to christian work. Politically he is a 
republican. 

Dr. Thompson was united in marriage 
to Grace A. Gassin, daughter of Charles 
E. Gassin, Esq., of New York city, June 
14, 1894, and to them has been born one 
daughter, Gladys Rhoda. 

Dr. Thompson is progressive and wide 
awake, keeping thoroughly abreast with 
the wonderful advance of medical science 
as to new discoveries and more modern 
methods of diagnosis and treatment. 
Personally he is genial and companion- 
able, and is justly popular. Though 
young in years, he already enjoys a 
practice that might be envied by those 
many years his senior. He is quite 
musical, possessing an exceedingly deep, 
rich, bass voice, which at present is un- 
dergoing thorough training. 




dyuutu c 




Biographical Sketches. 



737 



WILLIAM P. TAYLOR, the owner of 
a planing mill, and a prominent 
business man of Manasquan, is the son 
of Nelson and Louise (Newbury) Taylor, 
and was born at Manasquan, New Jer- 
sey, Dec. 15, 1826. The Taylor family 
is of English lineage, and the name bears 
honored distinction in the history and 
literature of the American nation. Gen- 
eral Taj^lor, the soldier and president of 
the United States, and Bayard Taylor, 
the writer and traveler, are examples. 

Nelson Taylor (father) was originally 
from Eatontown township, Monmouth 
county, and received a common-school 
education. He was engaged in the pro- 
duce business, and ran a stage-line, from 
Red Bank to Squan village, in the early 
days before the railroads came into gen- 
eral use. Father Taylor died in 1883, 
and his wife in 1860. Their children 
are as follows : Jane, now the wife of 
Mr. John B. Sherman; William P., the 
subject; Brazilla, married to Mellissa 
Fields Carpenter. 

William P. Taylor, the subject of this 
sketch, was reared, and received a com- 
mon-school education in the public schools, 
at Manasquan, New Jersey. He then 
decided to learn the planing-mill busi- 
ness, and, at the age of eighteen years, 
began work at the sash and blind trade. 
Three years later, at the age of twenty- 
one, he started out as a journeyman sash 
and blindmaker, and acquired a wide 
and valuable experience by working in a 
number of mills during the ensuing nine 
years, as follows : as foreman for George 
McNab, in Jersey City, for three years; 
Brooklyn, one year ; New York city, two 
years, doing business as a jobbing carpen- 
ter; journeyman in a planing mill. Plain- 
field, New Jersey, one year; and again 
in Brooklyn, one year. When thirty 



years of age Mr. Taylor located in Man- 
asquan, where he has since resided for 
the past nineteen years. In this time 
he has become the owner of a planing 
mill, and has established an extensive 
trade in all lines of material pertaining 
to that branch of manufactures ; his mar- 
kets reaching over Manasquan and the 
surrounding country to Lakewood, Toms 
River, Bay Head, Point Pleasant, Easton, 
etc. Materials for shore trade, hotel 
work, and contracting are given special 
attention. Strict attention is paid to the 
details of all orders and contracts, and, 
with an ample force of skilled workmen, 
shipments can be made promptly from 
the mill, over both the Pennsylvania and 
Jersey Central railroads. Mr. Taylor, 
politically, was a democrat originally, but 
has since become a believer in the cause 
of the Prohibition party, and, in the 
early days of Manasquan's history as a 
borough, was a member of the town 
council. He is a prominent and active 
member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, in which he served as trustee 
and steward for fifteen years. By care- 
ful management and good judgment Mr. 
Taylor has accumulated considerable real 
estate, and is pleasantly located, with his 
residence on Broad street, above Main. 
William P. Taylor married Eliza Ritten- 
house, daughter of Peter Rittenhouse, of 
the celebrated Montgomery county, Penn- 
sylvania, Rittenhouse family. This noted 
family is of German descent, and the 
name has been honored by the number 
of distinguished men that have borne it. 
Members of this line have been success- 
ful in the business, professional, and 
scientific pursuits of life, and among them 
stands the illustrious name of David Rit- 
tenhouse, the celebrated astronomer. Mr. 
Taylor's life has been full of experience, 



738 



Biographical Sketches. 



and his business career one of activity 
and success, and lie stands to-day among 
the substantial, enterprising, and useful 
citizens of Manasquan. 



JOHN PUTNAM WALKER, the lead- 
^ ing pharmacist of Freehold, and a 
prominent citizen of that town, is a son 
of Anselle and Mary (Husband) Walker, 
and was born in that city, Jan. 15, 1852. 
He received his early education in the 
Freehold Institute, but left school at an 
early age to enter his father's drug store 
to learn pharmacy and the drug business. 
Although his father is still the business 
head of the establishment, Mr. Walker 
is the pharmacist and the manager of the 
business, and to him is due in a large 
measure the growth and prosperity of 
the same. Mr. Walker is a democrat, 
and as such has always taken an active 
interest in all political matters and issues 
in local, state or national affairs. For 
four years he has served as a member of 
the election board of appointments, con- 
sisting of four members, who have the 
appointing of the local election boards 
throughout the county. He was the 
nominee of his party in 1892 for the 
general assembly of the state of New 
Jerse}' ; but was one of the victims of 
the wonderful political landslide of that 
year. He was treasurer of the Freehold 
Improvement Co., as well as the Freehold 
Land Co., during their existence, and for 
twenty years was leader of the Freehold 
brass band, which was originally- organ- 
ized by him. Along with other qualities 
of good citizenship possessed by Mr. 
Walker, he is a good churchman, being 
one of the vestrymen of St. Peter's Pro- 
testant Episcopal church at Freehold, in 
the affairs of which he is active and 
stands deservedly high. He was mar- 



ried in 1888 to Miss Matilda H. Conover, 
daughter of ex-Judge Charles Conover, 
deceased, of Freehold, and they have been 
blessed with one child : Minnie Conover. 
The name is of English origin, his pater- 
nal grandfather, Abraham Walker, hav- 
ing been a wealthy Irish gentleman. 

Anselle Walker (father), who is joined 
with his son in the drug business, and 
who is one of the oldest and most highly- 
respected residents of Freehold, was born 
in Dublin, Ireland. He was educated 
under the auspices of a learned Roman 
Catholic priest in Dublin, and subse- 
quently under private tutors in London, 
as was customary among the wealthy 
classes in those times. He came to the 
United States in 1836, located in New 
York city, and engaged in the drug busi- 
ness on Sixth avenue near Fourteenth 
street. The delicate condition of his 
wife's health obliged him to leave the 
metropolis, whereupon he removed to 
Freehold, where he re-established his 
drug business, in which he has continued 
ever since. Mr. Walker, Sr., has always 
been a staunch democrat, but has never 
sought to hold office, preferi'ing to serve 
his fellow-citizens more unostentatiously 
by his example and influence, as he has 
ever done. He is a member of St. Peter's 
Protestant Episcopal church, of which he 
has been for many years one of the war- 
dens. Mr. Walker is the father of eight 
children, two of whom are now living : 
Marj' A. and John Putnam. His wife, 
Mary (Husband), died March 6, 1896, at 
the age of seventy-three years. 



TTTILLIAM STEWART JEFFREY, Sr., 
' '^ a worth}' representative of one of 
the pioneer families of Monmouth county, 
and ajirominent carpenter and builder of 
that county, is a son of William and Mrs. 



Biographical Sketches. 



739 



Elizabeth (Barkalow) Jeffrey, and was 
born near Long Branch, in Ocean town- 
ship, Monmouth county, N. J., April 12, 
1834. He is descended from old English 
stock, and his emigrant ancestors, ob- 
taining a grant of one hundred acres of 
land situated in Deal, near Long Branch, 
settled upon it during the early colonial 
history of this country. The grant, 
which is still in the possession of a mem- 
ber of the family, was written upon 
parchment, and bears the signature of 
the English crown. The old homestead 
passed through the hands of at least five 
generations of the Jeffrey family, and it 
became one of the most valuable fai'ms in 
Monmouth county. 

The paternal grandfather, Richard Jef- 
frey, and his father, William Jeffrey, were 
both born and lived upon the old home- 
stead, engaged in the peaceful pursuits 
of husbandry all their lives. They ad- 
hered to the tenets of the Methodist 
Episcopal church, and were prosperous 
and contented. 

William Jeffrey was born on the old 
homestead May 9, 1779. He was a 
farmer, a Methodist, and an old-line 
whig, as were his ancestors, as far as 
can be traced. He lived a long, in- 
dustrious, and useful life, and died on 
January 19, 1846, near the scenes of 
his birth. He was twice married. His 
first marriage was with Lydia Newman, 
who bore him five children, three sons 
and two daughters. His second and last 
marriage was with Mrs. Barkalow, whose 
maiden name was Elizabeth Jeffrey, who, 
although bearing the same name, was not 
consanguineously related to him. The 
issue of their matrimonial alliance was 
two children, one son and one daughter. 

William S. Jeffrey, Sr.^ and Sarah 
Rogers, of Ocean Beach, were happily 



married on New Year's evening in the 
year 1856, and they were the parents of 
five children : Emma J., married to Henry 
Woolley, a farmer of West Long Branch ; 
Elizabeth, the wife of Joseph C. Truax, 
a farmer, of Poplar, Monmouth county ; 
Fannie, wedded to Wm. Covert, a trav- 
eling salesman ; Ella I., the consort of 
James R. Mount, a trucker and horti- 
culturist of West Long Branch, and Wil- 
liam S., Jr., married to Fannie West, 
and now engaged in business with his 
father at Sea Bright. 

Mr. Jeffrey obtained his education in 
the subscription schools of his day, and at 
the age of sixteen years engaged with 
Charles Bennett, of Red Bank, Mon- 
mouth county, to learn carpentering. 
He served an apprenticeship of four full 
years, becoming a skilled and successful 
mechanic, and then did journey work 
for the two succeeding years. He in- 
herited a portion of the old homestpad, 
and in 1856 settled upon it and took up 
farming. This, however, he followed but 
a short time, when he again took up his 
trade, which he has since pursued suc- 
cessfully. He has done a vast amount of 
both journey and contract work, and has 
erected some of the finest residences in 
Monmouth county. He has been closely 
identified with the Methodist Episcopal 
church of Long Branch for forty years, 
and during this time has filled eveiy offi- 
cial position in the church organization, 
as a member of the official board for 
thirty-five years, steward, trustee, class- 
leader, etc. He is a man possessed of 
rare good judgment and business tact, 
and is frequently called upon to settle up 
estates. In 1888 he settled up the estate 
of Frederick Guzel, the value of which 
was |45,000, and is now settling up the 
large estate of John F. Jeffrey. Mr. 



740 



Biographical Sketches. 



Jeffrey was one of the original stock- 
holders of the Long Branch Banking 
Co., and is now ably serving that com- 
pany in the capacity of director. Mr. 
Jeffrey erected for himself a cottage, spa- 
cious, commodious, and yet unostenta- 
tious, at the beautiful and quiet i-esort of 
Oak Hurst, and is now enjoying the lux- 
ury and comforts of an industrious and 
successful business career. 



"piCHARD S. CONOVER, a farmer of 
-L»^ Middlesex county. New Jersey, re- 
siding near South Amboy, is a son of 
Thomas Anderson and Elizabeth Julian 
(Stevens) Conover, and was born April 
25, 1832, at Castle Point, Hoboken, New 
Jersey. The name Conover is a contrac- 
tion from Van Covehoven, by which 
nomenclature Wolfred, the original emi- 
grant of the family who left Amsfort, 
near Utrecht, and settled at New Amster- 
dam (New York) in the year 1630, was 
known. He and his immediate descend- 
ants acquired large landed possessions in 
New York city and in New Albany, the 
family ultimately scattering throughout 
the country. 

James Conover (grandfather) received 
a select-school education, and became a 
successful and wealthy merchant in New 
York city. He subsequently removed to 
Middletown, now called Matawan, New 
Jersey, where he purchased extensive 
tracts of land and built himself a home, 
and then engaged in agricultural pursuits 
during the remainder of his life. He was 
an American patriot ; fought through the 
Revolutionary war, and was under the 
command of General Washington during 
the continuance and until the suppres- 
sion of the famous ■' Whiskey Rebel- 
lion.'" In politics he was a whig, and in 
religion a member of the church of 



England. He was married to a daugh- 
ter of Judge Anderson, and to their 
marriage were born seven children : 
Thomas A., Margaret, now Mrs. Miller, 
of Cincinnati, Ohio ; James, a lawyer at 
Cincinnati, Ohio ; Maiy, the wife of Com- 
modore Aulick, of the United States 
navy ; William, who was a merchant, 
large ship-owner and sea captain ; Cor- 
nelia, married to Mr. Dykeman, of Wash- 
ington City, and Samuel Foreman. The 
father of these children died in 1788, 
and their mother deceased in 1836. 

Thomas A. Conover was born at New- 
ton, New Jersey. He studied law in the 
office of his maternal grandfather, Judge 
Anderson, and subsequentl}' was ap- 
pointed midshipman in the United States 
navy for service in the war of 1812. 
He became commander of a gunboat 
attached to a squadron of Commodore 
McDonough, in the waters of the border 
lakes, and during the progress of an 
engagement on Lake Champlain with the 
British warships one day the latter 
pressed so hard upon the American men- 
of-war as to cause them all to retire, save 
the vessel in charge of Commander Con- 
over. Making a determined stand, he 
fought the British single-handed until the 
noise of the broadsides attracted the 
attention of the commanders of the flee- 
ing vessels, when, returning to his relief, 
the general action was renewed, and at its 
close our ships had won the day. Com- 
mander Conover received the brief but 
most expressive thanks of Commodore 
McDonough in these words, " My dear 
boy, you have saved the fight." Congress 
voted him a sword in recognition of his 
victory, and the President of the United 
States sent him a letter of congratula^ 
tion. During a subsequent engagement 
he was taken prisoner. His captivity 



Biographical Sketches. 



741 



was of short duration, however, as he 
soon succeeded in eifecting his escape. 
He was present with Commodore Decatur 
at the siege of Algiers, and was one of 
those who forever wiped away that blot 
from the face of civilization, the Black 
Hole at Calcutta, India. He was raised 
to the rank of admiral (then called flag- 
officer), the first man of this country who 
ever received that title; he commanded the 
"Constitution" and the "Independence." 
He was in command of our squadrons in 
African waters during the time of our 
trouble with the slave trade, and while thus 
engaged he contracted African fever, and 
was obliged to repair to the Island of 
Madeira. At the close of the war with 
Great Britain, in 1815, he returned to 
his home, where he at once became in- 
terested in a project to build the first 
railroad constructed in New Jersey, be- 
tween Camdem and Amboy. He was 
made the treasurer and general accountant 
of the road, and, on the occasion of its 
trial trip, he occupied the position of 
brakeman of the train, which consisted, 
as the records tell us, of an English 
carriage drawn by a Johnny Bull. At 
a subsequent period Admiral Conover 
served as president of various court- 
martials, and filled a number of impor- 
tant positions in public affairs, ultimately 
retiring to private life at South Amboy. 
Politically he was a whig, and in relig- 
ious faith a member of the Protestant 
Episcopal church. He married Elizabeth 
J. Stevens. They were the parents of 
five children : Francis, an officer in the 
United States navy who served in the 
rebellion, a resident of Princeton ; Mary 
Rachael, who married Rev. Lewis Baker, 
of Philadelphia ; Caroline, deceased ; 
Richard S., our subject, and Sophia, 
residing in Philadelphia. 



Richard S. Conover entered Princeton 
College in 1850, from which he graduated 
in 1854. After completing a three-years' 
engagement with the Messrs. Stevens in 
Hoboken, during which he had charge 
of their shops, boats, and interests in 
general, he removed to Sandcombe, near 
South Amboy, New Jersey, where he 
caused to be erected a comfortable home. 
This charming country-seat is situated 
on a conspicuous eminence, overlooking 
the ocean with a surrounding landscape, 
picturesque and artistically perfect. In 
this home Mr. Conover has lived for 
many years. Mr. Conover was a director 
in the Delaware and Raritan Canal Co. ; 
was one of the projectors and promoters 
of the Long Branch railroad, and is the 
founder of the town of Dundee. He has 
been colonel of the Second regiment, 
Middlesex brigade, for several years ; a 
competent officer and an efficient discipli- 
narian. In politics he was formerly a 
whig, now a democrat, and in religion he 
is a member of the Protestant Episcopal 
church, which he has frequently repre- 
sented in convention and other diocesan 
matters, and aided in many ways. Mr. 
Conover was united in marriage Nov. 8, 
1855, to Sarah J. Potter, a daughter of 
James Potter, of Savannah, Ga. To this 
union have been born eight children : 
James P., an Episcopal priest at St. 
Paul's School, Concord, N. H. ; Emily, 
Charlotte P., married to Rev. Prescott 
Everett, of Wappinger's Falls ; Caroline, 
residing at home; Alice Potter, a trained 
nurse in Cathedral Parish House, Cleve- 
land, Ohio; Thomas Anderson, Richard 
Stevens, a graduate of Rutgers College, 
now residing at Hyde Park, N. Y. ; J. 
Hamilton, a graduate of Columbia Col- 
lege, and now a student in P. and S., New 
York, and Sarah Potter, also at home. 



742 



Biographical Sketches. 



PETTITT & COMPANY are one of 
the largest brick manufacturing 
concerns in the state of New Jersey, and 
are situated on South River, where they 
own and work the chiy bed on the old 
Van Duindu Tract. They operate the 
oldest brick yard in this section, having 
been established in 1865, and known as 
the "John Gregg's Yard." The present 
business was founded in 1870, by Walter 
S. Pettitt, father of the senior member 
of the present firm, which own a clay 
tract of sixty acres in extent. Their 
yard at South River and the business of 
the concern consists in manufacturing 
building brick, which they sell only to 
jobbers and wholesale dealers, and of 
which thej'^ have a capacity of eight 
million bricks annually ; besides they 
are engaged in mining and shipping 
fire clay for the manufacture of sewer 
pipe and fire bricks, which they ship to 
the eastern trade. The shipments of their 
product are annually made by schooners, 
owned b}' the firm, to Newai'k and New 
York city. In the various depai'tments 
of their brick manufacturing, mining and 
shipping the}' employ' ninety men. The 
very profitable and eminently successful 
enterprise of mining and shipping fire 
clay began in 1875, having been run in 
full capacity and without interruption 
ever since. 

Walter S. Pettitt was born on Long 
Island, received his education at Albany, 
N. Y., and came to New Brunswick in 
1862, where he established himself in 
successful business and continued up to 
1884, when he founded the present busi- 
ness of Pettitt & Co., at South River, 
with which he remained actively identi- 
fied up to his death in 1889. 

A. W. Pettitt, senior member of the 
finn of Pettitt & Co., received a sound 



education at the public schools and at 
Pennington Seminar}^ at Pennington, 
New Jersey. For eight years he was 
with the well-known firm of clothiers, 
Brokaw Brothers, New York city, as 
cashier, previous to joining his father in 
the brick business. He is a member of 
St. James' church, and treasurer of the 
board of trustees, having succeeded his 
father in that office. He married Marion 
Snedeker, daughter of Colonel Snedeker, 
a pioneer merchant and successful busi- 
ness man of New Brunswick, and has 
one daughter, Marion. 

Joseph Miller Pettitt, the junior mem- 
ber of the firm of Pettitt & Co., was born 
in the city of Wurtemburg, Germany, in 
1849, and came to this country in 1867, 
first settling in New York city. In 1876 
he came to South River and entered into 
the employ of Pettitt & Co., as foreman, 
and was shortly afterwards promoted to 
the responsible position of manager of 
the yards, and in 1878 was admitted into 
partnership. He married Mary Mitchell, 
and they have had the following chil- 
dren : Katie, Lizzie, Joseph, Agnes, 
Walter, John and Philomena. 



TTENRY C. HOUSELL, manager of 
-'--'- the New Brunswick department 
of the Trenton Brewing Co., was born in 
Amwell township, Hunterdon county, 
New Jersey, Nov. 8, 1842. He is a son 
of Theodore and Mary Housell. His 
father was boi'n in Hunterdon county in 
July, 1816, and for many years was em- 
ployed in a rubber factoi'y, and after- 
wards engaged in the confectionery busi- 
ness on his own account. During the 
civil war he was the only letter-carrier 
in the city of New Brunswick. He is 
now living retired in that city. 



Biographical Sketches. 



743 



Mr. Henry C. Housell removed from 
Hunterdon county to New Brunswick 
with his parents in 1844, and there re- 
ceived a public-school education. At the 
early age of fourteen years he began his 
business career as an employee in a rub- 
ber factory at New Brunswick. Some 
years later he removed to Rah way, where 
he learned the trade of coach painting. 
Two years afterwards, in April, 1861, he 
Was one of the first to respond to the 
.first call of the government for volun- 
teers for ninety days' service, and enlisted 
as a private in Company B, Third regi- 
ment, New Jersey volunteei's, and this 
company was the first to be mustered 
into the service of the United States 
from the State of New Jersey. He 
served his term of enlistment, and on 
Aug. 31st, of the same year, again en- 
listed in Company A, Fifty-seventh regi- 
ment, New York volunteers, this time 
for three years. He served with his 
regiment until Sept. 17, 1862, when 
he was wounded at the battle of An- 
tietam, while carrying the colors of his 
regiment. The wound received was in 
his right jaw, the ball passing through it, 
and lodging in the left side of his neck. 
He was sent to the military hospital at 
Baltimore, and for a long time was 
not expected to survive, but with good 
care he finally recovered, and was dis- 
charged from the United States service 
with the rank of color corporal in Dec, 
1862. He returned to New Brunswick, 
and in the spring of 1863, resumed his 
occupation of coach painting. In 1872 
he began business on his own account as 
a house and sign painter. In 1890 Mr. 
Housell was appointed to a responsible 
position in the department of banking 
and insurance, at Trenton, which j)osition 
he resigned to accept the now profitable 



one of manager of the local department 
in New Brunswick of the Trenton Brew- 
ing Co., which position he now holds. 

Mr. Housell is a very public-spirited 
citizen and has held many offices in both 
the military and civil organizations of 
his city and state. For a period he held 
the commission of first lieutenant in the 
state national guard, and has filled every 
position in the fire department of the 
city of New Brunswick from that of a 
company secretary to that of chief of the 
department. 

He became connected with the G. A. 
R. in 1884, and was commander of Rob- 
ert Booge Post, No. 67, during the year 
1886. He has served as inspector on the 
staff' of the department commander. He 
was elected alternate delegate to the 
National Encampment held in San Fran- 
cisco, in 1888, but was unable to attend. 
At one time he was a member of the 
Knights of Labor. In 1887 he was 
elected recorder by the greatest majority 
ever given any previous candidate in the 
city's history, it having been over twelve 
hundred. In Dec, 1885, he was in- 
stalled grand chancellor of the Knights 
of Pythias of the state of New Jersey, 
and served until Feb., 1887. Previous to 
this he had filled all the minor offices in 
the gift of the lodge. He is a charter 
member of the B. P. 0. Elks, No. 324, of 
New Brunswick, and was an organizer of 
Section No. 410, of the endowment rank, 
of K. of P., is at the present time its 
president, and has been for several years. 
He was elected alderman of the Third 
ward, New Brunswick, in April, 1896, 
and now holds that office. Mr. Housell 
was married to Miss Emma Stevenson, 
daughter of Stryker Stevenson, Esq., of 
New Brunswick, Nov. 3, 1861, and this 
marriage has been blessed with eleven 



744 



Biographical Sketches. 



children: Henry B., died in infancy; 
George B. McClellan, died in infancy ; 
Annie L., married to A. Rausch ; Cliarles 
H., Emerald, died in infancy ; Lizzie, 
married to Archie Dove ; Emma, Jan- 
netta G., died in infancy ; Edna F., died 
in infancy ; Bella and Elmer. 



TOHN VAN NORDEN, hotel-keeper, 
^ proprietor and owner of the new Van 
Norden House, at South River, New Jer- 
sey, and an active politician of that town, 
is a son of John, Sr., and Christiana 
Dunn Van Norden, and was born in New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, on Aug. 15, 
1850. He descends from old Holland- 
Dutch pioneers, who settled in this dis- 
trict five generations ago. His fother 
was a hotel man in New York city in 
1856, successfully managing the hotel on 
West street in that city. He retired 
from business with a competency and re- 
sided in New Brunswick until his death, 
which occurred in 1858 by drowning 
while on a pleasure excursion. Politi- 
cally he was a democrat. His children 
were Julia (Mrs. J. C. Voorhees), Georgia 
(Mrs. S. W. Booream), and John, the sub- 
ject of this sketch. 

John Van Norden attended the public 
schools of New Brunswick and South 
River at a very early age, and when boys 
are usually beginning to turn their 
thoughts schoolward he was directing his 
towards business. He left school when 
eight years old and was employed in the 
liardware store of P. J. Brunson, New 
Brunswick, ri.sing from errand bo}^ to 
head clerk. At sixteen he suspended 
work for a time in order to complete his 
education, returning to the public school 
at Sou til River, where he graduated. He 
was then apprenticed to Elias Kelly, 



operating machine shops in New Bruns- 
wick, for four years, and became an ex- 
pert mechanic, although he did not fol- 
low that trade. He became a clerk in 
the White Hall Hotel, of New Brunswick, 
and afterwards manager of the Washing- 
ton House, at South River, serving twelve 
years in these two positions. 

Mr. Van Norden then conducted a 
restaurant and bar on the steamer " New 
Brunswick," plying between the town of 
that name and New York city. He was 
thus engaged for six 3rears, when he re- 
turned to South River and became the 
proprietor of the Road Hall Hotel, near 
that town, until Sept., 1889, when he ac- 
quired the Washington House, at South 
River, conducting a successful business 
for seven years. In May, 1896, Mr. Van 
Norden completed a new hotel building 
on Washington street. South River, which 
he named the Van Norden House and 
now occupies. He is the owner of con- 
siderable real estate in addition to his 
new hotel property. 

Mr. Van Norden is a republican and 
has been an ardeiit and enthusiastic party 
worker for several years. He was school 
trustee of the borough of Washington 
three years, 1894 to 1897, and was ap- 
pointed a fire commissioner in March, 
1896. He is a member of the South 
River Boat Club and its vice-president 
for five years ; the Riverside Council, No. 
33, Jr. 6. U. A. M. ; the Passyunk Tribe, 
No. 139, Imp. O. R. M., and the New 
Brunswick Lodge, No. 324, B. P. 0. 
Elks. 

Mr. Van Norden was married to Mary 
C. Hyland, a daughter of Capt. William 
H^'land, a retired liver man and an in- 
iluential and successful citizen, now de- 
ceased. They have been blessed with 
one child, Jennie C. 



Biographical Sketches. 



745 



"pvAVID CLARK, artist, and proprietor 
-*-^ of large photographic parlors at 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Daniel and Ada (Lance) Clark, and was 
born, April 12, 1825, in the state of Con- 
necticut. 

David Clark (father) was a native of 
Connecticut, and the recipient of an ex- 
cellent common-school education. He 
learned the carriage-building trade, and 
was actively engaged in carriage man- 
ufacturing all his life, doing a good and 
fairly lucrative business. He married Miss 
Ada Lance, and they had four children : 
David ; Albert, since deceased ; Hiram 
(1), since deceased ; and Hiram (2), also 
deceased. 

David Clark (subject) enjoyed the ad- 
vantages afforded by the common schools 
of his native town, and then entered a 
photograph gallery, and learned the art 
of photography in its various branches. 
A master of the art, he then started out 
to seek a suitable locality for opening a 
gallery of his own. In 1852 he came to 
New Brunswick, and opened a gallery in 
that city. He secured a suitable location 
on Peace street, and there fitted up his 
first gallery, and launched out into busi- 
ness for himself, where he prospered from 
the start. He carried on business on 
Peace street for twelve years, or until 
1864, when he removed his gallery to 
another locality, where he continued 
until 1891 ; and then removed to George 
street, his present location, where he oc- 
cupies large and handsome parlors, fitted 
up second to none in point of equipment 
in all the latest appliances incident to 
his calling, and he ranks as the leading 
photographer of New Brunswick. That 
he justly deserves this distinction is uni- 
versally conceded. He is an ardent re- 
publican, though not an active politician, 



and is a member of the Second Reformed 
church of New Brunswick. He married 
Miss Mary Viler, daughter of Jacob 
Viler, in 1847, and they have an only 
child, William R., who has attained the 
a2;e of manhood. 



"PpRANKLIN M. AYERS, one of the ris- 
-*- ing young business men of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of Fred- 
erick M. and Mary E. (Humphreys) 
Ayers, and was born in Philadelphia, 
Pa., April 7, 1874. 

Frederick Ayers (grandfather) was a 
native of Connecticut, born at Long 
Ridge, near Hartford, and graduated from 
Yale College. After his graduation he 
turned his attention to the study of 
theology, and became a minister in the 
Congregational church. For nearly a 
half century he labored earnestly and 
faithfully in the vineyard of the Divine 
Master, and in 1884, at the advanced 
and ripe old age of seventy-two, passed 
from the shifting and changing scenes ot 
this life to immortality. His marriage 
had result in five children : Edward M., 
Henry M., Frederick M., Benjamin M., 
and William M. 

Frederick M. Ayers (father) was born 
in New York, 1840, and now lives in 
happy retirement in New Brunswick, 
New Jersey, enjoying the fruits of a 
successful business career. He acquired 
a common-school education, and then 
learned the trade of a watch-maker and 
jeweler. He pursued this vocation suc- 
cessively in Philadelphia and New York 
city, and in 1890 retired to his present 
abode. For some years he was a mem- 
ber of the New York State militia, and 
is now identified with the Presbyterian 
church. 



746 



Biographical Sketches. 



He had three children by his first wife : 
Laura A., Franklin M., and Lester M. 
She died in Pliiladelphia, 1885, and he 
took lor his second wife Emma A. Lam- 
bert, who became the mother of two chil- 
dren : Clara M. M., and Mary E. 

Franklin M. Ayers, the subject of 
this sketch, obtained his education in 
the excellent public schools of Philadel- 
phia, and in 1890 located in New Bruns- 
wick, where he engaged in the printing 
and engraving business. His plant is 
located at No. 41 Albanj- street, and is 
supplied with every modern conveni- 
ence that is necessary to do all kinds 
of })rinting and publishing ; but he makes 
a specialty of mercantile and society pi-int- 
ing and engraving. Artistic in the de- 
signing and execution of his specialties, 
he has established a large and remunera- 
tive trade. He takes an active interest 
in church affairs, and is a member of the 
First Presbyterian church of New Bruns- 
wick, the Young Men's Christian Asso- 
ciation, Consumus Circle, of which he is 
recorder, and the Sabbath-school. 

Mr. xV.yers is a conscientious and ener- 
getic young man, and from the success 
he has already attained, we predict that 
he will figure conspicuously among New 
Jersey's future successful and substantial 
business men. 



A LBERT C. TWINING, cashier of the 
■^-^ First National Bank of Asbury 
Park, vice-president of the Monmouth 
Trust Co., of Asbury Park, and one of 
the leading financiers of that city, is a 
son of Jesse B. and Hannah B. Twining, 
and was born Oct. 1, 1861, at Richboro, 
Bucks county. Pa. The name isof Eng- 
lisli (Quaker origin, and Mr. Twinings 
early American ancestors were pioneer 
settlers in Bucks county. Pa., whei'e the 



family has been prominent and thriving 
in agricultural affaii-s for many genera^ 
tions. 

Mr. Twining's early life was spent at 
Richboro, where he was educated in the 
district schools, and subsequently fol- 
lowed a three years' business course at 
the Eastburn Academy. When eighteen 
3'ears of age, he went to Lanesboro, 
Minn., where he was clerk in the private 
bank of J. C. Easton for a year and a 
half He next proceeded to Fargo, N. D., 
where he was manager of the loan de- 
partment of the First National Bank for 
two years. From 1883 to 1885 he was 
teller and assistant cashier in the James 
River National Bank at Jamestown, N. 
D. In the summer of 1895 he removed 
to Asbury Park, and immediately en- 
tered upon the task of organizing the 
First National Bank in company with 
several well-known men ; among them 
were John J. Hawkins, 0. H. Brown, 
Harry Appleby, Willisford Dey, all of 
Asbur}- Park ; and Philip Dunn, of Tren- 
ton. The enterprise was successfully 
carried tiirough, a charter was granted 
in Feb., 1886, and the bank opened for 
business Feb. 10, 1886. The capital 
stock was originally |50,000, but has 
since been increased to $100,000. Uni- 
form success attended the institution 
I from the outset. The surplus at the 
present time is .$70,000, and dividends of 
eight per cent, are paid upon the capital 
stock. The force of employees, which 
was three in 1886, has now increased to 
nine. The bank was originally estab- 
lished in the United States Express Co.'s 
building, but in 1889 was removed to its 
present hand.some and commodious loca- 
tion on Mattison avenue. Mr. Twining 
was also one of the organizers of the 
Monmouth Trust Co., in 1889, and was 



Biographical Sketches. 



749 



the first treasurer of the mstitution, 
being subsequently elected its vice-presi- 
dent, which position he now holds. He 
is a member of Asburj Lodge, No. 142, 
F. and A. M., and Carson Commandery, 
No. 15, Knights Templar. 

He was married on Nov. 28, 1885, to 
Miss Maggie Hogeland, daughter of Mor- 
ris and Mary J. Hogeland, of Southamp- 
ton, Pa., and they have two children : 
Jesse Willard and Albert Chester. Mr. 
Twining and his family occupy one of 
the handsomest residences in Asbury 
Park, at No. 405 Fourth avenue. By 
his works in Asbury Park, Mr. Twining 
has not only elevated himself to the 
position of one of the leading financiers 
in the eastern part of New Jersey, but 
has also aided ver}^ materially in the 
progress and prosperity of the city. He 
is a cool, careful and clear-headed busi- 
ness man, fully awake to all the possi- 
bilities of the proper utilization of money 
in business and commercial development, 
but conservative and methodical in his 
methods. The steady, healthful growth 
of the two financial institutions which 
he fathered, and which he has delight- 
fully fostered from their birth, is suffi- 
cient indication of his ability and wis- 
dom. He is widely known, and is uni- 
versally respected as a capable man of 
affairs and a useful citizen. 



r^ EORGE S. COELE, the postmaster at 
^-^ Neshanic station, Somerset county. 
New Jersey, is a son of John L. and Ann 
(Van Doren) Corle, of Neshanic, and was 
born near that place, Feb. 22, 1855. 

Judge Samuel Corle (grandfather) was 
a native of Somerset county, and in his 
time was one of its most prominent citi- 
zens. He was for fifteen years a judge of 



the court of common pleas of Somerset 
county, and during his life enjoyed the 
respect and esteem of the community in 
an eminent degree. He lived to the age 
of ninety-two years, dying in 1894. His 
wife had died in 1877. 

John L. Corle (father) was born in 
Lambertville, New Jersey, and received 
his education in the common schools of 
Neshanic and Pennington Seminary. He 
engaged in farming, and for many years 
was an active and prosperous farmer near 
Neshanic. He has now retired and lives 
in that village. He is a democrat in 
political affiliation, and an active spirit 
in party movements. In church work 
he is equally prominent, being a com- 
municant and highly-respected member 
of the Reformed church at Neshanic. 

George S. Corle received his education 
in the public schools of Neshanic, and at 
an early age entered a store as clerk, and 
assisted his father on the farm during 
the summer season. He next engaged 
in the general mercantile business at 
Three Bridges, New Jersey, for two years, 
acting as postmaster during that period. 
Prior to this, however, he had spent 
fifteen months in the revenue office at 
Somerville, as deputy collector of revenue 
for that district, under Cleveland's first 
administration. Since 1889 he has been 
engaged in the mercantile business at 
Neshanic station. He is also the post- 
master of that place, having been ap- 
pointed and commissioned May 13, 1893. 
He is a respected member of the Reformed 
church of Neshanic, and ever active in 
all church work. He is also connected 
with the order of Knights of Pythias, being 
a charter member of Neshanic Lodge, No. 
145, of Neshanic, New Jersey. He mar- 
ried Jessie Case, daughter of Jacob and 
Margaret Case, of Three Bridges, New 



750 



Biographical Sketches. 



Jersey, on December 18, 1878. She died 
June 1.3, 1890. He has a daughter, 
Deborah, an only child, now in her 
eighteenth year, who is attending the 
Moravian Seminary at Bethlehem, Pa. 



STEPHEN nOVVEL, a prominent lum- 
ber-dealer and well-known citizen of 
New Brunswick, was born Oct. 15, 1827, 
at Princeton, New Jersey-. He was edu- 
cated in the pul)lic schools of Princeton. 
At the age of fourteen years he went to 
work on his father's farm, and in 185-5 
took a farm on shares with his father. 
Six jears later he purchased a farm of 
his own at Pleasant Valley, New Jersey, 
but onl}' operated it two years, when he 
sold out and renewed association with 
his father. In 1865 he bought another 
farm, which he tilled successfuU}' for 
eight years, when he disposed of it. He 
entered the lumber business in 187.3, and 
established two yards, one at Millstone 
and the other at New Brunswick. In 
1878 he gave up the former, and has 
since devoted his attention entirely to 
his extensive New Brunswick yard. Mr. 
Ilowel's business connections ai'e wide- 
reaching, and his trade extends to manj* 
points outside of the city. In politics he 
is a republican, and takes an active inter- 
est in municipal movements. His relig- 
ious atbliations are with the First Re- 
I'ormed church of New Brunswick, of 
which he has been successively elected 
deacon and elder. He is one of the active 
members of the board of trade. 

Mr. Howel was married Nov. 28, 1855, 
to Miss Anna C. Suydam, daughter of 
John I. Suydam, and they have been 
blessed with two sons and two daughters: 
Lewis I., Abram L.. Elenore, wife of Wil- 
liam E. P^lorence, and Sarah Josephine. 



Mr. Howel possesses strong convic- 
tions and rare business abilit}^, and is 
proud of being a thoi'oughly self-made 
man. He is well informed on the lead- 
ing topics of the da}', and is liberal and 
progressive in his ideas. 

For an account of Mr. Howel' s ances- 
try the reader is referred to the sketch 
of Lewis F. Howel. 



ry^ V. ME AC HAM, M.D., a leading 
-^ • practitioner of New Brunswick, is 
a son of Thomas and Mary (Kerns) 
Meacham, and was born April 25, 1870, 
at New Brunswick. His father, Thomas 
Meacham, was born in Ireland, in 1841, 
and came to the United States in early 
life. He located at New Brunswick, and 
was a well-known restaurant-keeper of 
that city for many years, being a highly- 
successful business-man and owner of 
considerable real estate. He was a de- 
mocrat in politics, and a member of the 
Roman Catholic chui'ch. His children 
were : T. V. (subject) ; Annie, Eugene, 
Margaret, Mary, Edward, and Albert. 

Dr. Meacham received his early educar 
tion in the public schools of New Bruns- 
wick, and in the preparatory school of 
Rutgei's College, whence he graduated in 
1888. He then spent six months study- 
ing medicine in the office of Dr. P. A. 
Shannon, of New Brunswick, after which 
he took the medical course at Bellevue 
College, New York city, and graduated 
March .30, 1891, receiving his degree 
before he had attained his majority. He 
immediately entered upon hospital prac- 
tice, and was ambulance surgeon at 
Bellevue Hospital, New York city, for 
six months a member of the staff, and 
an interne at Governor's Island hospital 
for six months, and first house surgeon- 



Biographical Sketches. 



751 



in-charge of the Fordham Hospital for 
seven months, ending Oct., 1892. He 
then sjDent half a year on a pleasure trip. 
In April, 1893, he entered upon regular 
practice in New Brunswick, opening an 
office at No. 118 Somerset street, where 
he remained until May 1, 1895. when he 
removed to his present office on George 
street. 

Dr. Meacham is a democrat in politics, 
but does not enter actively into public 
affiiirs ; he is a member of the Roman 
Catholic church. He is a member of the 
B. P. 0. E., the Order of Foresters, the 
New Brunswick Gun Club, and the 
Catholic Club, a social organization. He 
is local examiner for the Order of Fores- 
ters, the Guardian Life Insurance Co., 
of Boston, and the Metropolitan Life In- 
surance Co., of New York. 

Dr. Meacham is regarded as one of the 
brightest of the junior members of the 
medical profession in New Brunswick. 
He now has a large and growing prac- 
tice, is skillful and intelligent, well-read 
in all branches ; but making a specialty 
of surgery, and thoroughly alive to all 
the advances which the science is making. 



/CHARLES A. POOL, a well-known and 
^-^ successful painter and contractor, 
of West Long Branch, is a son of George 
and Rebecca (Taylor) Pool, and was born 
at West Long Branch, Monmouth coun- 
ty, New Jersey, Oct. 21, 1850. James 
Pool, paternal grandfather, was of Hol- 
land descent. He had a common-school 
education, and was engaged in the shoe 
business at West Long Branch during the 
greater part of his life. He voted the 
democratic ticket and was a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church. When 
England, a second time, tried to over- 
throw the foundations of American lib- 



erty, in 1812, James Pool served his 
country as a soldier in that great strug- 
gle. He married Matilda Cook, and they 
had a family of three children : Hen- 
drick, James, and Jane A. 

George Pool (father) was a native of 
West Long Branch, where he was born 
Nov. 19, 1817. He was a pupil in the 
public schools of his town, and subse- 
quently learned the trade of shoemaking 
with his father, and made that a life- 
long occupation. Politically he was a 
republican, but took no active part in 
party affairs. In religious belief, Mr. 
Pool was a methodist. He married Miss 
Rebecca Taylor, and they became the 
parents of thi-ee children : Monroe V., 
Charles A., and Eugenie, who is now the 
wife of Jacob B. Corlies. George Pool 
died at West Long Branch, Oct. 27, 1890. 

Charles A. Pool (subject) attended the 
common schools of Long Branch until 
he had attained the age of eighteen 
years. He then turned his attention to 
painting and worked at that business in 
Long Branch for a number of years, and 
then went to New York city, where he 
was engaged in business. Finally he re- 
turned to Long Branch and established 
business as a painter and contractor, and 
has gained the confidence and favor of 
a large patronage, becoming very success- 
ful in this line of work. 

Mr. Pool is a member of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church of West Long 
Branch and ably fills the position of 
chorister in the choir of that congrega- 
tion. 

His political views ally him with the 
Republican party, and he is a member in 
good standing of the following secret 
orders : Arioch Lodge, No. 77, 1. 0. 0. F., 
and Norwood Council, No. 127, Jr. 0. U. 
A.M. 



752 



Biographical Sketches. 



On May 20, 1873, Charles A. Pool was 
uiiiteil ill marriage to Miss Maggie Rey- 
nolds, daughter of Mr. James and Phoebe 
Reynolds. They have no children. 



He. JELLIFF, the well-known, en- 
• terprisiiig grocer at Asbury Park, 
Moninouth comit\-, New Jersey, is a son 
of Gould D. and Margaret A. (Long) Jel- 
liff, and was born, Nov. 13, 1854, at Dum- 
fries, Va. 

Tlie Jelliff" family was established in 
this country by two brothers, of French 
extraction, bearing that name, who came 
from England at an early date, one of 
whom settled in Connecticut, the other 
in Illinois. He who made his home in 
the " Nutmeg State " was the great- 
grandsire of the subject of this sketch. 

Aaron Jelliff, the paternal grandfather, 
was a native of Wilton township. Conn., 
and was bred to agriculture. He subse- 
quently migrated south, as far as Vir- 
ginia, purchased a farm at Cannon Sta- 
tion, and there located ; and died in 1835, 
his widow surviving until 184-1. They 
were the parents of seven children : L., 
deceased; Aaron, deceased; Hiram, de- 
ceased ; Gould D. ; Anna, and Fannie. 

Gould D. Jelliff was born on the farm 
at Cannon Station, V^a., and attended the 
district .school until he was fourteen years 
of age, when he was employed in the 
office of a firm in the lumber business. 
After this his life was spent in vai'ious 
pursuits, which are thus enumerated in 
their order : shoemaking, general mer- 
chandising, dealing in patent rights, mer- 
cantile business in Virginia, whither he 
removed, and in connection with which 
he purchased and cleared timber-lands, 
shipping his wood to Washington city, in 
his own vessels. Subsequently he sold 



out the entire business, and removed to 
Alexandria, Va., where he established 
and conducted, for two years, an exten- 
sive grocery trade ; sold the store to good 
advantage, and entered into the dry- 
goods business, which he profitabl}^ con- 
tinued until 1865, when failing health 
caused him to close out. He went to Nor- 
walk. Conn., remained eighteen months 
in quiet recuperation, and subsequently 
purchased a farm in that neighborhood, 
which he cultivated until 1882, when he 
retired for the space of two years. In 
1884 he came to New Jersey, purchased 
a grocery store at the corner of Main and 
Asbury streets, Asbury Park, and formed 
a partnership with his son, H. C. Jelliff, 
under the firm name of Jelliff & Son, 
where he remained in successful trade 
until his death, in 1886. In politics he 
v/as a democrat, and religiously he was a 
member and trustee of the Presbyterian 
church. His marriage to Margaret A. 
Long brought them three children : Leila, 
who married Jesse Minot, of Asbury 
Park ; Clifton N., a member of the cleri- 
cal force of Steiner & Son, shirt manu- 
facturers at Asbury Park ; and H. C. 

H. C. Jelliff attended a private school 
in Alexandria, Va., at first, and when 
his father removed to Norwalk, Conn., 
he became a pupil of the public school in 
that town. Later he attended the public 
school in Wilton, Conn., for a time, and 
afterward entered the Wilton Private 
Academy, conducted by Professor 01m- 
stead, where he remained in preparation 
for Yale College, until his eighteenth 
year. Sickness intervened to prevent 
his matriculation in Yale, and thence- 
forth, until 1879, he remained on the 
home farm with his father. In that year 
Mr. Jelliff purchased the one-half inter- 
est in a general store in Connecticut, re- 



Biographical Sketches. 



753 



maining five years. He sold this inter- 
est in August, 1884, and removed to As- 
bury Park, where, on Sept. 1, 1884, he 
entered into partnership with his father 
in the grocery trade, as has been pre- 
viously mentioned. After his father's 
death the latter's interest in the firm, 
then known as G. D. JellifF & Co., was 
retained for two years by the mother of 
Mr. JellifF. At the expiration of this 
time Mr. Jelliff acquired his mother's 
share by purchase, and thenceforth con- 
ducted the business for himself. He is 
to-day the owner of a large and very 
profitable establishment, employing sev- 
eral delivery wagons, and his handsome 
trade is due not alone to his sagacity 
and his energy, but as well to his reputa- 
tion for carrying the finest quality of 
goods, and his possession of clean busi- 
ness principles. He is a prominent mem- 
ber of Asbury Lodge, No. 142, F. and 
A. M. Mr. Jelliff was united in mar- 
riage, Nov. 19, 1885, to Helen May Wise- 
man, and to their union two interesting 
children have been born : Margaret, nine 
years of age ; and Burchard, aged eight 
years ; both of whom are attending school. 



"DICHARD J. ROBERTSON, the able 
-L ** and popular superintendent of the 
Prudential Insurance Co., of Newark, 
New Jersey (his headquarters being New 
Brunswick, Middlesex county. New Jer- 
sey), is a son of Albert R. and Julia 
Randolph Robertson, and was born Oct. 
22, 1843, at Camden, New Jersey. 

The family, of German extraction, and 
the name, originally written Robeson, 
was founded in this country by the great- 
grandfather, who emigrated from Bremen, 
Germany, and settled in New York city. 

Albert R. Robertson (father) was born 

39 



in the city of New York, where, after 
acquiring an education from the public 
schools, he learned the trade of carpen- 
try. In 1838 he removed to Camden, 
engaging in contract work as a builder. 
At the opening of the civil war, he was 
appointed chief teamster in the commis- 
sary department, serving until the close 
of the strife in 1865. Returning to 
Camden, he resumed his building opera- 
tions, and at one time was engaged in the 
grocery business. In politics, he formerly 
was an active member of the Native 
American, or " Know-nothing " party, 
and in later life a staunch democrat. 
He was a prominent " Red Man," and 
was first keeper of the wampum of the 
grand tribe of New Jersey. He was a 
member of " Big 6 " Hose Co., volunteer 
firemen of New York city, and subse- 
quently assisted to organize the Shiflfler 
Hose Co., of Camden, for whose benefit 
he purchased the first hose carriage 
that city ever possessed, and presented it 
as a gift. He deceased at the age of 
fifty-five years, and is yet survived by 
his wife, who resides at Alloway, Salem 
county, New Jersey. The issue of their 
marriage was five children : Mary E., 
deceased; Katharine, Albert, deceased; 
Richard J., and Mary, who married Wil- 
liam Davis. 

Richard J. Robertson received a com- 
mon-school education. He learned the 
trade of carpenter. At the age of six- 
teen years, he joined the Stockton cadets, 
which organization entered the Union 
army in 1861, and was attached to the 
Fourth New Jersey infantry, forming 
a part of General Runyon's brigade. At 
the expiration of his term he re-enlisted, 
and was assigned to Company H, Tenth 
New Jersey infantry, known as the 
" West Jersey Zouaves," in service for 



754 



Biographical Sketches. 



three years. He was detailed to provost 
duty at the United States Capitol, and 
later was one of President Lincoln's 
body-guards in the United States secret 
service. At the battle of Cold Harbor 
he Avas promoted to the rank of second- 
lieutenant. He received seven promo- 
tions in all, and was provisional captain 
of his company before attaining his ma- 
jority. One of his stripes was won at 
the battle of Cedar Creek, for capturing 
with his command a confederate battery. 
In 18G3 he was transferred to the Thir- 
ty-fourth regiment of New Jersey, and 
was a member of the sharpshooter's bat- 
talion until the close of the war. After 
his discharge from the service, in 1865, 
Mr. Robertson returned to Camden, 
where he was engaged with his father in 
the grocery business for two years, and 
was subsequently variously employed, 
Mr. Robertson entered the service of the 
Prudential Insurance Co., of Newark, 
New Jersey, as its Camden agent, in 
1883, and in 1886 he was rewarded with 
the position of assistant superintendent 
of the Camden district. He soon sprang 
to the first rank of the assistants, and 
was awarded a gold badge, accompanied 
with a substantial pecuniary testimonial. 
In 1888 he was made superintendent at 
New Brunswick, of the district composed 
of Middlesex, Monmouth and Ocean 
counties, and a jjortion t)f Staten Island, 
to the development of which field Mr. 
Robertson so vigorously applied himself, 
and with such results as to foi'ce the 
company to establish other districts in 
the territory outlying. He has been a 
member of the " Prudential Old Guard," 
composed of ten-year veterans in the 
service of the company. 

In fellowship, Mr. Robertson is con- 
nected with the following organizations : 



Post No. 37, G. A. R., a charter mem- 
ber, and its ex- senior vice-commander; 
New Brunswick Post, of the same order; 

F. and A. M., of New Brunswick ; a past 
sachem of Tribe No. 2, I. 0. R. M., Cam- 
den ; Tribe No. 182, which he organized 
at New Brunswick ; Castle No. 71, K. 

G. E., a charter member, and keeper 
of the exchequer. In religious affairs he 
is a member of Pitman Methodist Epis- 
copal church at New Brunswick, a direc- 
tor of the Pitman Herald, a religious 
periodical, and is an active laborer in 
the Sunday-school. In politics he is a 
republican, but liberal and indej^endent 
in his views. He served during the year 
1895 as district deputy sachem of the 
I. 0. R. M. 

Mr. Robertson was married July 13, 
1870, to Hannah Githens, of Burling- 
ton, New Jersey. Such, in brief, is the 
record of the business and martial career 

' of a gentleman yet in his prime ; a com- 
pendium of the history of a gallant 

! soldier, thrice wounded on the field of 
battle, and winning field promotions from 

I his general and his colonel. 



n\ EGRGE WILLIAM DAY, the editor 
^-^ and proprietor of the Weelcly Call, 
of Dunellen, New Jersey, is a son of 
Stanley and Maria Isabelle (Beck) Day, 
and was born Oct. 28, 1859, on Fourth ave- 
nue, between Twenty-sixth and Twenty- 
seventh streets. New York city. 

Ilis father, Stanley Day, was born in 
Norfolk, on the eastern coast of England. 
I He was educated in the common schools 
of his native country, and in early man- 
hood, in 1858, emigrated to the United 
States. Here he found a broader field for 
the employment of his talents, and soon 
engaged in a general advertising business, 



Biographical Sketches. 



755 



with headquarters at New Market, New 
Jersey. Possessed of natural aptitude 
and tenacity of purpose — qualities which 
are essential to success in any line of 
business — he has succeeded in establish- 
ing an extensive and profitable business. 
He wedded Maria Isabelle Beck, and 
they became the parents of seven chil- 
dren : George W., Isabella, Elizabeth, 
James, Charles I., Stanley, Jr., Irene, 
and William, who died in infancy. 

George W. Day attended the public 
schools until thirteen, and at that early 
age was thrown upon his own weak re- 
sources for earning a livelihood. He 
accordingly first found employment as 
bell-boy in Hyde Park Hotel, Chicago. 
Subsequently he went to Ontario, Can- 
ada, thence to West Farm, and finally, in 
1869, came to >'ew Market, New Jersey. 
In the meantime he had learned the 
trade of printing, and followed it in vari- 
ous offices until 1892. During that year 
he, in partnership with G. E. Lowrie, 
founded the Weekly Call at Dunellen. 
They conducted it until January, 1895, 
under the firm name of Day & Lowrie, 
at which time he purchased the in- 
terest of Mr. Lowrie, and became sole 
proprietor. The Gall has a large cir- 
culation in Dunellen and New Market. 
Both its editorial and news departments 
are conducted with ability, and its pres- 
ent circulation has been built up through 
the activity and energy of the present 
editor. He is a vigorous writer and fear- 
less in giving expression to his position 
on all questions and matters of local im- 
port, in upholding and advocating the 
or detecting and opposing the 



right 



opposing 



Mr. Day is a firm believer in the prin- 
ciples and precepts of the Democratic 
party, and has always taken a lively 



interest in its promotion and success. 
He was elected borough collector in 1895 
by a majority of thirty-six votes over his 
comjDetitor, W. G. Runyon, and was 
elected justice of the peace, but declined 
to serve. Fraternally he is a member of 
the Knights of Honor, Friendship Lodge, 
No. 81, Jr. 0. U. A. M., of which he has 
been leading secretary since its organiza- 
tion, and an honoraiy member of Lake 
Side Council, No. 35, Daughters of Lib- 
erty. He is also president of New Mar- 
ket Bridge Co., and a director in a build- 
ing and loan association. 

Jan. 20, 1886, Mr. Day and Miss 
Laura E. Merrill were happily married, 
and to them have been boini Ethel and 
Alfred W. 



TpEANK H. SLATER, a leading and suc- 
-'- cessful pharmacist at Matawan, 
Monmouth county, is a son of Rev. F. A. 
and Sophia Slater, and was born May 16, 
1855, at Rome, N. Y. 

Rev. F. A. Slater (father), who is at 
present pastor of the First Baptist church 
of Matawan, was born on a farm in St. 
Lawrence county, N. Y., and after an 
elementary education in the local schools 
took a course at Colgate University, from 
which he was graduated with honor. He 
soon afterwards began his career in the 
pulpit, and in 1873 removed to Mata- 
wan, and has been pastor of the First 
Baptist church at that place for twenty- 
three years, during which period the 
church has enjoyed the greatest pros- 
perity. 

Frank H. Slater, subject of this sketch, 
received a thorough common-school edu- 
cation, and subsequently attended a school 
of pharmacy, passed the examination be- 
fore the state board of pharmacy, and was 
duly qualified as a practicing druggist. 



756 



Biographical Sketches. 



After spending two years as clerk in a 
drug store in New York city he returned 
to Matawan and was clerk in a store for 
some time. Mr. Slater has since built I 
up an extensive and flourishing business. 
He is a republican in political faith, is a 
member ol' the First Baptist church, and ; 
is prominent in Knickerbocker Lodge, No. j 
52, I. 0. 0. F. 

Mr. Slater is a thoroughly-equipped 
and careful druggist, with a well-grounded 
knowledge of his profession. He is ener- 
getic and enterprising in business, has 
tact and ability to a high degree, and 
commands widespread popularity. 



A DAM GREEN, proprietor of the New 
-^^ Brunswick Pottery Co. and a promi- 
nent citizen of that place, is a son of 
Daniel Green, and was born in 1832. 
His paternal grandfather, Adam Green, 
was in the sugar-refining business for 
many years. He was an active member 
of the Lutheran church. One child, 
named Daniel, was born to him. 

The father of the subject of this sketch 
received a common-school education, and 
followed the occupation of a farmer all 
his life. He was also a member of the 
Lutheran church. To his marriage were 
born two daughters and one son : Marga- 
ret, Susan and Adam. 

Adam Green (subject) received a com- 
mon-school education in his native place; 
after which he worked on a farm for his 
father for a time, emigrating to this coun- 
try in 1848. For a period he worked by 
the day, but finally secured a position 
with the New. Brunswick Pottery Co. as 
a salesman, the duties of which position 
he fulfilled for seven years, when he was 
enabled to purchase the business and has 
successfully carried it on ever since as 
proprietor. His works are located on a 



prominent street, and he employs a large 
number of men. In politics he is abso- 
lutely independent, always voting for the 
best man for office, regardless of his po- 
litical faith. 

He has been a member of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church of New Brunswick 
for thirty-five j^ears, assisted in building 
it, and is now its treasurer. He is an ac- 
tive christian, and always eager to lend 
his assistance to the work of the church. 

He is a member of the order of I. 0. 0. 
F. of New Brunswick. He was united 
in marriage to Rachel Hageraan in I860, 
and their marriage has been blessed with 
one child, Amanda S., married to a Mr. 
Wilson. 

Mr. Green is regarded as one of the 
most reliable and upright business men of 
New Brunswick, of proverbial honesty 
and perfectly straight-forward in all his 
business relations, highly respected as a 
citizen, and well thought of in his com- 
munity. 



O AMUEL SABATH, an enterprising bus- 
^ iness man of Red Bank, New Jer- 
sey, is a son of Joseph and Amelia (Levy) 
Sabath, and was born in Matawan, New 
Jerse}^, in 1862. 

Mr. Sabath's family came originally 
from Hungary, Joseph Sabath (father) 
having been born in Europe. He was 
given a common-school education, and, 
after some years, was given an opportu- 
nity to learn the trade of tinsmithing. 
By this time the cry of " Westward Ho! " 
was stirring the hearts and impulses of 
thousands in the old world, and, like 
many others, whose ambition led them 
to desire to acquire a competence, he em- 
barked for the United States, and landed 
at New York city. After remaining 
some time in that city he went to Jersey 



Biographical Sketches. 



75T 



City, later to Matawan, and finally lo- 
cated at Ked Bank, New Jersey, in 1882, 
where he was engaged in the tinware 
and iron business for some time. Then 
came a financial reverse, in the form of a 
fire, which destroyed his stock and prop- 
erty. Mr. Sabath, Sr., then removed to 
New York city, where he died in 1884. 
His wife, Mrs. Sabath, still survives. 
Five children were born to our subject's 
parents; they are : Emma, now Mrs. Wil- 
liam Munch ; Eliza, the wife of Adolph 
Kellar ; Samuel, our subject ; Tillie, mar- 
ried to William Goldman ; and William. 

Samuel Sabath, the subject of this 
sketch, attended the public schools of his 
native place, and later was sent to the 
schools of New York city. He then was 
associated with his father in the tin busi- 
ness at Red Bank, and later spent one 
year in New York, where he was en- 
gaged in the silk industry. At the end 
of this time he returned to Red Bank, 
and took charge of his father's business, 
which, under the present management, 
has increased so that now Mr. Sabath 
has a good trade in his line of work. 

Mr. Sabath is a man of public spirit, 
and a republican politically, and always 
reserves the right to vote for the best 
man. He has held important offices in 
the borough in which he lives, having 
been a member of the board of town com- 
missioners, and secretary of the board of 
health. Mr. Sabath is also connected 
with the following fraternal organiza- 
tions : the Masonic Rite, No. 4, of Red 
Bank ; the Elks, of Asbury Park ; and 
Knights of Pythias. 



JOSEPH SWANNELL, the leading and 
^ successful architect, of Red Bank, 
New Jersey, is a son of Thomas and 
Harriet (Tilden) Swannell, and was born 



at Williamsburg, Long Island, now a 
part of Brooklyn, N. Y., April 2, 1858. 

Swannell is a purely English name, 
and the first representative to come with 
his family to America was the paternal 
grandfather, Joseph Swannell. 

After passing through the common 
schools, Joseph, Sr., engaged in business 
for himself, and among other transactions, 
bought some property in England, and 
when too late found that he did not have 
and could not secure a clear title. After 
this disappointment he removed to this 
country, and finally settled in Delaware, 
but some years later came to New York. 
Here he engaged in butchering and dealt 
in cattle for some years, when he went to 
Red Bank, New Jersey, and retired from 
active life. 

He was an old-line whig, and an en- 
thusiastic member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church. 

The family of children born to Mr. 
Swannell and his estimable wife were as 
follows : Eliza, Maria (Mrs. John Sutton), 
Edwin P., Emma (Mrs. S. Allain), and 
Thomas. 

Thomas Swannell (father) was born in 
England, where he received a common- 
school education only, but remained a 
close student all his life, and was noted 
for his large store of facts and general 
knowledge. He came with the family to 
America, and remained in the emplo}' of 
his father for some time, and then learned 
the carpenter trade, and engaged in con- 
tracting and building at Red Bauk. 

At the outbreak of the civil war he 
enlisted in Company F, Twenty-ninth 
New Jersey volunteers, and went out 
as first sergeant of his company, and 
served nine months. And when Presi- 
dent Lincoln called for more men, he 
went out as captain of a company of the 



758 



Biographical Sketches. 



Thirty-eighth New Jersey regiment, and 
served until the close of" the war. 

Mr. Swannell was a strong adherent of 
the Republican party, and always voted 
in a conscientious manner. He was a 
high-minded christian gentleman, and an 
active member of the Red Bank Metho- 
dist Episcopal church ; also a comrade 
of the G. A. R. Post, No. 61, of Red 
Bank, and a member of the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, of the same place. 
Thomas Swannell married Miss Har- 
riet Tilden, and this happy union was 
blessed by the birth of two children, the 
first of which was called away in infancy, 
and Joseph, the subject. 

Joseph Swannell (subject) attended 
the public schools of Red Bank, his na- 
tive place, and then proceeded to learn 
the trade of carpenter and builder with 
his father. Later he went to New York, 
where he pursued his chosen occupation 
for ten years. From childhood Mr. 
Swannell showed evidence of an inherent 
taste and talent for drawing and design- 
ing, and always aspired to become an 
architect. Wishing to become a prac- 
tical draughtsman, and thoroughly fa- 
miliar with every detail of the nature 
and demands of the builders' art, he 
learned, as above stated, and worked 
for some years at the trade, and while 
engaged in New York carried on a course 
of study which laid the foundation of 
his success as an architect. 

In 1891, having become fully prepared 
for his new profession, he opened an 
office at Long Branch, New Jersey, 
where he remained until 1894, when he 
removed to Red Bank. Here he soon 
gained a place in the public confidence, 
and by his practical knowledge and abil- 
ity has become the leading and most suc- 
cessful architect of that place, as well as 



of Long Branch, where he still retains the 
office first established. In party opinion 
Mr. Swannell is a republican, and is 
actively engaged in political affairs; in 
his military affairs he is a member of the 
Second Troop cavalry, N. G. N. J. 

On Oct. 24, 1880, Mr. Swannell mar- 
ried Georgia Ann Gill, a daughter of 
Henry Gill, and they have been blessed 
by the birth of two children : Florence, 
and T. Benton. 



"TAMES BROWN, Jr., an extensive 
^ manufacturer of Somerville, New 
Jersey, is one of the most enterprising 
and progressive men in the state. He is 
the son of James and Margaret (Stewart) 
Brown, and was born in the county of 
Armagh, in the north of Ireland, Nov. 28, 
1849. He is of Scotch ancestry. His 
grandparents, on both sides, were people 
of means and influence in the county in 
which they lived. 

Samuel Brown, his grandfather on the 
paternal side, was an agriculturist all his 
life, and resided about forty miles from 
Belfast. He died in 1802, at the age of 
seventy years, leaving one child, a son, 
James, the father of James Brown, Jr., 
who was born at the old homestead, Aug. 
5, 1816, received a common-school edu- 
cation, and disliking the farmer's life, 
which his father had followed, engaged in 
the mercantile and milling business. He 
married Margaret Stewart, a daughter of 
Hugh Stewart, of county Armagh, Ire- 
land. To them were born the following 
children : Stewart, now at Pluckamin, 
New Jersej^ ; Isabella, married to James 
Chambers, of Stamford, Conn. ; Margaret, 
who resides in Somerville ; Samuel, who 
died in infancy ; James, Jr. ; Anna, liv- 
ing on the old homestead; and Josiah, 
who died January 13, 1867, at the age 




^.^^^^r/S^n--i^^<AM^/n>^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



761 



of thirteen years. James Brown, Sr., 
came to this country in June, 1851, when 
James, Jr., was little more than one 
year old; they settled at Pluckamin, 
New Jersey, where the father died Feb. 
20, 1890, at the age of seventy-four 
years. The mother died April 5, 1896, 
being over eighty-three years of age. 

James Brown, Jr., entered a general 
store at Pluckamin in April, 1869, where 
he continued until Nov., 1870, when he 
went into business for himself, being 
scarcely twenty-one years of age. He 
engaged in the general merchandise bus- 
iness, and also in the manufacture of 
clothing, until 1881, when he came to 
Somerville, and began manufacturing in 
a small way. He erected a building, 42 
by 60 feet, three stories in height, on the 
corner of Main street and Doughty ave- 
nue. He prospered from the first, and 
in a short time found it necessary to 
increase his facilities, and another build- 
ing was added, 40 by 42 feet, three 
stories high. 

Enterprising, progressive, and thor- 
oughly versed in his business and an able 
financier, Mr. Brown made steady prog- 
ress, and in 1889 another building was 
put up, 54 by 110 feet, and another in 
1891. In 1894 more room was needed, 
and a four-story building, 86 by 60 feet, 
was erected, besides adding another story 
to the corner building. A new dye-house, 
two stories in height, 112 by 40 feet, was 
built. In 1895 100 feet were added to 
the mill, and another story put on the 
former mill building. The plant covers 
almost the entire block, and has alto- 
gether in the different buildings about 
four acres of floor space. There are three 
lines of side-tracks running into the mill- 
yards. 

The proprietorship of the business thus 



started bj' Mr. Brown in a small way has 
been changed to a corporation with a 
capital of $400,000, of which he is the 
treasurer and general manager. The 
company manufactures its goods from the 
raw material, using the following differ- 
ent processes before its product is fit for 
the market : Wool-sorting, scouring, card- 
mg, spinning, weaving, dyeing, finishing, 
cutting, button-holing, sewing and press- 
ing. They manufacture men's and boys' 
suits, pants, overcoats, etc., and have a 
capacity of over 1000 complete suits each 
day. The company has an office and 
salesroom in NewYork ; they have trav- 
eling salesmen in all the states and ter- 
ritories; and employ altogether, in and 
outside of the factory, about 2500 hands. 

Mr. Brown, whose active life is thus 
epitomized in the successful establish- 
ment of such an important industrial 
enterprise, is an active politician of the 
republican faith, a member of the Second 
Reformed church, and one of the fore- 
most spirits in all work which tends to 
advance its interests, is one of its elders 
and assistant superintendent of its Sab- 
bath-school. He is an exemplary chris- 
tian gentleman ; in disposition is genial, 
courteous and genei'ous. 

His first marriage was with Gertrude 
Potter Lane, daughter of Frederick H. 
Lane, Esq., May 16, 1878, and to their 
union were born one son and two daugh- 
ters : Nellie Louisa, born July 9, 1880; 
Frederick, born Jan. 13, 188-3 ; and Jen- 
nie C, born Aug. 9, 1886. Their mother 
died March 19, 1890. Mr. Brown's 
second marriage was with Ella Lane, 
sister of his first wife, in June, 1892, and 
their union has been blessed with one 
daughter and one son : Gertrude, born 
June 19, 1893; and Hugh Stewart, born 
Nov. 1, 1896. 



762 



Biographical Sketches. 



"PpDWARD S. MORTON, M. D., is a 
-*-^ joung and successful physician, of 
Red Bank, New Jersey, and is rapidly 
rising to popularity and gaining the es- 
teem and confidence of the public of that 
place. Mr. Morton comes from one of the 
old and well-known Scotch families, is 
a son of Walter and Elizabeth (Hubbard) 
Morton, and was born at Red Bank, this 
state, Jan. 1, 1871. 

Daniel Morton (paternal grandfather) 
was a native of New Jersey, and was 
given a common-school education. He 
then learned the mason trade, and fol- 
lowed that business throughout life. He 
succeeded, and reared a family of six 
children : John H., Walter H., Thaddeus, 
Frank, Nicholas, and Augusta. Thad- 
deus and Nicholas both served in the war. 

Walter H. Morton (father) was born 
in New Jersey, and after spending some 
years in the common schools, finished his 
school days at the Ivy Institute, of Man- 
asquan. New Jersey. He then began 
farming, and some years later learned the 
trade of carpenter and builder; finally 
located at Red Bank, in 1864, and has 
since been actively engaged in contract- 
ing and building, with success. He is a 
republican in political faith, and takes an 
active part in local party affairs. He 
was elected city commissioner of Red 
Bank, and held that position for one tei-m. 
The Grace Methodist Episcopal church of 
Red Bank numbers Mr. Morton among 
its most active and responsible members, 
and during his connection with this con- 
gregation he has served as a trustee, and 
at present is steward. By his marriage 
with Miss Elizabeth Hubbard, Walter 
H. Morton became parent to a family of 
three children : Charles, deceased ; Cor- 
nelia, and Edward S. 

Edward S. Morton (subject) was born 



and reared in Red Bank, New Jersey, 
and received his entire elementary edu- 
cation in the public schools of that place, 
graduating from the high school. Sub- 
sequently he read medicine, entered the 
Columbia Medical College at New York, 
and received his degree of M. D. in 1894. 
In 1895 he opened an office and began 
the practice of his profession at Red 
Bank. 

Dr. Morton is an enthusiastic repub- 
lican. 3'et does not actively participate in 
local politics, but devotes his entire time 
to his profession. He is a member of 
the Grace M. E. church, and in the spring 
of 1895 became a steward of that organ- 
ization. He is a young man of ex- 
emplary habits, good address, is rapidly 
building up a large practice, and has the 
confidence and esteem of a large circle of 
patrons and friends. 



TT> J. PHINNEY, general manager for 
-*- • Messrs. Johnson & Johnson, of 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Thomas H. and Francis (Johnson) Phin- 
ney, and was born in the year 1860. 
His paternal grandfather, Thomas P. 
Phinne}^ was a native of England, and 
his paternal grandmother a native of 
Scotland. They settled originally in the 
town of Carbondale, Pa., where the 
grandfather was engaged in the banking 
and general merchandising business for 
the greater part of his lifetime. He 
died in 1889. 

Thomas H. Phinney (father) was born 
in Pennsylvania, and after receiving a 
common-school education, engaged in the 
oil business at Oil City, in that state. 
He subsequently removed to Chicago, 
111., where he is still living, engaged in 
the same business. He has been very 



Biographical Sketches. 



763 



successful in his business career, and is 
now connected with the Standard Oil 
Co. He is a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church in Chicago, and an 
active factor in all church work. He 
married Miss Frances Johnson, and they 
have had born to them four children. 

F. J. Phinney (subject) was born at 
the old homestead, and after receiving a 
thorough common-school education, went 
to Kochester, N. Y., and engaged in the 
mercantile business for four years. Af- 
terwards he removed to Chicago, 111., and 
was connected in business with Ross & 
Co., of that city, for four years. He sub- 
sequently returned to Oil City, Pa., and 
became connected with his father in bus- 
iness in the latter city. He continued in 
business with his father until 1886, when 
he came to New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
and engaged with Messrs. Johnson & 
Johnson, of the latter city, as book- 
keeper. He has gradually worked his 
way upward until now he is their general 
manager. He is a democrat in politics 
and has always taken a deep interest in 
political affairs. He has been honored 
with a position on the board of aldermen 
of the city of New Brunswick, and en- 
joys the public confidence in no small 
measure. He is a member of Christ 
Episcopal church, of New Brunswick, 
and is quite active in all church work. 
He is also identified with a number of 
fraternal organizations, such as the Royal 
Arcanum and the Knights of Honor, in 
each of which he manifests a like active 
and zealous spirit. He is a gentleman 
of quiet, unassuming manners, genial 
temperamant, and is highly esteemed. 

Mr. Phinney was married in 1886 to 
Miss Clara H. Bishop and they have had 
born to them the following children : 
Thomas F., Horace B., and Opal S. 



aEORGE M. VALENTINE, the efficient 
cashier of the Middlesex County 
Bank of Perth Amboy, New Jersey, and 
treasurer of the Perth Amboy Savings 
Institution, is a son of Robert N. and 
Mary D. (Mercer) Valentine, and was 
born June 29, 1866, at Woodbridge, 
Middlesex county. New Jersey. 

Mr. Valentine obtained his elementary 
education from the public schools of 
Woodbridge, and subsequently he at- 
tended Rutgers College, at New Bruns- 
wick, for two years. He then entered 
Packard's Business College, in New York 
city, where he received that thorough 
training which so eminently qualified 
him for what was destined to be his life's 
occupation. He accepted a position as 
a clerk in the National Park Bank of 
New York city, one of the largest and 
strongest banks in this country, and re- 
mained with that banking hpuse until 
1892, when he was appointed cashier of 
the Middlesex County Bank of Perth 
Amboy, by its board of directors. He 
was subsequently elected treasurer of the 
Perth Amboy Savings Institution, and is 
still the capable and trusted manager of 
these two financial concerns. His busi- 
ness qualifications are of a superior order; 
quick in perception and prompt in de- 
cision, he has banished the slow and 
cumbrous methods from " country bank- 
ing " in his town. He is careful, conser- 
vative, and methodical, qualities that 
are vital to successful financiering. In 
personality he is urbane, and possesses 
an equable temperament, traits so essen- 
tial in opening new accounts on the indi- 
vidual ledger of a bank, and in retaining, 
without jar or friction, its old customers. 
The bank, under his management, has 
largely increased its business ; it is pay- 
ing good dividends to its shareholders, 



764 



Biographical Sketches. 



and is justly regarded as one of the most 
substantial Ijanks in Middlesex countj^. 

Mr. Valentine resides on Higlit street, 
in a handsome mansion of architectural 
beauty, and elegantly and tastefullj'^ fur- 
nished. He is a republican, but has 
never sought or held a political office. 
He was united in marriage, Sept. 10, 
1891, to Carrie Anness. One child has 
been born to them : Helen, aged three 
years. 

James Valentine (paternal grandfathei') 
was a prosperous butcher in New York 
city during many 3'ears. He removed 
later to Woodbridge, New Jersey, and 
with his accumulations he purchased a 
number of farms in the vicinity of that 
town. One of these farms he tilled, and 
on the others he developed clay mines. 
The latter industry eventually led him 
to engage in the manufactui'e of fire- 
brick, which enterprise, under his sole 
direction, grew into a large and profitable 
business. He was a republican, and 
a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. He died in 1891, and is sur- 
vived by his widow, who is still living at 
an advanced age, and in the enjoyment ; 
of rea.sonably good health. They were 
the parents of nine children : Maria, 
married to Josiah Drake ; William, de- 
ceased ; Benjamin, Robert N., Martin D., 
J. Ross, Howard, Edward, and Oscar. 
The seven surviving sons are residing at 
Woodbridge, and are engaged in day 
mining, and in the manufacture of fire- 
brick. They are all prosperous men, and 
are regarded as substantial citizens of the 
town. 

Robert N. Valentine (father) was born 
in New York city, but was reared at 
Woodbridge. He attended the public 
schools of the latter place, and in early 
manhood became engaged in clay min- 



ing at Sand Hill, Woodbridge township, 
which business has occupied his entire 
time and attention to the present day. 
He has prospered in his business, and is 
one of the substantial men of Middlesex 
county. He is a director in two monej'ed 
institutions: the Middlesex County Bank, 
and the Perth Amboy Savings Institu- 
tion. He is a republican and a free- 
mason. His children are three in num- 
ber : George M., Howard R., bookkeeper 
for M. D. Valentine, manufacturer of 
fire-brick at Woodbridge ; and Raymond 
L., student at Packard's Business Col- 
lege, New York city. 



TTTILLIAM E. CURLEY, the success- 
' '^ ful proprietor of an extensive 
laundry at Freehold, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, is a son of John J. and 
Mary Meek Curley, and was born in 
Aug., 1858, in Freehold, New Jersey. 
He is of mixed extraction, inheriting 
warm French blood from the maternal 
side, and from the paternal side he de- 
rives the cool, phlegmatic blood of the 
Anglo-Saxon. His paternal ancestors 
were natives of Lancaster, Lancastershire, 
England. 

John J. Curley (father) settled at 
Freehold, New Jersej^ where he con- 
tinued in successful farming from 1849 
to 1881. In religion he was a member 
of the Freehold Protestant Episcopal 
church, but in politics he was never in 
the least interested. He was married to 
Mary Meek, and they were the parents 
of four children : Kate, who married a 
Mr. Soden ; A nnie, married to a Mr. 
Conway, and now residing in Colorado ; 
William E. ; and Jolin J., engaged in the 
laundry business at Freehold with his 
brother. Upon the father's demise, he 
left intact for his family the old home- 



Biographical Sketches. 



765 



stead at Freehold, which is now occupied 
bj Mrs. Soden, Mr. Curley's sister. 

William E. Curley acquired his educa- 
tion in the public schools at Freehold, 
after which, until 1881, he was engaged 
with his father at farming. In that year 
he opened a laundry in the town, com- 
mencing in a small way catering to the 
wants, in his line, of the local trade 
exclusively. His business grew and ex- 
panded, year by year, until now he oper- 
ates a large plant employing forty hands, 
at Freehold, where, in addition to his 
home trade, he has an extensive trade 
with New York city and Philadelphia, 
besides owning and conducting branch 
laundries in the following other towns of 
Monmouth county : Red Bank, Long 
Branch and Asbury Park. Mr. Curley 
is the pioneer launderer at Freehold, and 
has constantly made additions to the 
building located on Bowers avenue. He 
also owns the adjoining real estate to the 
extent of a whole block, thus affording 
himself ample room for further enlarge- 
ments. During the years 1891-'92-'93, 
he was also engaged in a wholesale and 
retail tobacco business, but relinquished 
that trade in order to meet the demands 
of his swelling volume of laundry work. 
The machinery and appliances for turn- 
ing out nothing but the most approved 
specimens of the launderer's art are new, 
modern and well-arranged, with a view 
to economy of time and labor. Mr. Cur- 
ley is thoroughly experienced in these 
matters, and is careful, conscientious, 
painstaking, and ever solicitious to sat- 
isfy his patrons. In politics he is en- 
tirely independent, possessing no taste or 
desire to engage in such affairs, and in 
religion he is interested in the work and 
progress of the Freehold Protestant 
Episcopal church. 



He is a member of the Improved Order 
of Red Men ; was a member of Fire En- 
gine Company No. 1, Freehold fire depart- 
ment, for thirteen years; is now a mem- 
ber of the Exempt Firemen's Associa- 
tion, and always has been extremely 
active in those matters. Mr. Curley was 
married in 1881 to Elizabeth Stapleton. 



/CAPTAIN GEORGE A. BOWNE, JR., 
^-^ a prominent farmer and supervisor 
of Middletown township, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is a son of George 
and Lydia (Wilson) Bowne, and was 
born, May 9, 1843, in the township above 
named. 

George Bowne (father) was born in 
1818, at Nutswamp, New Jersey, where 
he attended the public school, and later 
settled down to agricultural pursuits. 
He continued in that occupation for a 
time at Nutswamp, and later at Middle- 
town, where he was the owner of a large 
and productive farm. He took a very 
active part in politics on the Republican 
side, and held various township offices. 
In religious matters he was a member of 
the Dutch Reformed church, and he re- 
mained in that communion until his 
death, which occurred at Middletown in 
1893. He married Lydia Wilson, who 
survived him until Oct. 3, 1895. They 
were the parents of three children : 
Sarah, married to George L. Crane ; Cap- 
tain George A., and Theodore E. 

George A. Bowne, Jr., attended the 
common schools of Middletown until he 
reached the age of fifteen years. He 
worked upon his father's farm until the 
civil war broke out, when he enlisted as 
a private in Company I, First regiment, 
New Jersey cavalry. He served three 
years and ten months in the army, was 



766 



Biographical Sketches. 



engaged in a number of battles, was 
twice wounded, and in one engagement 
he had four horses shot under him. He 
was successively promoted for gallant and 
meritorious conduct on the battlefield, 
until he attained the rank of captain, 
and he was in active service in nearly all 
the campaigns undertaken by the Army 
of the Potomac. Captain Bowne is a 
baptist in religious faith and conviction, 
and is an active member, having held 
various important offices therein, of the 
church of that denomination at Middle- 
town. In politics he is a republican, and 
has held different positions in munici- 
pal affairs. He was a member of the 
board of freeholders for one year, was 
judge of election for a series of years, 
served on the town committee two years, 
and is at present supervisor of Mid- 
dletovvn township, a position he has oc- 
cupied for twenty years. He is a mem- 
ber of several secret societies. 

Captain Bowne was united in man-iage, 
June 4, 1877, to Mary A. Wilson, a 
daughter of Rev. William V. and Lydia 
Wilson. Two children are the result of 
this union : Lydia and Jessie. 



TXTILLIAM B. LAWRENCE, of Red j 

' ' Bank, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, is a son of Joseph and Rachel | 
Stout (Borden) Lawrence, and was born 
April 18, 1851, at Toms River, Ocean 
county, New Jersey. The family is of 
Engli.sh origin, although the subject's an- 
cestors for at lea.st two generations have 
not seen the soil of England. The pa- 
ternal grandfather, Joseph Lawrence, 
was a native of New Jersey, and he 
lived all his life at Toms River. He had 
a common-school education, and at an 
early age became a sailor. He was en- 



gaged in maritime pursuits up to the time 
of his death. Politically he was an old- 
line whig, and religiously a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church. His 
wife, whose name before her marriage 
was Mary E. Newell, presented him with 
the following children : Benjamin, de- 
ceased ; Mary Ann, married to Benjamin 
Mathews ; Joseph, Sarah, wife of John 
Lyons ; James, and Jeane, married to 
a Mr. Skinner. 

Joseph Lawrence (father) attended the 
district schools at Toms River, and later 
learned the trade of a blacksmith, but 
never carried it on. He was a republi- 
can and became a very active politician 
locally. He was elected justice of the 
peace of Toms River, and occupied that 
position for thirty successive years. He 
was connected with the life-saving ser- 
vice for some time, and was wrecking 
master at Toms River. He attended the 
Methodist Episcopal church, and was a 
member of the I. 0. 0. F. at Toms River. 
He died March 22, 1870, and was sur- 
vived by his widow until April 8, 1879, 
when she deceased on her sixty-fifth 
birthday. They wex'e the parents of ten 
children : Jonathan S., Joseph, deceased ; 
Joseph C, deceased; Mary E., married to 
Ira J. Hall; Benjamin L., Ephraim E., 
deceased ; Helen P., wife of David Al- 
len ; Edward B., William B., and Lucy 
A., married to a Mr. Stead, since de- 
ceased. 

William B. Lawrence, after acquiring a 
good common-school education in his na- 
tive town, learned the trade of a baker 
with Fogle Brothers. He removed from 
Toms River Oct. 1, 1869, and located in 
Elizabeth, New Jersey, where he was 
variously employed during many subse- 
quent years. He then purchased one- 
half interest in his brother's business, and 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



767 



was admitted into partnership with his 
brother. He remained seventeen years 
in the prosecution of a successful busi- 
ness, but in March, 1894, he was com- 
pelled, on account of ill-health, to close 
out his interest and retire. He removed 
to Ked Bank where he has since resided ; 
he is an active republican politically, 
and served from 1891 to 1893 as a mem- 
ber of the board of education of Elizabeth. 
He is also a member in that town of the 
masonic fraternity. In Red Bank Mr. 
Lawrence is a member of several secret 
societies. He is a member of the First 
Baptist church and superintendent of its 
Sunday-school since the first of the year 
1896. He is an active christian and a 
faithful worker in both church and Sun- 
day-school. 

He was married April 8, 1874, to Caro- 
line Tucker, a daughter of Abraham F. 
and Mary Tucker, residents of Elizabeth, 
New Jersey. To this union have been 
born five children : Joseph E., deceased ; 
Bertha May ; Emma H. ; William C. 
and Dorothy. 



TAMES A. MORRISON, of New Bruns- 
^ wick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Daniel and Anna M. (Dale) Morrison, 
and was born in that city in 1860. The 
Morrison ancestors came from the north 
of Ireland. Daniel Morrison (father) 
was born in Ireland, and came to America 
when in his twenty-fourth or twenty-fifth 
year. At an early period he devoted 
himself to farming, but after a time 
abandoned that occupation and entered 
into the grocery business. He carried 
on this business for several years, when 
he sold out and removed to New Bruns- 
wick, and again entered into the grocery 
business in the latter city. Here he 



established a prosperous and lucrative 
trade, and for many years enjoyed a very 
successful business life. He was always 
a staunch democrat, but never an aspir- 
ant for political preferment. He was a 
member of the Episcopalian church of 
New Brunswick, and a strict ritualist. 
He married Miss Anna M. Dale, and 
they had born to them the following 
children : James A., Mary E., John J., 
William D., and Daniel L. The father 
died in 1874, but the mother is still 
living, and residing in New Brunswick. 

James A. Morrison was educated in 
the public schools of New Brunswick. 
Early in life he assisted his father in the 
grocery store, and upon reaching man- 
hood he started in a similar business 
upon his own account. He was fairly 
successful, but a few years later aban- 
doned it to enter into the tea business. 
In the latter venture he continued in 
successful operation up to 1883, when he 
retired. He subsequently engaged with 
H. L. Fairchilds, proprietor of Dr. Dut- 
ton's Vegetable Discovery, as a clerk, and 
in this establishment and business he 
successfully worked his way until he was 
promoted to the position of manager, and 
this position he has occupied for the past 
five years. The business of this concern 
is extensive. 

Mr. Morrison was married to Miss 
Rebecca J. H. McOwen in 1884, and 
they have had born to them the following 
children : Lilian, Helen J., Jessie L., and 
George R. 

Tp C. HAZARD, founder of the E. C. 
-*— ^' Hazard Co., importers, in New York 
city, and manufacturers of fancy groceries 
in Shrewsbury, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, and a resident of the latter place, 
is a son of Bowdoin and Theresa (Clark) 



768 



Biographical Sketches. 



Hazard, and was born April 4, 1831, at 
Minnford's Mills, R. I. 

Mr. Hazard attended the common 
schools at Narragansett, R. I., until he 
was about eighteen years of age, after 
which time, filled with a spirit of com- 
mercial enterprise, he went to New York 
city, where, with horse and wagon, he 
became engaged at vending, as well as 
introducing to the grocer}" trade special 
articles of fancy groceries, more par- 
ticularly goods of foreign manufacture. 
Eleven years later, in 1860, Mr. Hazard 
became regularly engaged in an estaljlish- 
ment of his own at No. 69 Barcas street. 
This was the primitive beginning of the 
house of E. C. Hazard & Co., Hudson and 
North Moore streets. New York city, 
whose name is a household word to-day. 
In 1883 Mr. Hazai'd, after prospecting 
for a suitable place for carrying out a 
previously matured intention of produc- 
ing a pure article of tomato ketchup from 
" love apples," fresh from the vine, pur- 
chased a fine farm of one hundred and 
sixty-five acres at Shrewsbury, New Jer- 
sey, in honor of which town he names 
his various brands of goods, and erected 
thereon extensive factories, including 
handsome offices and one of the best- 
equipped laboratories in this country. 
He made a specialty at first of " Shrews- 
bury "tomato ketchup, so justly celebrated 
for its purity and excellence, but subse- 
quently added canned tomatoes and 
canned baked beans to his line of manu- 
facture. Later he commenced to culti- 
vate and can mu.shrooms, his attention 
being drawn in this direction because of 
the impurities existing in the imported 
mushrooms packed in brine. Mr. Hazard 
conceived the idea of packing and preserv- 
ing them in their own juice after cultivat- 
ing them in his own cellars, a series of which 



he constructed on his farm, situated on a 
peninsula fornied by the north and south 
branches of the Shrewsbury river. In 
their construction he was guided by 
suggestions derived from a report to 
this government made by the United 
States consul at Nantes, France, which 
treated, among other subjects, of the 
methods of mushroom cultivation in that 
country. Mr. Hazard has passed the ex- 
perimental stage in the culture of this 
excellent fungus, and has more than 
realized his expectations, for, from the 
raising of a ci'op in 1895 valued at $1200, 
the value of the crop of 1896 will proba- 
bly reach $50,000. It is Mr. Hazard's 
prediction that, notwithstanding the 
American product has to compete with 
foreign low wages and an unfair tarift', 
it will drive from the market the French 
mushroom, unless the latter is packed 
after better methods. 

In the prosecution of this extensive 
industry he employs several hundred 
hands, and thei'e is no scene more inspir- 
ing to the eyes of a visitor than to gaze 
upon those broad acres, upon which a 
horde of laborers are busy picking the 
blood-red fruit of the trailing vine and 
robbing the soil of their treasures of 
asparagus, okra, peppers, tarragon, and 
other aromatic plants for immediate use 
in the preparation of table delicacies by 
throngs of other contented workers in 
the steaming factory near at hand. It 
is also interesting to promenade along 
the alleys of the subterranean planta- 
tion and observe the various stages of de- 
velopment; in row after row, and tier 
upon tier, the epicure's delight of phe- 
nomenally rapid growth — the succulent 
mushroom. In addition to packing tomsv- 
toes, tomato ketchup, and mushrooms, 
Mr. Hazard packs and ships to his dis- 



Biographical Sketches. 



769 



tributing point, his house in New "Y ork 
city, chile, pepper, and burnt onion 
sauces, mayonnaise salad dressing, as- 
paragus, various kinds of jellies, and 
other tasty condiments. 

Mr. Hazard was the presiding officer 
of the convention held in Madison Square 
garden, in 1892, by the Pure Food Asso- 
ciation. He is a member of the New 
York Mercantile Exchange, of the Com- 
mercial Club of New York city, and of 
the Masonic fraternity. 



WILLIAM T. VAN DYKE, an exten- 
sive wholesale and retail dealer in 
fish at Long Branch, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Vincent W. and 
Hannah (West) Van Dyke, and was born 
at Long Branch in 1837. The family is 
of Dutch origin, but, inasmuch as no an- 
cestral archives have been kept, it is im- 
possible to trace the history of the 
branches of the primeval tree to a point 
beyond the father of the subject of this 
sketch. 

Vincent W. Van Dyke (father) was a 
farmer and a fisherman all his life. In 
politics he was an old-line whig ; in re- 
ligion an active, ever-zealous member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church, so filled 
with fervor in the cause that he held 
stated meetings for religious praise and 
worship in his own house. He married 
Hannah West, and his death occurred on 
a Sabbath morning, July 10, having been 
killed instantly by a passing train of cars, 
while endeavoring to cross a railroad 
track in Long Branch. His widow de- 
ceased two years later in the same city, 
leaving six children : Michael, Saul, 
Henry, Isaac, William T., and Hannah, 
married to William H. Denise. 

William T. Van Dyke (subject), after 



attending the public schools at Long 
Branch for several years, and acquiring 
a good English education, assisted his 
father in his fishing operations. He sub- 
sequently engaged in that business for 
himself, and, during the past fifteen years, 
has conducted, very successfully, a large 
wholesale and retail trade in that line of 
industry, packing and shipping salt-water 
fish to all parts of this country. He is 
an industrious and hard-working man, 
possessing an enviable reputation among 
his customers for upright business meth- 
ods, as well as the respect of the people 
of his community, by whom he is re- 
garded as a good man and a worthy citi- 
zen. In political matters Mr. Van Dyke 
is a modest and unassuming democrat, 
and has never aspired to the distinction 
of holding even local offices. In relig- 
ious afiairs the sanctity that pervaded 
his childhood's home still dominates him, 
as he leads a christian life, and is a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal chui'ch at 
Long Branch. Mr. Van Dyke married 
Henrietta Ireland, daughter of John Ire- 
land, who is ninety-six years of age, at 
Long Branch. To Mr. and Mrs. Van 
Dyke have been born eight children. 



TT A. CURTIS is the senior partner 
-*—'-• of the firm of Curtis & French, 
dealers in musical instruments at Red 
Bank, Monmouth county. New Jersey. 
He attended the public schools for a few 
years, and shortly after entering his 
teens went to work uj)on a farm. When 
he arrived at the age of fifteen years his 
uncle, a sea-captain, took the young man 
aboard his vessel and taught him to plough 
the wave as skillfully as he had pre- 
viously ploughed the ground. After a 
service of four years as a mariner Mr. 



770 



Biographical Sketches. 



Curtis quitted the sea to engage in mer- 
cantile pursuits with his father. In this 
association he remained for several years, 
conducting a general store, but finally 
succeeded to the entire business. He 
was appointed postmaster of the town, 
and gave efficient service in that capacity 
during the whole of President Cleveland's 
first administration. He removed to 
Eed Bank, New Jersey, where he formed 
a partnership, known for three years as 
Peck & Curtis, dealers in musical instru- 
ments. At the expiration of the third year 
this partnership was dissolved, Mr. Curtis 
remaining in the business single-handed 
for a year. 

Subsequently the present firm of Cur- 
tis & French was organized, consisting of 
our subject and Mr. French. They have 
a large and growing trade, which is due, 
in a great measure, to the indomitable 
energy and limitless enterprise, superior 
tact, and cai'eful management of the 
senior partner. 

Mr. Curtis is also interested in the 
manufacture of the first successful device 
for crown- and bi-idge-work in dentistry, 
known as Dr. Mason's detachable porce- 
lain on crown, which has been aptly 
designated as a labor-saver for the dentist, 
and a time- and temper-saver to the 
patient. 

In politics Mr. Curtis is a democrat, 
and served as a member of the first board 
of commissioners at Manasquan, New 
Jersey, after the incorporation of the 
town, which he also Avas instrumental in 
having laid out. lie was a memlier of 
the executive committee of Shrewsbury- 
township for two years, and for three 
years he has been a member of the board 
of education of Red Bank. 

In secret organizations he is affiliated 
with the following orders : Lodge No. 21, 



Free and Accepted Masons ; Lodge No. 
2.3.3, B. P. 0. Elks, both of Red Bank, 
and Lodge No. 51, Knights of Pj-thias, 
at Shrewsbury. 

Mr. Curtis was married December 25, 
1880, to Virginia, a daughter of the late 
Captain John Arnold, who resided at 
Point Pleasant. To their marriage have 
been born three children : Osborne, El- 
wood, and Harold. 



ATTATHAN ALLEN, senior member of 
-^^ the firm of Allen & Young, enter- 
prising and successful grocers of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of C. 
N. and Eliza G. Allen, and was born at 
Neshanic, Somerset county, New Jersey, 
April 6, 1848. 

C. N. Allen (father) was born at Ne- 
shanic, Somerset county, New Jersey, 
and, though given but a common-school 
education, was a man of extraordinary 
intelligence, and well versed in the current 
events of the times. He owned a large 
farm near Neshanic, in Hillsborough 
township, and was regarded as a model 
farmer. He was an active democrat, and 
soon rose to prominence in political 
circles. He was justice of the peace at 
Neshanic for several years, and was a 
member of the general assembly in 1857. 
Mr. Allen was a regular attendant at 
the Reformed church at Neshanic, New 
Jersey, and gave liberally of his means 
to support the good cause of church work. 

Mr. C. N. Allen was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Eliza Gano, daughter of 
Stephen Gano, of Neshanic, and the chil- 
dren comprising their family are as fol- 
lows : Cornelius A., Martha (deceased), 
Sarah J. (Mrs. George Young), Stephen 
G., Ellen A. (Mrs. Augustus Dilts), Abra- 
ham, Nathan, Ezekiel B., John, George, 



Biographical Sketches. 



771 



and Caroline (Mrs. George Bateman). C. 
N. Allen died in Oct., 1861, and his wife 
survived until Feb., 1889. 

Nathan Allen (subject) passed out of 
the common schools at the age of fifteen 
years, and became a clerk for Mr. H. B. 
Apgar, at Pottstown, Nevir Jersey, where 
he remained three years. In 1870 he en- 
gaged in the grocery business for himself 
at Flagtown, New Jersey, and after one 
year removed to Montgomery, where for 
three years he managed a store, in con- 
nection with farming. He finally located, 
in 1877, in New Brunswick, and estab- 
lished the grocery business, which has 
since become prosperous. In 1891 Mr. 
Allen took Mr. Cornelius Young, his 
nephew, into partnership with himself, 
and this firm, trading under the style of 
Allen & Young, do a nice trade. Mr. 
Allen is a democrat, and an earnest and 
consistent memberof the Reformed church 
of New Brunswick, and has served as an 
elder and deacon. On Oct. 3, 1877, 
Nathan Allen married Mrs. C. A. Voor- 
hees, daughter of Daniel and Sarah 
Stryker. 

TpRANCIS BENNINGTON MORRIS, 
-*- general shipping agent for the Le- 
high Valley Railroad Co., and general 
manager of the Bee Line Transportation 
Co. at Perth Amboy, is also one of the 
most prominent and highly respected citi- 
zens of that city. He is descended from 
an old line of American ancestors of 
Scotch origin, and the immigrant was one 
of three brothers, John, Daniel and Wil- 
liam, who came to America in 1651. 
Daniel had borne a commission in Oliver 
Cromwell's army and came to this land 
as a refugee. They settled in Connecti- 
cut and were among the founders of that 
state. Joseph Morris, the great-great- 

40 



grandfather of F. B. Morris, bore the 
rank of major in the Continental army of 
the Revolution under the immortal Wash- 
ington. 

Jonathan Ford Morris (grandfather) 
came to New Jersey and settled at Mid- 
dlebush, Somerset county, where William 
Cullom Morris was born. He was edu- 
cated at Rutgers College, from which he 
graduated and took up the study of law 
in the office of David Shired, at Belvi- 
dere, New Jersey ; was duly admitted to 
practice, in which he continued at Belvi- 
dere. He was appointed to a position in 
the custom house at New York by Presi- 
dent Fillmore for four years. He after- 
wards removed to Jersey City, where he 
was elected judge of the courts, in which 
high and honorable position he served 
for several years. He had diversified busi- 
ness interests outside of his profession, 
and was identified with the savings bank 
of Jersey City. In politics he was an ac- 
tive whig, was once a candidate for the 
legislature and stumped part of the state 
of New Jersey for Clay and Frelinghuy- 
sen. Frelinghuysen was a first cousin to 
his wife. He was a devout christian of 
the Presbyterian faith and was an elder 
in his church for fifty years. He mar- 
ried Mary Magdelina Stryker ; they had 
seven sons and six daughters. He died 
at the advanced age of eighty-four years, 
and his good wife lived to the age of fifty- 
seven years. 

Francis Bennington Morris was born 
at Belvidere on the 24th of Sept., 1839, 
the youngest of thirteen children. He 
was educated in private schools in that 
town and graduated from the Lyceum of 
Jersey City. He subsequently became a 
clerk in the dry-goods house of Anthony 
& Van Dyke for two years, and in 1854 
left their employ, and for the ensuing few 



772 



Biographical Sketches. 



years filled various clerkships until 1863, 
when he went to Philadelphia. He 
entered the service of the Lehigh Valley 
Railroad Co. in 1865 at Rockport, Pa., 
and in 1868 was promoted to general car 
agent. He rose rapidly by the following 
promotions as assistant road master, as- 
sistant forwarding agent, forwarding agent 
and in 1882 was made shipping agent at 
Perth Amboy and general manager of 
the Bee Line Transportation Co., both of 
which responsible positions he still holds. 
His offices for the latter are in New York 
city, where he goes every day. The busi- 
ness of this company emploj^s forty-six 
vessels and two hundred men, while he 
has under him as shipping agent for the 
railroad company six hundred men. Li 
his extensive offices at Perth Amboy he 
employs twenty-seven clerks, besides 
nineteen superintendents and six fore- 
men. The business of his office consists 
in the shipping of coal for the Lehigh 
Valley Railroad Co. from Perth Amboy 
and South Plainfield, and in 1895 he 
handled 2,815,712 tons of coal, shipping 
to all points of the world. They do the 
most extensive coal shipping business 
from their yards done in the country, and 
their road next to the Philadelphia and 
Reading handles more coal than any other, 
by virtue of which Mr. Morris' position 
is one of the highest department offices of 
the road. Politically he is a democrat 
and has always refused office. Frater- 
nally he is a member of I. 0. 0. F., the 
Royal Arcanum, Knights of Honor and 
the Royal Additional Beneficial Society. 
He is a member of the board of health of 
Perth Amboy and served one year as its 
president. He is a member and presi- 
dent of the board of trustees of the Pres- 
byterian church of Perth Amboy, and a 
trustee and treasurer of the free public 



libraiy of Perth Amboy. Mr. Morris 
has been twice married. His first wife, 
Emma Girvan, daughter of John Girvan, 
a merchant of Jersey City, whom he mar- 
ried in June, 1860, bore him seven chil- 
dren, as follows : Ella, who died at the 
age of twelve years; William CoUum, 
who is a director and also secretary and 
treasurer of the Christy Fire Clay Co. at 
St. Louis ; Charles and Wallace, twins, 
both of whom died at the age of one year; 
Emma, who is a missionary in India 
under the auspices of the Presbyterian 
board of foreign missions ; Mary, who is 
at home, and Francis B., who died in in- 
fancy. Mr. Morris lost his first wife in 
the spring of 1874 at the age of thirty- 
four years. " In 1876 he married for his 
present wife Miss Ella J. Baker, a daugh- 
ter of Josiali Baker, a farmer of Shrews- 
bury, Mass., and one child, Julia Lind- 
sey, has come to this union. 



y\AVID WILLIAM MORTON, an en- 
-^-^ terprising blacksmith of Manas- 
quan, New Jersey, was born in that 
town Feb. 17, 1840, and is a son of 
Joseph C. and Hannah (Longstreet) 
Morton. His grandfather on the paternal 
side, Walter H. Morton, was born in 
Scotland and came to this country when 
a lad and married Elizabeth Johnson in 
1779, and was a successful farmer in this 
count}'. 

Joseph C. Morton (father) was born on 
his father's farm near Allen wood. He 
obtained a common education at the dis- 
trict schools, and entered upon the call- 
ing of a farmer in Wall township, which 
he steadily j^ursued until his death in 
1882. He was a republican, but took no 
interest in political work. He was a 
member of the Methodist Protestant 



Biographical Sketches. 



773 



church. To his married life were born 
ten children, two of whom died in in- 
fancy; the others were : Samuel C, Joseph 
A., David William, George H., Elizabeth, 
married to William Potter ; Sarah A.., mar- 
ried to Thomas White, since deceased ; Re- 
becca, married to Charles Seaman, and 
since deceased ; and Matilda, married to 
David Allen. Joseph C. Morton died in 
the year 1882, and his wife in 1886. 

David William Morton (subject) re- 
ceived a common education at the district 
schools near Manasquan, and at the age 
of seventeen was indentured to William 
H. Craig, with whom he learned the 
blacksmith trade. He continued steadily 
at this occupation till early in the year 
1862, when he enlisted as a priv^ate in 
company D, Fourteenth regiment. New 
Jersey volunteers, and with it joined 
the Army of the Potomac in Virginia, 
being attached to the Sixth corps. Much 
of the term of service of his regiment 
was spent in the Shenandoah Valley, and 
it was conspicuous during the celebrated 
raid of General Lee into Pennsylvania. 
Upon the expiration of his military serr 
vice Mr. Morton returned to Manasquan 
and shortly afterwards removed to Free- 
hold, where he engaged as a journeyman 
blacksmith with William Hankinson. 
Subsequently he removed to Hightstown, 
and entered into a partnership with his 
brother, S. C. Morton, in the blacksmith- 
ing business a number of years. In 1872 
they dissolved partnership; he continued 
until 1882, when his shop was destroyed 
by fire. He then removed to Manasquan, 
and established himself in a shop of his 
own in which he has since thrived and 
prospered. In politics Mr. Morton is a 
republican, but takes little interest in 
political work. In 1894 he was first 
elected a member of the board of educa- 



tion for a term of two years, and was re- 
elected in 1896 for a second term of three 
years. Mr. Morton takes zealous inter- 
est in religious work, and is an official 
member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church at Manasquan. He is also inter- 
ested in its Sunday-school work, and in 
its progress and success he is especially 
interested. He is a member of the I. 0. 
0. F. and the encampment at Hights- 
town, and of the Knights of Pythias, 
and is a past officer in each of these so- 
cieties. Mr. Morton married Margaret 
M. Cottrell, daughter of William D. 
Cottrell, of Fairfield, Monmouth county, 
in the year 1865, and their union has 
been blessed with ten children, two of 
whom, Harvey and Frank, died in child- 
hood ; the others were : Clara B., mar- 
ried to Orbell Eankins ; Ruberta, Joseph 
H., Ellenetta, Ernest R., Raymond L., 
Harrison C, and Pearl L. 



JM. BLEW, Esq., the superintendent 
• of Sayre & Fisher Company's im- 
mense brick plant at Sayreville, New 
Jersey, is a son of John S. and Ann M. 
Blew, and was born in Seneca county, 
N. Y., on Sept. 9, 18S0. His paternal 
grandfather was Samuel Blew, who was 
born at Kingston, New Jersey, and who 
emigrated to New York in the year 1806, 
and became one of the pioneer farmers of 
Seneca county, that state. One of his 
sons, John S. Blew, was a prosperous and 
successful farmer of Seneca county all his 
life. 

J. M. Blew obtained such mental dis- 
cipline as the district schools of his native 
county afforded in that day, and upon 
attaining his majority succeeded in the 
management of his father's estate, his 
father having died. He continued agri- 



774 



Biographical Sketches. 



cultural pursuits until 1873, when he 
came to Sayreville, and entered the em- 
plo}' of the Sa^'re & Fisher Companj-, one 
of the leading brick manufacturing com- 
panies of the United States. He worked 
in every department of this immense 
plant, thoroughly familiarizing himself 
with every detail of the business, and 
in lh88 the company, in recognition of 
his ability, promoted him to the general 
superintendency of the department in 
which building bricks are manufactured. 
Energetic and attentive to business, he 
possesses the entire confidence of his em- 
ployers, and is popular and well liked by 
those who work under his supervision. 



A LBERT L. FORCE, editor and pro- 
-^^ prietor of the Plainfield (New 
Jersey) Daily Press and Weekly Co7istitu- 
tionalist, was born in that city in 1846, 
and has been closely identified with its 
growth and improvement from a small 
country town to one of the leading cities 
of New Jersey. He was the youngest of 
a family of four boj's and two girls. He 
received only a common-school education, 
and in 1858 entered the Somerset and 
Union Gazette office as " devil." For 
four years he performed all the duties of 
the printing-office imp, from sweeping 
out to setting type. He afterwards 
Plainfield Union office as 
1863 went to New 



the 



m 



worked in 
pressman, and 
York. 

A year later he set type for John A. 
Gray & Green, the Frankfort street prin- 
ters, and at the close of the civil war 
returned to Plainfield and again secured 
work in the Union office. In 1867 Mr. 
Force and his brother, W. L. Force, 
started a job-printing establishment. The 
Constitutionalist, under the editorship of 



the two brothers, made its appearance in 
1868 as a democratic weekly, and has 
been issued continuously since that time 
as a staunch democratic journal, and to- 
day has a large rural constituency, among 
whom it wields much influence. The pub- 
lication of the Daily i^-ess was commenced 
by them May 10, 1887, independent in 
politics and largely devoted to local 
interests. In July, 1893, W. L. Force, 
the senior partner, died, and the subject 
of this sketch purchased the half interest 
of his brother's widow and became sole 
proprietor of both papers. 

The success and popularity of the Daily 
Press is best evidenced in the fact that it 
is to-day a six-column folio, just double 
the size of what it was when started 
eight years ago. The Press each day 
devotes from nine to twelve columns to 
local news, which, considering the fact 
that Plainfiejd has only 18,000 popula- 
tion, is a piece of enterprise equaled by 
the papers of no other New Jersey city. 

Though laboring zealouslj' through the 
Constitutionalist for the success of the 
Democratic party at all elections, Mr. 
Force has never sought political prefer- 
ment, and has, in fact, always avoided it at 
the difterent times he has been solicited to 
accept nomination for puljlic office, rang- 
ing from borough councilman to member 
of assembly by his fellow-democrats, but 
has steadfastly refused to enter public 
life,pi'eferring to remain in the quietude of 
private life. 

TpDWARD A. WEST, one of the leading 
-*-^ business men of Sea Bright, Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, is a son of 
John H. and Isabella (Emeiy) West, 
and was born Nov. 11, 1859, at Fresh 
Pond (now called Monmouth Beach), 
Monmouth county, New Jersey. 



Biographical Sketches. 



775 



The paternal grandfather, Obadiah 
West, was also a native of the old-time 
village of Fresh Pond, and his term of 
residence there was equal to his span 
of life, and his occupation was that of a 
fisherman and boatman. 

John H. West (father) was born at 
Monmouth Beach, where he still resides, 
adjacent to the old family homestead, in 
ease and comfort, the result of a compe- 
tence acquired after many years of toil 
upon the water. He was also engaged 
in the life-saving service for a number of 
years, in which noble and humane calling- 
he was among the first to engage in this 
country. He was married to Isabella 
Emery, who deceased in 1880, after rear- 
ing two children : Edward A., our sub- 
ject; and Mary A., who resides with her 
father. 

Edward A. West, after receiving his 
education from the. public schools of 
Atlanticville (now North Long Branch), 
moved to Sea Bright, his present home, 
in 1878, and obtained a position as clerk 
in a grocery store conducted by J. W. 
Sherman, with whom he remained three 
years. In 1882, he and W. H. Knapp, 
of Red Bank, New Jersey, purchased the 
Sherman establishment and entered into 
the same line of business, under the firm 
name of Knapp & West. Mr. West took 
charge of the store and superintended its 
management, while Mr. Knapp was en- 
gaged as a traveling salesman. In 1891 
the latter retired from the road, and 
since that time has managed the financial 
end of the business, Mr. West being 
general manager and superintendent of 
the other departments. The business 
transacted by the firm is an extensive 
one, and requires for its facilitation a 
corps of eleven clerks, and the employ- 
ment of a total of five wagons. The 



aggregate annual sales raiige from ^^v^,- 
000 to $60,000 per annum. Twice has 
the establishment been consumed by fire, 
the first conflagration occurring in 1888, 
and the second on June 16, 1891. The 
present store building is a handsome, 
commodious brick structure, three stories 
in height, with a frontage of seventy-five 
and a depth of one hundred and fifteen 
feet. The upper stories of their building 
form six flats containing fifty-six rooms, 
furnished in modern style, and all occu- 
pied by good tenantry. The up-building 
of this immense business in Sea Bright, 
and its evident success, are largely due to 
the indefatigable energy and enterprise 
of Mr. West, who is a tireless worker. 
He is a thorough business man, and me- 
thodical in all his habits, as well as in 
the arrangement and display of his 
goods. In point of neatness and of 
management, it is equal to any mercan- 
tile house in northern New Jersey. Mr. 
West is a member of Long Branch 
Lodge, No. 78, F. and A. M., and of 
Council No. 28, Jr. 0. U. A. M. 

He married Ella A. Brown, of Sea 
Bright, New Jersey. Mr. West is a gen- 
tleman of pleasing, attractive personality, 
and is an engaging conversationalist. He 
is not a politician ; never has been, nor 
have his father and grandfather before 
him ever taken any interest in political 
matters. He is wedded to his business, 
and has no time for distractions that 
promise much and yield little. 



RUFUS OGDEN, the son of Henry Lott 
and Rebecca Ogden, was born in 
New York city, June 23, 1828. He be- 
longs to the Westchester county, N. Y., 
branch of the Ogden family, founded by 
John Ogden, of Rye, . in that county, 



776 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



whose Puritan father came over from 

Eiighind about 1639. John, of Rye, mar- ! 
ried Judith Budd. He was an important 
man of his day. Among other things, he 
was a member of the general court of 
Hartford, under John Winthrop. He 
was also deputy-governor of Connecticut 
from Rye (then a part of that colony) in 
1674, which entitles his male descendants 
to membership in the Society of Colonial 
Wars. It is said that John, of Rye, was 
a cousin of John, of Elizabeth, New Jer- 
sey, who died in 1683. John Ogden, of 
Rye, died in 1682. 

The direct line of descent from John 
Ogden, of Rye, to Rufus Ogden is as fol- 
lows : Richard, a son of John, of Rye ; 
Daniel, a son of Richard ; Ichabod, a son 
of Daniel ; Rufus, a son of Ichabod ; 
Henry L., a son of Rufus ; and Rufus, the 
subject of this sketch, a son of Henry L. 

Rufus Ogden's grea1>grandfather, Icha- 
bod, was a farmer and an ardent patriot 
in Westchester county, N. Y., during the 
Revolution. Ichabod was born, May 8, 
1742, at Greenwich (Horseneck). He 
was a son of Daniel and Mary Ogden. 
Ichabod married Mary Reynolds, daugh- 
ter of Gideon and Bertha Reynolds. 

A price was set by the British for the 
capture of Ichabod, and to quote from 
" Bolton's History," Vol. I, p. 72 : " On 
July 1, 1779, when the village of Bed- 
ford was burned by the British, they 
fired, on their retreat, the house occupied 
by Ichabod Ogden, where the militia had 
quarters, and which was afterwards 
owned and occupied as a tavern by John 
Smith." During the Revolution the resi- 
dents of Westchester county had a hard 
time of it, between 1776 and 1783. 
They lived between the lines, so to speak. 
Ichabod Ogden escaped, and, it is said 
went over into the American lines, and 



so on to Esopus with his family, where 
later he left for Virginia, and was drowned 
in the Chesapeake Bay. 

Henry L. Ogden, the father of Rufus, 
was a native of Newport, R. I., where he 
was reared. He was engaged in business 
on Broadway, New York city, until 1870, 
when he removed to Kej^port, New Jer- 
sey. In politics he was a democrat. He 
was a member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church, and was known and esteemed 
as an earnest and devoted christian. 
Henry L. married Rebecca Hurley. They 
were the parents of eight children : 
Rufus, Henrietta, Josephine, Harriet W., 
Richard H., John H., Lavinia, and Chris- 
tine. 

Rufus Ogden, after obtaining a com- 
mon-school education, learned the trade 
of a harnessmaker, with Charles Francis, 
in New York city. He married, Feb. 3, 
1850, Miss Susan 'Burdge, daughter of 
Benjamin and Deborah Burdge, at the 
old homestead on the Burdge farm. Clay 
Pit creek, Navesink, New Jersey. Their 
marriage was blessed with thirteen chil- 
dren : David, who died in infancy ; Hen- 
rietta, now deceased, the wife of ex-Judge 
Alfred Walling, Jr. ; Gilbert G., a lawyer 
now residing in Chicago ; Charles E. H., 
deceased ; Benjamin B., a lawyer at Key- 
port; Henry L., a druggist, deceased; 
Ella R. ; Elizabeth B. ; Susan B. ; Rufus 
L. ; Alfred W., a chemist ; Josephine A., 
and Grace A. 

Following his trade for a brief time, 
first at Farmingdale, then at Middletown, 
he finally, in 1851, settled in Keyport, 
New Jersey, where he has since remained 
in the successful prosecution of his call- 
ing. While true to his trade, he has, 
from time to time, been interested in 
other enterprises. He conducted the 
only ice business from 1865 to 1889, a 



Biographical Sketches. 



777 



stationery business from 1865 to 1891, 
was a promoter, secretary, and treasurer 
of the Farmers' Transportation Co., which 
built and operated the steamer " Holm- 
del " for the New York produce trade. 
For eleven years he was an active mem- 
ber of the Raritan Guards, a local mili- 
tary organization. He did much towards 
organizing and keeping up this company, 
and served as its captain in 1863. He 
was superintendent of the Methodist 
Sunday-school for about thirty years. 
He has served as a member of the town- 
ship committee and the board of educa- 
tion at various times. Also chairman of 
the town commissioners, and at the pres- 
ent time is president of the board of 
water commissioners. In politics Mr. 
Ogden is a staunch Republican. In 1861 
he was appointed postmaster at Keyport, 
New Jersey, by President Lincoln, in 
which office his faithful and efficient ser- 
vices were rewarded by an incumbency, 
during successive administrations, of 
twenty-five years. 

Mr. Ogden is a good citizen, a con- 
scientious business man, and he was an 
honorable public official. Each step in 
his career has been attended by success. 
He has lived the life not only of a pros- 
perous, but a very useful man. Few 
citizens of the state can be said to have 
taken a more active part in public affairs. 
Mr. Ogden's wife is a most amiable and 
estimable christian woman, and is re- 
garded with tender affection by all who 
know her. 



TDENJAMIN B. OGDEN, a prominent 
-'— ' lawyer and real-estate dealer of Key- 
port, Monmouth county. New Jersey, is a 
son of Rufus and Susan (Burdge) Ogden, 
and was born Jan. 30, 1856, in the town of 
Keyport. He is descended from old puri- 



tan stock. Details respecting his more 
immediate ancestry will be found in a 
sketch of the life of his father, Rufus 
Ogden, which appears elsewhere in this 
volume. For several years, while attend- 
ing the public schools of Keyport, New 
Jersey, Mr. Ogden acted as assistant to 
his father in the post-office of Keyport, 
New Jersey, and during the seasons of 
1873-74, and '75 was employed as a 
clerk in the post-office at Ocean Grove, 
New Jersey. In the autumn of 1875 he 
entered the law office of Judge Walling, 
of Keyport, with whom he read law and 
associated himself in real estate and in- 
surance. This relation was continued 
until April 1, 1879, when the partner- 
ship was dissolved, and since that time 
Mr. Ogden has conducted a law, real- 
estate and insurance business of his own 
in Keyport, New Jersey. He was ad- 
mitted to the bar of Monmouth county 
as an attorney-at-law in Feb., 1879, and 
as a counsellor in Feb., 1882. His prac- 
tice is mainly an office practice, and 
while he does a general practice he makes 
a specialty of negotiating mortgage loans 
for his clients. In this business he has 
been eminently successful, owing to his 
reputation as a shrewd and careful inves- 
tor, and his knowledge and judgment as 
to values. At this time he is the largest 
real-estate dealer and negotiator of loans 
in Keyport. 

Mr. Ogden was one of the organizers 
of the People's National Bank of Key- 
port, and has been a director of that 
institution since its organization in 1889. 
He was secretary of the Keyport Build- 
ing and Loan Association, and has been 
secretary of the Second Keyport Loan 
Association since its oi'ganization in 1880. 

In politics he is an active disciple of 
the Republican faith, and is very influen- 



778 



Biographical Sketches. 



tial in the local affairs of his party, always 
taking an active part. For five years he 
has been a member of the boai-d of com- 
missioners of Keyport. During the first 
two years of his service as a member of 
that board a complete system of water- 
works was constructed. 

Mr. Ogden united himself in matri- 
mony, Nov. 10, 1880, with Annie H. 
Walling, a daughter of Elijah S. and 
Mary A. Walling, of New Monmouth, 
New Jersey, and to this union has been 
born one daughter : Adele, fifteen years 
of age, and a graduate of the graded 
school of Keyf)ort. She is now pursuing 
a collegiate course. 



Tp E. RIVA, M. D., a successful and 
-*- ' well-known physician of Mill town, 
Middlesex county, is a son of Emanuel 
Antonis and Maria Theresa (Duenas) 
Riva, and was born Aug. 3, 1864, at 
Havana, Cuba. His early education was 
received at St. Charles' College, Cuba. 
In 1881 he came to New York, accom- 
panied by his brothers, William and Al- 
bert, and they located with their guar- 
dian, Raymond Valla, at Rhode Hall, 
Middlesex county, New Jersey. Dr. 
Riva completed his English education at 
Hightstown, New Jersey. In Oct., 1882, 
he entered the medical department of 
the University of Pennsylvania, under 
the preceptorship of Dr. Flock, of New 
Brunswick, and graduated in 1885, sub- 
sequently for a short time locating at 
Blockley Hospital, Philadelphia, as a 
member of the resident staff. He re- 
moved to New Brunswick on July 1, 
1885, and was assistant to his preceptor. 
Dr. Flock, until he entered into inde- 
pendent practice in that city. In March, 
1888, he established himself at Milltown, 



where he has continued to practice ever 
since. 

Dr. Riva is a member of the N^ew 
Jersey State Medical Society, and the 
Middlesex County Medical Society. He 
is a democrat in politics and served as 
county physician of Middlesex county 
from 1888 to 1890, inclusive; also a 
commissioner of Milltown in 1890, and 
from 1894 to the present time. He is 
local examiner for the Prudential Insur- 
ance Co., of New York, and is medical 
examiner as well as a prominent member 
of Friendship Lodge, No. 30, K. of P.; 
Wickatunk Tribe, No. 135, I. 0. R. M. ; 
Adelphia Council, Royal Arcanum. On 
April 23, 1893, he was married to Miss 
Grace Rowland, daughter of William and 
Jean De Graw Rowland, and they have 
one daughter, Jean. 

Dr. Riva has been eminently success- 
ful in the practice of his profession. He 
possesses skill, tact and sympathy, and 
is very popular throughout Middlesex 
county. He was a special protege of the 
late Dr. Thompson, one of the most 
respected elder physicians of South River. 
He occupies a handsome residence in Mill- 
town on Riva avenue, named for him, 
and South Main street. Dr. Riva's an- 
cestry is of Italian origin. His paternal 
grandfather, Antonis M. Riva, was at 
one time one of the staff of the famous 
General Garibaldi, but subsequently went 
to Cuba, where he was engaged by the 
Spanish government as a civil engineer 
and contractor on government work. 
His children were : Emanuel Antonis 
and M. M. Riva, M.D., a noted physician 
of Havana. 

iTmanuel Antonis Riva (father) was 
born in Cuba, but went abroad when nine 
years old, and was educated in the Jesuit 
schools of Italy and France as a civil 



Biographical Sketches. 



779 



engineer. He returned to Cuba when 
thirty years old, and was successfully 
associated with his father in government 
work, and in the erection of a large num- 
ber of sugar-making plants. In 1868 
he visited the United States as bridge 
inspector for the Spanish government. 
He died June 30, 1890, having been the 
father of four children : Maria Rosa, 
deceased ; William S., a government en- 
gineer in Cuba; J. E., the subject, and 
Albert M., now residing in New York 
city. Dr. Riva's mother, who died in 
1868, was a daughter of Joseph D. 
Duenas, a wealthy Cuban planter of 
Spanish descent, and owner of the famous 
Santa Lucia sugar plantations near 
Havana. 



TTON. FRANK LA RUE TEN BROECK, 
-*— L mayor of Asbury Park, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, and a pros- 
perous produce dealer in that town, as 
well as in Ocean Grove, is a son of Peter 
Quick and Sarah K. Ten Broeck, and 
was born Feb. 8, 1857, in New York 
city. The family was founded in this 
country by Dirck Wessels Ten Broeck, 
who, accompanied by two brothers, set 
sail from Holland on the ship " Faith," 
and landed at New York in the year 
1638, whence he migrated to Albany and 
settled. 

Dirck Wessels Ten Broeck was the 
first mayor of Albany, also served as an 
alderman and town recorder, and subse- 
quently became a member of the state 
legislature. His services were called 
into frequent requisition as an arbitrator 
between the white settlers and the 
Indians of the five nations, and, as a 
rule, was successful in peacably settling 
such disputes. He organized and com- 
manded a volunteer company in Albany 



with which he joined General Winthrop, 
in August, 1690, for the invasion of 
Canada. He was one of the original 
owners of the Saratoga lands, otherwise 
styled Saratoga patent or grant, and he 
occupied the office of commissary and 
justice for a great many years. 

John Ten Broeck, paternal great-great- 
grandfather, was born in 1683, and was 
twice married. His first wife was Eliza- 
beth Wendel. His second marriage made 
Catryna Van Rensselaer the mother of 
a son, whom they called John, in honor 
of his father. 

Captain John Ten Broeck, who figures 
in colonial history, was the great-grand- 
father of Mayor Ten Broeck, and the 
first of the name to locate in New Jer- 
sey, whence he came from Albany, N. Y. 
He served during the French and Indian 
wars as captain and major, and in the 
Revolutionary war his rank was that of 
lieutenant-colonel in the Fourth regi- 
ment, Jersey Blues, which he organized. 
He was married January 30, 1746, to 
Patience Williamson, who bore him nine 
children, the sixth in order of whom was 
Peter. 

Peter Ten Broeck (grandfather) was 
born Sept. 4, 1760, and was twice mar- 
ried. His first marriage, July 4, 1782, 
to Emma Chamberlain, resulted in the 
birth of four children : Mary, Emma, 
and John V. and Elizabeth, who both de- 
ceased in infancy. His second wife, 
Catherine Emmons, he married on May 
31, 1812. Their children were : John, 
Elizabeth, Catharine V., Peter Quick, 
Jane G., Sarah, and Margaretta ; the last 
three being deceased. 

Peter Q. Ten Broeck (father) was born 
Aug. 5, 1821, at Readington, Hunterdon 
county. New Jersey, on the family-home- 
stead farm. He was educated in the 



780 



Biographical Sketches. 



district schools, and for a number of 
years was engaged in agriculture. In 
1857 he removed to New York city, 
where he opened and conducted a large 
bazaar for the sale and exchange of 
horses. He subsequently became asso- 
ciated in that city with William Maps, 
under the firm-name of Maps & Ten 
Broeck, ojjerating a stage line. In 1863 
he returned to Elizabeth, New Jersey, 
where he conducted a livery sales-stable, 
besides trafficking in grain and hay. From 
1870 to 1876 he was proprietor of the 
old American hotel at Elizabeth, and 
removed in the latter year to Asbury 
Park, where he still resides. In politics 
he was formerly a whig, now a republi- 
can, and in church affairs he is a member 
and liberal contributor to the Dutch 
Reformed church. He was married Feb. 
24, 1841, to Sarah E. Shurts, a daughter 
of Henry Shurts, of Hunterdon county, 
New Jersey. They are the parents of 
eight children : Catharine M., wife of 
John G. Jeraleman ; Henry, deceased ; 
Jane E., married to Henry Hill ; Theo- 
dore, deceased ; Sai'ah E., wedded to 
John H. Peirson ; Mary E., deceased ; 
Frank La Rue, the subject, and George 
W., deceased. 

Frank La Rue Ten Broeck was edu- 
cated in the public schools at Elizabeth, 
New Jersey, and at the age of fifteen 
years became a clerk in the law office of 
ev-Governor Green at Elizabeth, New 
Jersey. In 1875 he entered the employ 
of the Adams Express Co. at Long 
Branch, New Jersey, and in 1877 he took 
out, as a conductor, the first elevated 
railroad train from the City Hall Station 
in New York city. He remained in the 
service of the " L " road until the spring 
of 1878, when he removed to Asbury 
Park, and established himself in his 



2)resent produce business at that place 
and at Ocean Grove. Mr. Ten Broeck 
is an enthusiastic republican, and one of 
the leading politicians of that party in 
Asbury Park. He is president of the 
Young Men's Republican club, and is ex- 
chairman of the township executive 
committee ; was elected borough commis- 
sioner in 1886, and was a member of the 
borough council for three terms, and the 
president in 1892. Mr. Ten Broeck was 
elected first mayor of Asbury Park in 
1893, and re-elected in 1895. During 
his incumbency of the office of chief 
magistrate of his town he has grown 
more popular than ever hy reason of 
courtesy, impartiality, ability, and pro- 
gressiveness, and has done much to put 
Asbury Park into the front rank as a 
favorite summer resort. He has been a 
member of the local fire department for 
twelve years, and was foreman of the 
Wesley Engine Company for three years. 
He is one of the organizers and a director 
of the Asbury Park board of trade, and 
is president of the citizens' association, 
organized to promote the interests of, and 
improve the town. Fraternally he is a 
memberof the following societies: Knights 
of Pythias, Royal Arcanum, B. P. 0. E., 
Jr. 0. U. A. M, and the Monmouth 
Social Club. Mr. Ten Broeck was married 
Jan. 14, 1879, to Minnie Newell Smith, 
a daughter of Joseph Smith, of Philadel- 
phia, and to them have been born eight 
children : Josephine S., Esther F., Peter 
Q., Frank L., Jr., Joseph S., Helen M., 
Agnes N., and Ada Dorothy. 



FRANKLIN VAN NUIS, a prominent 
farmer near New Market, Piscata^ 
way township, is a son of John and 
Mary (Randolph) Van Nuis, and was 



Biographical Sketches. 



781 



born Aug, 8, 1855, at New Brunswick. 
He was educated in the common schools 
of Plainfield, the New Brunswick gram- 
mar school and Eastman's Business Col- 
lege, Poughkeepsie, N. Y. After com- 
pleting his studies he worked on a farm 
until August, 1875, when he removed to 
Illinois and engaged in farm work there 
for six months. He then returned to 
the east, and in October, 1876, purchased 
the farm, which he now occupies and 
operates, on the road between Stelton 
and New Market, Piscataway township. 
It comprises one hundred and twenty 
acres of land, of which ten acres are 
woodland, and during the twenty years 
that Mr. Van Nuis has owned it he has 
brought it to a high degree of fertility 
and productiveness. Mr. Van Nuis is 
a republican in politics, but has never 
been ambitious for public office. He is 
member of the Baptist church at Stel- 
ton and also of the Commercial Council 
of Poughkeepsie. In October, 1876, he 
was married to Miss Adeline Nelson, 
who died Feb. 17, 1892, after having 
borne him two children : William Frank- 
lin and Alfred Nelson. 

Mr. Van Nuis is one of the well-known 
men of Piscataway township, and de- 
servedly popular. He is energetic and 
expert in the management of his farm, 
and has been highly successful in the 
tilling of it. He is active and influential 
in church and charitable work. 

John Van Nuis, the subject's paternal 
grandfather, was a republican in politics, 
and served with distinction through the 
war of 1812. He was the father of five 
children : John, Lyle, Robert, James, and 
Kate. 

John Van Nuis (father) was one of the 
early pioneers in California in 1835, and 
subsequently returned east and engaged 



in the carriage business at New Bruns- 
wick. He was afterward engaged in 
farming for ten years near Plainfield, 
and spent the latter years of his life on 
a farm in Piscataway township. He died 
at the age of sixty-three years, having 
been the father of five children : Christie, 
Emily, wife of George Harris, a miller at 
Plainfield ; Charles, Laura, and Franklin, 
the subject. 

O AMUEL S. GILES, a skilled tradesman 
^ and reputable citizen of near New 
Market, Middlesex county. New Jersey, 
is a son of Samuel and Susan (Moore) 
Giles, and was born Oct. 7, 1823, near 
Bound Brook, Somerset county, New 
Jersey. He is descended from a sturdy 
Scotch-Irish ancestry, and Ebenezer Giles, 
his paternal grandfather, was a pioneer 
farmer near Bound Brook. He was the 
father of six children, four sons and two 
daughters. One of these sons, Samuel 
Giles, was born and resided all his life 
near Bound Brook. He was a pros- 
perous farmer, an old-line whig, and a 
Presbyterian. He married Susan Moore, 
who bore him eight children, seven sons 
and one daughter : Enoch, Nelson M., 
Benjamin S., Margaret, Samuel S., George, 
a soldier in the civil war ; Henry, and 
Joel. 

Samuel S. Giles has been twice mar- 
ried. His first wife was Catharine Van 
Nest, who became the mother of twelve 
children : Margaret Ann, deceased ; Ison 
E., Elizabeth, John De Witt, Charles H., 
Nelson V., Laura, Howard, Samuel Lin- 
coln, Harvey, Gussie, and William M. 
Mrs. Van Nest Giles died in Michigan 
in 1884, and Mr. Giles took for his second 
and present consort Mollie Smith. 

Mr. Giles attended the public schools 
of his native township until seventeen 



782 



Biographical Sketches. 



years of age, and then apprenticed him- 
self to his brother to learn the blacksmith 
ti-ade. He learned rapidly, and in due 
time became a proficient and skilled work- 
man. In 1870 he opened up business at 
his present stand, which is situated two 
miles from New Market, on the road 
leading from thence to New Brun.swick. 
He is a careful and painstaking work- 
man, and does all kinds of job work. 
Formerly he was a whig, but upon the 
organization of the Republican party he 
became identified with it, and has since 
cast his vote and influence with that 
party. Since 1876 he has filled the 
office of surveyor of highways continu- 
ously, and has been a member of the 
school board. 



~T K. DE MOTT, a funeral director and 
^ • leading undertaker of Somerset 
county, at Bound Brook, is also a veteran 
of the late civil war. He is of mixed 
French and Scotch lineage on his pa- 
ternal and maternal sides respectively. 
The immigrant ancestor came from 
France in 1725, and settled at Three 
Bridges, New Jersey. He was a farmer 
by occupation, and resided at Three 
Bridges, Hunterdon county. New Jersey. 
Peter De Mott (father) was a farmer 
at Peapack, Somerset county. New Jer- 
sey. He was an old-line whig, later a 
republican, and was a member of the 
Reformed church, in which he was an 
oflicial member during most of the time 
of his connection with the church at 
Peapack. By his first wife, Lydia Kirk- 
patrick (the mother of J. K. De Mott), 
were born nine children : the three eld- 
est died in childhood ; the others were 
Sarah, Ida, John, Ann Elizabeth, H. V., 
and J. K. The father died at eighty- 



two 3'ears of age, in 1872 ; the mother 
died in Dec, 1862, aged sixty-one years. 
J. K. De Mott was born at Peapack, 
Somerset county, New Jersey, Aug. 21, 
1833, and attended the public schools of 
that place until he attained the age of 
fifteen years. He then entered upon an 
apprenticeship to learn the carriage- 
making trade. After serving three years 
as apprentice and four yeai's as journey- 
man, he launched into the same business 
on his own account at Pluckamin, New 
Jersey, where he continued in the suc- 
cessful pursuit of that venture until the 
breaking out of the civil war. With 
true patriotic spirit, on Aug. 21, 1862, he 
enlisted in Com23any A, Thirtieth regi- 
ment. New Jersey volunteers, under Col- 
onel Chadwick and Capt. A. S. Ten 
Eyck. He was assigned to the Army of 
the Potomac, and served under McClel- 
lan. Hooker and Meade, participating in 
all the leading engagements of that army, 
and served up to June 28, 1863, when he 
was honorably discharged at Flemington, 
New Jersey. Upon the conclusion of his 
service, he returned and located at Pea- 
pack, New Jersey, where he purchased 
and succeeded to the proprietorship of a 
carriage and cabinet-making establish- 
ment, in connection with which he also 
started the undertaking business. Here 
he continued in successful and profitable 
business for eight years, whereupon, 
owing to declining health, he sold his 
business interests there and removed to 
Newark, New Jersey, where he lived re- 
tired from active business pursuits for 
the ensuing four years. In 1878 he 
came to Bound Brook, Somerset county, 
New Jersey, where he established his 
present extensive furniture and under- 
taking business, and in the latter of 
which, as a funeral director, he com- 




^ ^i^ ^ Q-h.ir^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



783 



mands a wide popularity. Mr. De Mott 
devotes his entire time and attention to 
looking after his business in all its most 
minute details. Mr. De Mott is an ar- 
dent republican in the fullest acceptation 
of the term, and, as a partisan, he has 
taken an active and valuable part in the 
interests of the success of the party and 
its principles in all local, state or national 
affairs. Although an earnest worker, he 
has never sought political preferment, 
and has only served three years as a 
member of his town council. He is an 
active member of the Presbyterian church, 
and is at present serving as a valuable 
member of the building committee on 
the erection of a new Presbyterian church 
at present under process of construction 
at Bound Brook. Fraternally, he is a 
member of Eastern Star Lodge, No. 75, 
F. and A. M. 

On Dec. 21, 1854, he married Chris- 
tiana Losey, a daughter of Jacob Losey, 
a hatter, and justice of the peace for 
forty years at Pluckamin. Their chil- 
dren are : William S., Ida, married to D. 
V. Bergen, a merchant residing at Jersey 
City Heights ; and Benjamin R. Mr. 
De Mott's first wife having died in Oct., 
1872, on May 7, 1890, he married for his 
second wife and present consort Magda- 
line Dumont. 

Mr. De Mott enjoys a well-merited 
success in business ; such as is bound to 
come as the result of conscientious and 
straightforward methods. He commands 
the respect of the community and stands 
deservedly well. 



~p\R. J. D. TEN EYCK, one of the most 
-^-^ skillful physicians and surgeons in 
Somerset county, New Jersey, is the son 
of J. S. and Elizabeth (Vandeveer) Ten 



Eyck, and was born Jan. 5, 1866,. at 
White House, New Jersey. The Ten 
Eyck family were originally Hollanders, 
having settled in this country in the early 
colonial days. 

J. D. Ten Eyck, the paternal grand- 
father, received a common-school educa- 
tion, and followed the occupation of farm- 
ing and mechanical work at White House, 
New Jersey, where he resided. He was 
a prominent member of the Reformed 
church, and served in many official ca- 
pacities. Politically he was a democrat. 
His marriage with Johanna Stillwell re- 
sulted in the following children : J. S., 
father of the subject; J. M. S., and 
Theressa, wife of Mr. H. C. Vandeveer. 

J. S. Ten Eyck was taught the rudi- 
ments of knowledge in the common 
schools of his native hamlet, and then 
engaged in the mercantile business at 
White House. Not finding the occupa- 
tion congenial, he changed his pursuit 
and became a successful farmer. He 
was one of the pillars of the Reformed 
church, and for many years a deacon and 
elder of the same. In his political affilia- 
tions Mr. Ten Eyck was always a demo- 
crat, and served as township committee- 
man, town commissioner, and town clerk. 
Two children, one son and a daughter, 
were born to Mr. Ten Eyck and his very 
estimable wife ; they are : Emily L., now 
Mrs. George C. Mannon, and J. D., sub- 
ject of this sketch. 

The subject of this sketch received his 
early educational training in the common 
schools at Ridge, and pursued a more ad- 
vanced course of study in the private 
school of the Rev. William Bailey. Hav- 
ing acquired a thorough grounding in 
the elementary branches, the future phy- 
sician that was to be continued his prep- 
aration for entering upon a course in the 



784 



Biographical Sketches. 



study of medicine under the care and 
direction of Dr. Stillwcll, of Somerville, 
and Dr. Johnson, of Stanton, New Jersey. 
In 1892 he matriculated at the College 
of Physicians and Surgeons, of Baltimore, 
Md., and took a complete course of three 
years, and, upon graduating in 1895, 
received honorable mention from the 
faculty. Owing to the very strict laws 
in regard to the admission of medical 
practitioners to the state of New Jersey, 
especially physicians holding diplomas 
from exterior colleges, Dr. Ten Eyck was 
obliged to submit to rigid examination by 
the state board of medical examiners of 
New Jersey. Having passed this exam- 
ination in a very satisfactory and credit- 
able manner, he located at Franklin Park 
in October, 1895. By his affable and 
courteous manners and strict attention 
to business Dr. Ten Eyck soon gained 
the confidence of the residents of that 
section and rapidly acquired a growing 
and lucrative practice. 



"^^R. S. P. HARNED, a prominent phys- 
-'-^ ician of Woodbridge, New Jersey, 
is a son of William and Mary (Phillips) 
Harned, and was bom in New York citv, 
June 9, 1836. His paternal grandflither, 
Isaac Harned, was a life-long farmer, and 
owned a very large and valuable tract of 
land in Woodbridge township. His chil- 
dren were : Samuel, William, Elizabeth, 
Susan, and Eunice. William Harned, 
his father, was born at Woodbridge, and 
attended the district schools of that place 
until he arrived at the age of fifteen 
years. He then removed to New York 
city, and, after reaching his majority, en- 
gaged in the dry-goods business. He was 
connected with the dry-goods business, 
either wholesale or retail, until his death. 



About 1850 he removed to Woodbridge, 
and opened a general store, which he 
conducted for about ten years. He then 
returned to New York city, and resided 
there for a time, and then returned to 
Woodbridge again. He was originally a 
democrat, but in the later years of his 
life affiliated with the Republican party. 
He has never held any public office, nor 
was he ever an aspirant for one. He 
was a zealous christian, and an active 
member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. To his marriage were born 
eight children : Isaac, residing in Wood- 
bridge ; William, deceased ; Henry, de- 
ceased ; Julia, deceased ; Mary Anna, 
married to Samuel Anness, and residing 
in Woodbridge ; Emma, married to Edwin 
W. Valentine ; Jennie, and S. P. 

Dr. Harned first attended the public 
schools of New York city, and afterwards 
entered the College of the City of New 
York. He and the late Samuel E. En- 
sign were partners in a general store at 
Woodbridge for six j^ears. Having con- 
cluded to adopt the practice of medicine 
as his profession, he entered the Univer- 
sity Medical College of New York city 
in 1866, and graduated therefrom in 
1868, with the degree of M. D., and a 
certificate of honor for taking a fuller 
course of study than usual, and began 
general practice. He has gained an en- 
viable reputation as a general practitioner, 
is universally acknowledged to be a most 
skillful physician, and possesses a large 
family practice among the best people of 
Woodbridge and vicinity. For twenty 
years he was township physician, and 
served two years as coroner. He is ab- 
solutely independent in politics, has never 
aspired to office, but was acting sheriff 
for a time in 1871. He is a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church, and for 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



785 



six years was one of its most efficient 
ti'ustees. He is a member of the Medi- 
cal Society of Middlesex county. 

Dr. Harned married Rebecca S. Blood- 
good Oct. 12, 1859, and to their union 
were born four children : Charles W., 
Julia F., Grace F., and Mary. Mrs. 
Harned died in 1869, and Dr. Harned 
was again married, Dec. 10, 1874, to 
Fannie C. Bloodgood. The issue to his 
second marriage has been six children : 
J. Edward ; Helen A. ; Gertrude R. ; De- 
Witt C, deceased ; Jennie ; and Mildred, 
deceased. 



JACOB H. WHITFIELD, an enterpris- 
ing business man and prominent poli- 
tician of New Brunswick, is a son of 
Samuel and Mary Whitfield, and was 
born at New London, Conn., Dec. 31, 
1865. His father's occupation during 
the greater part of his life was that of a 
tanner. He removed from New London 
to New Brunswick in 1866. Two chil- 
dren were the issue of his marriage : 
Robert and Jacob H. 

Jacob H. Whitfield obtained his pre- 
liminary education at the public schools, 
after which he attended the high school 
in New Brunswick until the age of four- 
teen, when he was ofiered and accepted 
a position with the Consolidated Fruit 
Jar Company of that city, and he re- 
mained with this company from that 
period, 1881, until the present time. He 
now holds an important and responsible 
position as one of the managers of its art 
metal department. In addition to this 
position he is the proprietor of a grocery 
business, which was established by him 
in 1891, and of which he has made a 
substantial success. Mr. Whitfield is a 
member of the Republican party, and an 
active politician. In 1894 he was nomi- 



nated for alderman from the Fifth ward 
of the city of New Brunswick, and elected 
by seventy-five majority. In April, 1896, 
he was re-nominated for the same office, 
and again elected, after a stubbornly- 
fought contest. He has earned a valu- 
able reputation for conservatism as a 
member of the finance committee of 
the board of aldermen, and many of the 
measures introduced by him for the more 
economical government of the city have 
been carried into execution. Mr. Whit- 
field is a member of the First Presby- 
terian church, and also of the following- 
named secret societies : Junior 0. U. A. 
M., Senior 0. U. A. M., and Royal Ar- 
canum. He is also a member of Com- 
pany No. 2, fire department, and of the 
Aurora German Society. In July, 1885, 
he was married to Julia A. Kemp, and 
to them have been born one son and two 
daughters: William H., Mary C, and 
Nellie J. 



TTTILLIAM L. LANE, one of the 
' ' heaviest real-estate dealers and 
insurance men of Long Branch, and a 
life-long resident of that place, is a son 
of Cornelius and Maria (Chambers) Lane, 
and was born where the West End Hotel 
stands, at Long Branch, Feb. 11, 1825, 
his father owning eighty acres there at 
that time. 

His paternal grandfather, Cornelius 
Lane, was a native of Long Branch, and 
having received a common-school educa- 
tion, was for some years proprietor of a hotel 
at West End, Long Branch, New Jersey. 
During the Revolutionary war Grand- 
father Lane served his country through- 
out that glorious struggle, and when the 
surrender of Burgoyne at Saratoga, in 
1777, compelled the British commander, 
Sir Henry Clinton, to evacuate Philadel- 



786 



Biographical Sketches. 



phia, and rush with his troops to hold 
Jersey City, Coriu'lius Lane, Sr., had the 
satisl'action of helping the red coats ofl' 
the memorable field of Monmouth. In 
politics he was a democrat, and was one of 
the original adherents of that great party. 
He was a man of high character, and a 
devout member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church. His family consisted of 
four children : Henry, William, Cornelius, 
Jr., and Cai-oline ; the result of the mar- 
riage with Maria Chamberlain. 

Cornelius, Jr. (father of the subject), 
was born near West End, Long Branch, 
where he was instructed in the common 
schools, and followed, resjjectively, shoe- 
making, fishing and the hotel business all 
his life. He was an attendant at the 
Methodist Episcopal church,, and in 
political affairs was an enthusiastic demo- 
crat in the days of the Jacksonian era, 
and cast his vote for that great hero of 
New Orleans, and the iron-willed but 
sincere executive. Mr. Lane, Sr., figured 
prominently in the local politics of his 
district, and was a justice of the peace 
of Long Branch for seven years. Fra- 
ternally . he was a freemason. He mar- 
ried Miss Maria Chambers, of Philadel- 
phia, and they had a family of four chil- 
dren : Henry A., Caroline (Mrs. W^illiam 
Rodgers), William L. and Cornelius. 
Cornelius Lane, Sr., died at Long Branch 
in 1890, as also did his wife. Both are 
interred in the West Long Branch ceme- 
tery. 

William Lane attended the common 
schools of his native place until he 
reached the age of sixteen years, when 
he proceeded to learn the carpentering 
and building business. At this occupa- 
tion he worked for a period of twenty 
years, when in 1876 he began to devote 
his time and mind to the successful 



management of what has since grown to 
be an extensive real-estate and insurance 
business. He is at present one of the 
leading real-estate operators in Long 
Branch, and is regarded as a safe and 
long-headed dealer in that line of busi- 
ness. Politically he is a democrat, was 
once an attendant of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church, but is now a presbyterian. 
For the past thirty-five years Mr. Lane 
has been a member of the masonic order, 
first aflQliating with Lodge No. 408, of 
Brooklyn, N. Y., and now with No. 78, 
of Long Branch. 

William Lane was united in marriage 
to Miss Sarah H. Smith, daughter of 
Robert and Rebecca Smith, of Middle- 
town, New Jersey, and the result of this 
union has been two sons and one daugh- 
ter: Eugene Lester, Chai-les S., and Cora. 
By his first wife, Eleanora RofF, Mr. 
Lane had one son born to him, Stephen 
Cornelius, who died at the age of nine. 



TAMES HENRY BUCHANAN, a pro- 
^ minent merchant of Spring Lake, 
Monmouth county. New Jersey, is a 
son of Joseph and Sarah A. (Fitz) Buch- 
anan, and was born Sept. 16, 1853, in 
Mai'ietta, Lancaster county, Pa. His 
mother's people were of Teutonic origin, 
and in his father's veins flowed a union 
of Scotch and north Irish blood, and he 
proudly traced his descent from the Gal- 
braiths, the Gillespies, and from Robert 
Bruce. The Buchanan famil}^ was among 
the earliest settlers of Cumberland and 
Lancaster counties. Pa., residing near 
Derry, and was founded by John Buch- 
anan, w^ho emigrated to America about 
1666. Members of this family have oc- 
cupied positions of honor and responsi- 
bility, including the highest office in the 
[ gift of the nation. 



Biographical Sketches. 



787 



Joseph Buchanan (father) Avas born in 
1821, at May town, Lancaster county, 
Pa., and was educated in the common 
schools of that town, and at the Susque- 
hanna Institute, Marietta, Pa. He adop- 
ted the profession of a civil engineer, 
and spent several years in the service of 
the Pennsylvania Railroad and Canal Co., 
and was contemporary with the late 
Thomas A. Scott, of railroad fame. He 
married Feb. 20, 1850, Sarah A. Fitz, 
and opened a general store in Elizabeth- 
town, Pa., and conducted a prosperous 
business up to 1861, when he enlisted in 
the Forty-Fifth regiment Pennsylvania 
infantry, and died in Camp Curtin, at 
Harrisburg, while en route to the seat of 
war. He was the father of four children : 
Anna, James Henry (the subject), Thomas 
J., and Josephine. 

James H. Buchanan was graduated 
from the Marietta Academy, with the 
class of 1870, and entered into employ- 
ment with John Horton, leather mer- 
chant and shoe-dealer in Philadelphia, as 
junior office-clerk, from which in twelve 
years he rose to the position of financial 
manager. In 1882 he removed to Spring 
Lake, and associated himself in partner- 
ship, in real estate and insurance, with 
Mr. B. H. Yard, and in the same year 
established the firm of Buchanan & Co., 
dealers in staple and fancy groceries and 
hotel supplies. In 1890 Mr. Buchanan 
established a large business at Lakewood, 
Ocean county. New Jersey. He continues 
in active business at both these places, 
and is a thriving, prosperous merchant, 
taking a cordial interest in all matters 
relating to borough progress and devel- 
opment, more especially at Spring Lake, 
which he claims as a permanent place of 
residence. Mr. Buchanan is a republican 
in political belief, but does not consider 

41 



himself to be a politician, and has served 
as a member of the borough council since 
its organization, and also as a member of 
the board of education. He enjoys the 
distinction of being one of the incorpo- 
rators of the borough of Spi'ing Lake, and 
one of the organizers of the fire depart- 
ment of that town. 



Ql E. FREEMAN, M.D., one of the 
^* oldest and best-known physicians 
in Woodbridge, New Jersey, was born on 
the family homestead in Woodbridge 
township, Nov. 19, 1835. He is a son 
of Ellis B. and Martha (Edgar) Freeman, 
and is of Scotch descent. His paternal 
grandfather, Jonathan Freeman, was a 
carpenter and builder by trade, and a 
member of the firm which built the first 
Presbyterian church in Woodbiidge, in 
1803. He was an enterprising and suc- 
cessful business man, and in the latter 
part of his life purchased a farm in 
Woodbridge township, and there lived a 
retired life. He was an old-line whig in 
his political faith, but never took an 
active interest in political affiiirs. He 
paid some attention to military matters, 
and for many years held the rank of 
captain in the state militia. He was an 
active worker in the Methodist Episcopal 
church, and served many years as one 
of its elders. His death occurred in 
1845. To his marriage were born two 
sons : William and Ellis B. 

Ellis B. Freeman (father) was gradu- 
ated from the public schools of Wood- 
bridge, and then entered Princeton Col- 
lege, from which he graduated with high 
honor. He then became a student at 
the College of Physicians and Surgeons 
in New York city, and subsequently 
graduated from that institution with the 
degree of M. D. He first began the 



788 



Biographical Sketches. 



practice of medicine in South Ambo}', 
but after a short time removed to Wood- 
bridge, where for a time he was the only 
physician in the place. He always took 
an active interest in politics, and for three 
terms Avas elected by the republicans to 
represent them in the legislature. He 
devoted much time to townshiiJ affairs, 
and held the office of freeholder for two 
terms. He was especially devoted to 
educational matters, and for a number of 
years occupied the important office of 
school superintendent. He was a mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church of Wood- 
bridge, and for many years held the 
offices of deacon and treasurer. He died 
in 1877, at the age of sixtj^-nine. His 
wife, the mother of Dr. Freeman, is still 
living at the old homestead. To their 
marriage were born six children : Ellis 
B., Phoebe B., S. E., Martha E., Susan 
E., and Lydia S. 

Dr. S. E. Freeman first attended the 
public schools in Woodbridge, and then a j 
private school in Perth Ambo}'. He 
attended the College of Phjsicians and 
Surgeons in the city of New York, and 
was graduated therefrom in 1858 with j 
the degree of M. D. Upon his gradua- 
tion he returned to Woodbridge, and 
associated himself with his father, and j 
subsequently opened a drug store, and 
conducted that in connection with his 
medical practice. He is still in active 
practice, and enjoys one of the largest 
medical clienteles in the county. He 
has been a member of the Middlesex 
County Medical Society for several years, 
inspector for the board of health, and for 
twentv years the township physician. 
During the first administration of Presi- 
dent Lincoln he was appointed post- 
master at Woodbridge, and filled that 
office most efficientlv for ten yeais. 



In politics Dr. Freeman is a republican. 
He takes much interest in religious mat- 
ters, is a member of the Presbyterian 
church, and has been one of its trustees 
for five years. He was married in 1866 
to Kate Fitz-Randolph, and their union 
has been blessed with two children : 
Mabel and EUis B. 



TTENRY S. GARRETSON, a thor- 
-^-'- oughly representative citizen, and 
prominent republican, of near New Mar- 
ket, Middlesex countj^, New Jersey, is a 
son of James and Gertrude (Statts) Gar- 
retson, and was born Oct. 1, 1856. 

The Garretson family is of Holland- 
Dutch extraction, and James Garretson, 
the paternal grandfather of our subject, 
spent the early part of his life in Somer- 
set county, but subsequently removed to 
Griggstown, that count}', where he re- 
sided up to his death. He was a whig 
in politics, and in religion he subscribed 
to the tenets of the German Eeformed 
church. He took a very useful part in 
church work, and for many years was 
deacon of the church at New Market. 

James Garretson (father) was born on 
the old homestead at Griggstown, and re- 
sided there all his life, engaged in agri- 
cultural pursuits. He died, April 20, 
1885, aged fifty-one j^ears. He took a 
commendable interest in both politics and 
religion, filled many local political offices, 
and served the German Reformed church 
in the capacity of deacon for a number 
of vears. He married Gertrude Statts, 
and to their union seven children were 
born : James, who wedded Louisa King, 
resides in Illinois; Henry S., subject; 
William F., Avho resides in Soraerville, 
married Lillian E. Knowles ; Peter W., 
and Richard F., both residing on the old 



Biographical Sketches. 



789 



homestead ; J. V. D., is employed as 
bookkeeper by the Bogoiie Cutlery Co., at 
Bogone ; and Charles I., is engaged as 
salesman for the Bogone Cutlery Co. 

Henry S. Garretson attended the public 
schools until sixteen years of age, acquir- 
ing a fair English education. Subse- 
quently he entered a German school at 
New Brunswick, and there obtained a 
thorough knowledge of the rudiments of 
the German language. Leaving school, 
he engaged in the tranquil and peaceful 
pursuits of husbandry, which has since 
occupied most of his time and attention. 
The home and farm, containing one hun- 
dred and three acres of fertile land, well 
improved and in a good state of culti- 
vation, is situated within one mile of 
New Market. He is a staunch repub- 
lican, and, in 1887, was elected free- 
holder, which office he has since filled. 
His party has twice nominated him for 
the office of assembly, but he was de- 
feated both times by a small majority. 
He has served as a member of the school 
board, a director of a fire-insurance com- 
pany, and of the board of freeholders. 
Religiously he is a consistent member of 
the Baptist church at New Market, and 
fraternally he is identified with the Junior 
Order United American Mechanics, the 
Daughters of Liberty, and the Knights 
of Honor. In 1884 Mr. Garretson and 
Miss Lillie E. Benwaid were united in 
marriage, and to their union three chil- 
dren have been born : Ethel Irene, James 
Russell, and Lillian. 



/CHARLES S. WITHINGTON.— Among 
^-^ the prominent and successful men 
of Kingston no one has more deservedly 
the smiles of fortune than the subject of 
this sketch, whether as lawyer, farmer, or 



florist. Mr. Withington springs from a 
long line of American ancestry, being the 
ninth generation from Elder Henry With- 
ington, who settled in Dorchester, Mass., 
in the year 1635, coming thereto from 
England. Charles was born in New York 
city in 1849, and received his earlier edu- 
cation at the Mount Washington Collegi- 
ate Institute, then conducted by Messrs. 
Clarke and Fanning. In 1865 he entered 
the Sophomore class at Princeton Uni- 
versity, graduating therefrom three years 
later with the class of 1868, a ^'■ear mem- 
orable in the annals of Princeton by the 
retirement from active work of President 
Dr. John Maclean and the advent of Dr. 
James McCosh. Young Withington sup- 
plemented his college acquirements upon 
leaving Princeton with a tour of nine 
months in Europe, closely studying and 
observing the manners and customs of 
the people of the old world. Upon his re- 
turn Mr. Withington entered the Colum- 
bia College Law School of New York, 
and in 1870 completed his studies, re- 
ceived his diploma, and was admitted to 
the bar in New York city, and maintained 
a successful practice in that city for a 
period of eleven years. The year 1881 
brought with it the death of Mr. With- 
iugton's father, Isaac Chandler Withing- 
ton, whereupon he abandoned his legal 
career to take charge of the homestead 
farm, near Kingston, New Jersey. In 
1883 the ex-lawyer turned his attention 
to floriculture, and specially to the culture 
of violets, and laid the foundation for what 
later developed into a phenomenally suc- 
cessful business in that department of 
floriculture. To the first small green- 
house of 20 by 40 feet he has steadily 
made additions, until now he has ten 
houses, each one hundred and twenty- 
eight feet long, and ranging in width 



790 



Biographical Sketches. 



from twelve to twenty-two feet, requir- I 
ing twent}' thousand square feet of glass. 
Mr. Witliington has marketed as many 
as seven hvuidred and fifty thousand vio- 
let blooms in one season, an average of 
more than three thousand dailj^ for the 
season, one week just before Easter his 
sales having reached seventj^-five thou- 
sand blooms. His principal markets are [ 
New York, Pittsburg, and Chicago. He 
has conti'ibuted numerous articles on his [ 
specialty, the violet, to such papers as 
the Florist Exchange, American Garden- I 
ing, and American Flcn-ist, and is re- 
garded as an authority on the culture of 
violets. Before leaving New York Mr. 
Withington for several years possessed | 
much local distinction in amateur theatri- 
cals, and was a member of such promi- 
nent theatrical societies and clubs as 
" The Wallack " and " The Minosa," of 
New York; "The Amaranth," "The 
Kemble," and " The Gilbert," of Brook- 
lyn ; " The Home " and " The Garrick," 
of Newark. 

Mr. Withington has i\YO brothers and 
four sisters : the Rev. Irving P. With- 
ington, now located at Minneapolis, and 
Chandler Withington, a civil engineer by 
profession, but at present connected with 
the office of Ashbel P. Fitch, Esq., comp- 
troller of the city of New York, as con- 
sulting engineer to the finance depart- 
ment. Their paternal grandfather was 
Phineas Withington, whom older resi- 
dents well remember as one of the jjro- 
prietors of the old Union line of stages 
running between New York and Phila- 
delphia. 

Mr. AVithington was married Sept. 20, 
1888, to Miss Eva Van Duyn, youngest 
daughter of the late Cornelius Van Duyn, 
of Kingston, and the one cloud that 
crosses their domestic horizon was the 



loss of their only son, Roshore, the rec- 
ord of whose brief life may be thus epit- 
omized : Born July 27, 1890, died Feb. 
5, 1892. In religious faith Mr. Withing- 
ton is a Presbyterian, and is at present 
the secretar}^ of the board of trustees of 
that church in Kingston. He is a demo- 
crat, but not a politician or part}^ slave, 
and possesses independence enough to 
consult reason in things political. He 
has never sought office, having found in 
the superintendency of the old farm, in 
the cultivation of his violets, in the pur- 
suit of his studies and in the wielding of 
his pen the " Summum Bonum" of life. 



TAPHIA VANDYKE, the popular and 
^ efficient postmaster of Long Branch, 
New Jersey, is a son of Vincent W. and 
Hannah Vandyke, and was born at Long 
Branch, March 25, 1845. Born of a stur- 
dy German ancestry, Mr. Vandyke ap- 
plied himself tenaciously to the problems 
and tasks of a common-school education, 
and with the same industry and perse- 
verance when he learned his trade as a 
painter. This latter occupation he fol- 
lowed until 1893, when he was appointed 
postmaster of Long Branch. His busi- 
ness as a contractor for painting was 
very successful, and gave general satis- 
faction. 

Mr. Vandyke has been a very active 
workei" in the democratic ranks, and, 
among other offices, was at one time a 
freeholder of Ocean township, which 
office he resigned in 1893 to take charge 
of the post-office. Fraternallj^, Mr. Van- 
dyke is a member of the F. and A. M., 
No. 78, of Long Branch. He married 
Maggie M. Curtis, and this happy event 
has been further blessed b}' the birth of 
two sons and one daughter : E. M., 
Richard B., and Alice R. 



Biographical Sketches. 



791 



As already stated, the Vandykes are of 
German extraction, and the family have 
taken an important part in the early his- 
tory of New York and New Jersej-, 
where they first settled. Henry Van- 
dyke, paternal grandfathei', was a farmer, 
and dealt extensively in land in Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey. He was a 
democrat, and an active and influential 
member of the Methodist Episcopal j 
church at Mechanicsburg, Monmouth 
county (now West Long Branch), New ' 
Jersey. He married Miss Katie Martin, | 
and they became the parents of six chil- j 
dren ; among these being Vincent W., j 
the father of Mr. Vandyke. 

Vincent W. Vandyke (father) was born j 
on a farm at Branchport, New Jersey, and [ 
upon leaving school engaged in fishing as 
an occupation. In the course of time he [ 
had acquired a small farm of excellent 
land near Long Branch. In his political 
affiliations, Mr. Vandyke's father was al- 
lied to the Democratic party, but never 
took an active part in party affairs ; and 
though he never served in any official 
capacity, yet he was an earnest and 
active christian worker, and an influ- 
ential member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church. His admirable character 
and kind and benevolent deeds gained 
for him many friends, to a large circle of 
whom his unfortunate and tragic death 
was a great shock. While crossing a 
track near Long Branch, owing partly to 
the sharp curve at that point, and partly 
to his deafness, father Vandyke was 
struck by a fast moving train, which re- 
sulted in his death on July 10, 1883. 

Vincent W. Vandyke and his wife, 
Hannah, were the parents of the follow- 
ing children f George, deceased ; W. F. ; 
John, deceased ; Mary C. (Mrs. Hamp- 
ton) ; Japhia, and Louisa (Mrs. West). 



T\n. DAYTON E. DECKER, one of the 
-^-^ most prominent physicians of Wood- 
bridge, New Jersey, was born, August 1, 
1853, at Metuchen, New Jersey, and is a 
son of Dayton and Martha C. (Butler) 
Decker. The family originally came 
from Holland, and were among the early 
settlers in this country. Dr. Decker's 
paternal grandfather, Isaac Decker, was 
a life-long farmer at Fox Hill, in the 
northern part of the state, and died there 
in 1834. His children were : Janson ; 
Horace ; Harrison ; Alfred, deceased at 
an early age ; Dayton ; Emily ; Maria ; 
and Neppie. Dayton Decker (father) at- 
tended the district schools, and later an 
academy. He afterwards took a course 
of medical studies, and supplemented 
these by a course at the College of Phys- 
icians and Surgeons of New York city, 
from which he graduated, with the degree 
of M. D., in 1835. He then began the 
practice of his profession, and successively 
located at several places during the fol- 
lowing twelve or fifteen years, but finally 
removed to Elizabethport, and engaged 
in the drug business. His death occurt-ed 
there in 1878, at the age of seventy. 
He was a democrat in politics, and a 
member of the Presbyterian church, and 
of the Brooklyn Lodge, T. 0. 0. F. His 
children were : Martha C, Dayton E., 
and Ella. 

Dr. Dayton E. Decker attended the 
district schools, and subsequently the 
academy at Metuchen, and then entered 
the grammar school at New Brunswick. 
At the ase of seventeen he went to Phil- 



adelphia, and obtained a position in a 
drug store, which he retained for two 
years. Removing to Elizabethport he 
entered his father's drug store, and re- 
mained with him for three years. Dur- 
ing this engagement he attended for one 



792 



Biographical Sketches. 



year a course of lectures at the College 
of Pharmacy of New York city. Upon 
the termination of his engagement with 
his father he attended three courses of 
lectures at the Long Island Hospital, in 
Brooklyn, and graduated therefrom in 
1874, with the degree of M. D. Return- 
ing to Elizabethport he associated him- 
self in the practice of medicine with his 
father, but in 1877 removed to Wood- 
bridge, where he has since resided. Here 
he has been especially successful in achiev- 
ing a high reputation for skill in his pro- 
fession, and is, in consequence, one of the 
leading practitioners in the town. His 
practice is one of the, if not the, larg- 
est of any physician in the vicinity 
of Metuchen. In politics he is an in- 
dependent democrat, but party ties sit 
lightly on him, as he always votes for 
the best candidate, irrespective of the 
source of his nomination. During his 
residence at Elizabethport, in 1875, he 
was elected coroner, which office he filled 
for two years. He is a member of the 
Presbyterian church. 



A DAM DEALAMAN, proprietor of one 
-^--*- of the largest grocery and general 
stores in Dunellen, Middlesex county, 
and prominent in public affairs in that 
borough, is a son of Morris and Cathe- 
rine (Eckel) Dealaman, and was born 
July 19, 1853, at Warrenville, New Jer- 
sey, where he received a common-school 
education. At the age of fourteen years 
he began to learn carriage-making, and 
worked at that trade for several years. 
He subsequently entered the grocery 
business at Newark, New Jersey, remain- 
ing in that city for eight years. Later 
he removed to Dunellen and established 
his present store. It is one of the hand- 



somest and most completely-equipped in 
the town, the stock comprising not only 
grocei'ies, but also dry goods, crockery- 
ware, and furnishing goods. Mr. Deala- 
man' s business is an extensive one, his 
patronage being drawn from all parts of 
Piscataway township. He is an active 
republican in politics, having been a 
member of the borough committee, is a 
trustee of the school board, and treasurer 
of the borough of Dunellen. He is a 
member of the Presbyterian church of 
Dunellen, as also a member of the Order 
of Foresters, the Jr. 0. U. A. M., and of 
Anchor Lodge, F. and A. M., of Plain- 
field. He has been twice married. His 
first wife was Miss Lizzie Dunham, who 
died some years later, by whom he had 
two children : William M. and Josie 
May. His second Avife was Miss Mar- 
garet Teel, whom he married in 1893, 
and by whom he has had one sou, Adam 
Teel. 

Mr. Dealaman has built up a large and 
prosperous business by dint of unremit- 
ting energy and enterprise. He possesses 
sound judgment and strong force of char- 
acter, and is both respected and esteemed 
by all who know him. He is a vigorous 
worker in church affairs, and has success- 
full}' cai-ried his business principles into 
the administration of the various public 
offices which he has so ably filled. 

Mr. Dealaman's ancestry is of German 
origin. His paternal grandfather was a 
well-known farmer near Willsdorf, Ger- 
many, and his matei'nal grandfather was 
atone time mayor of his city in Germany. 
Morris Dealaman (father) was a native 
of Willsdorf, and a shoemaker by trade. 
He came to the United States and first 
settled in New York, but subsequently 
removed to Warrenville, New Jersey. 
His children were : Adam, William, 



Biographical Sketches. 



79^ 



Louisa, wife of Peter Friday, Annie, wife 
of Louis Caddington. 



T^R. J. HOWARD COOPER, the rising 
-'-^ and popular young physician of 
Middlebush, Somerset county, New Jer- 
sey, is a son of Dr. A. M. and Elizabeth 
(Ridge) Cooper, and was born May, 1867, 
at Point Pleasant, Bucks county, Pa. 

Dr. A. M. Cooper (father) is a splendid 
example of the self-made man. By at- 
tending faithfuly to his studies in the 
common schools, he obtained sufficient 
education to enable him to earn some 
money by teaching. With the aid of this 
money the young school-teacher worked 
his way through the Jefferson Medical 
College of Philadelj)hia, graduating with 
the class of 1856. He has been very suc- 
cessful in his wide practice of forty years, 
a proof of which is the fact that his two 
sons have followed their father's foot- 
steps, and are now enjoying successful 
practices of their own. Dr. A. M. Cooper 
is an active member of the Baptist church, 
having served as deacon and clerk. Poli- 
tically he is a republican, and fraternally 
is a member of the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows. He is the father of three 
children : William R., M.D., J. Howard, 
M.D., and Katie E. F. 

Dr. J. Howard Cooper received a good 
preparatory education at the West Chester 
and Millersville State Normal Schools, 
and the South Jersey Institute of Bridge- 
ton, New Jersey. Having graduated 
from the latter institution, he entered 
the Medico-Chirurgical College of Phila- 
delphia, and after three years of study he 
was graduated with the class of '91. 
Subsequently he took a special course of 
two years in the Philadelphia Lying-in 
Hospital. In July, 1891, he successfully 



passed the examination before the New 
Jersey state board of examiners, and was 
admitted to practice in that state, and in 
the following December Dr. Cooper located 
at Middlebush, where he has built up a 
large and still rapidly-increasing practice. 
The Somerset County Society of Physi- 
cians honored him by electing him as 
their delegate to the New Jersey state 
conventions. As a physician, Dr Cooper 
is wide awake and pi'ogressive, an indus- 
trious student of the science of medicine 
and its application to the relief of human 
suffering. Proud of his avocation, he 
would keep it in the van of all others as 
the noblest field for human effort. So- 
cially he is popular and much respected. 



TTOWARD GILES, a prominent hard- 
-*— ^ ware-dealer of Dunellen, and one 
of the best-known citizens of that town, 
is a son of Samuel S. and Catherine (Van 
Nees) Giles, and was born Sept. 26, 1863, 
at New Brooklyn, New Jersey. He re- 
ceived a common-school education at 
Randolphville. When fourteen years old 
he left school, and woi'ked on a farm for 
ten years, and subsequently became clerk 
in a hardware store, where he learned 
the business. In 1 891 he established his 
present well-known store, at the corner 
of North street and Washington avenue, 
Dunellen, where he carries an extensive 
line of hardware, tools and house-furnish- 
ing goods, and enjoys a wide and pros- 
perous patronage. Mr. Giles is a strong 
republican in politics. He is a member 
of W. G. Holten Council, Jr. 0. U. A M., 
and of the Order of Foresters. In 1886 
he was married to Miss Nellie I. Duncan, 
by whom he has had four children : 
William, Harvey, Irene, and Hattie. 
Mr. Giles is energetic and enterprising 



794 



Biographical Sketches. 



in his business, and as a result has been \ 
highly successful. His store is a hand- 
some, well-equipped one, and his trade 
extends to many points in the surround- 
ing county. He is active in political 
Avork, is a favorite socially, and is well- 1 
known and respected throughout Pis- 
cataway township. 

Mr. Giles is of English descent. His 
paternal grandfather, Samuel Giles, was 
a thriving fiarmer all his life near Pos- 
sumtown, Middlesex county. His chil- 
dren were : Samuel S., George, Joel, and 
Enoch. Mr. Giles' father, Samuel S. 
Giles, is a native of Raudolphville, New 
Jersey, where he was educated, and where 
he was a blacksmith during all the active 
part of his life. He still resides in that 
town, and is widely-known and respected 
as one of the leading citizens of the place. 
He has always been a republican, and 
active in public affairs. He was elected 
surveyor of highways of Piscataway 
township, and served in that capacity 
for a number of years. His wife was 
Miss Catherine Van Nees, by whom he 
had twelve children : Isaac, living at 
Bound Brook ; John De Witt, of Bound 
Brook ; Charles, a farmer in Piscataway 
township ; Howard, our subject ; Nelson 
B., living at Asbury Park ; William, liv- 
ing at Bound Brook ; Lincoln, living at 
Bound Brook ; Harvey, living at Bound 
Brook ; Maggie, deceased in childliood ; 
Lizzie, living at New Market; Laura, 
living in Piscataway township ; and 
Gussie, living in Piscataway township. 
Mr. Giles' mother died in 1883. 



divine thought and action. 
Herman 



T)EV. PETER STRYKER, D. D., of As- 
-'-*' bury Park, New Jersey, has had a 
notable career as a gospel minister. For 
a period of over forty years he has been 
aggressive in his work of correlating 



human and 

The son of Rev. Herman B. and Blcn- 
dina Cadmus Stryker, he was born at 
Fairfield, Essex countj^, New Jersey, 
April 8, 1826. Both branches of this 
eminent family (Strijcker, meaning a 
stroke)-) are of pure Holland origin, and 
the family name is widely known. Mot- 
ley, in his history of the Dutch Republic, 
speaks of one Herman Strijcker, formerly 
a Romanist monk, who in 15G2 preached 
the gospel to immense crowds of jjeople 
in the open fields of the Netherlands. 

The American historj- of the Strykers 
owes its beginning to the brothers Jan 
and Jacoby. Dr. Strjker is descended 
from the elder brother, Jan. He was 
born in Holland in 1615 and emigrated 
from the town of Renen, in the province 
of Dreuthe, with his wife, two sons and 
four daughters, coming to New Amster- 
dam, now New York, in 1052. He soon 
became prominently identified with large 
landed interests, and was a powerful fac- 
tor in the development and perpetuation 
of new settlements on Dutch soil. Jan's 
children were : Altje, Jannetje, Garset, 
Janse, Angenietje, Hendrick, Eytie, Pie- 
ter and Lava. A careful review of the 
Stryker family tree shows that in the 
line of descent from Jan Stryker are the 
following male representatives : Jan, born 
1615; Pieter, 1653; Jan, 1684; Pieter, 
1705; Jacobus, 1726; Pieter, 1763; 
Herman, 1794, and Peter, our subject, 
1826. 

Jacobus (or James), the grea1>grand- 
father of Dr. Stryker, resided in New 
York city, and was a tanner and currier. 
He was a man of remarkaljle vigor, and 
lived to be ninety-four years old. He 
married Sarah Metsellaer, and their chil- 
dren were Ann, Johannes, Jane and 
' Peter. 



Biographical Sketches. 



795 



Peter, grandfather of Dr. Stryker was 
an alumnus of Columbia College, New 
York, and subsequently a minister in the 
Dutch Reformed church for over sixty 
years. He was one of the most eloquent 
men of his day. He married Sarah 
Bai'kuloo, who bore him five children : 
Elizabeth, James, Herman, Sarah Cathe- 
rine and John. Elizabeth married Dr. 
John B. Ricord ; she was a noted teacher 
and author, and her son, Hon. Frederick 
W. Ricord, now judge, has been sheriff 
of Essex county. New Jersey, and mayor 
of the city of Newark. James was a 
lawyer and judge, and had five sons in 
the Ejjiscopal ministry. John was con- 
sul for the United States in Mexico prior 
to the war with that country, and died 
in Brownsville, Tex. 

Rev. Hermaii B. Stryker, father of Dr. 
Stryker, was born at Port Richmond, 
Staten Island. He was lieutenant in the 
war of 1812. For a short period he was 
in mercantile life. Subsequently he pur- 
sued a course of study in the theological 
seminary at New Brunswick, from which 
he was graduated in ]822. He was pas- 
tor successively in Fairfield, New Jersey, 
and in Amsterdam, St. Johnsville, and 
Scotia, New York. From 1837 to 1861 
he was prevented by a bronchial aftec- 
tion from engaging in pastoral work, and 
occupied a part of this time in teaching. 
In 1861 he became pastor of the Re- 
formed church of Huguenot, Staten 
Island, and was happy and did good ser- 
vice in that field up to the day of his de- 
cease, Dec. 11, 1871. 

Domine Stryker, as he was familiarly 
called, coming from a family long known 
for their intellectual strength, became a 
natural-born student, especially along the 
line of theological research. Politically 
he was first a whig and then a republi- 



can ; but although he had decided con- 
victions was always gentle in the expres- 
sion of his views on all the questions of 
the day. His wife, Blendina Cadmus, 
was a daughter of Abraham and Marga- 
retta Cadmus, of Belleville. Their five 
children were : Margaretta, who died 
when four years old ; Abraham Cadmus, 
born Oct. 29, 1823, a merchant; Peter, 
the subject of this sketch ; Sarah Eliza- 
beth, born June 2, 1830, married to Nel- 
son B. Smock, and Mary Blendina, born 

; April 1, 1837. 

] Peter Stryker prepared for college at 
the old academy in Schenectady. He 
entered the freshman class in the Univer- 
sity of Pennsylvania in 1841. In 1843 
he removed to Rutgers College, and was 
graduated from that institution in 1845 
as one of the honor men of his class. He 
completed his theological course of study 
in the New Brunswick Seminary in 1848. 
Oct. 10th he was ordained and installed 
pastor of the Third Reformed church of 
Raritan, New Jersey. In 1852 he be- 
came pastor of the Reformed church of 
Rhinebeck, New York. In May, 1856, 
he was called to the Broome Sti'eet Re- 
formed church. New York city. This 
church was moved up to Thirty-fourth 
street in 1860, and had a rapid and 
healthy growth. During Dr. Stryker's 
pastorate of twelve years in New York 
over nine hundred members were added 
to the church roll, a heavy debt was paid 
and the Sabbath-school became one of the 
largest in the city. 

His next call was to the North Broad 
Street Presbyterian church, Philadel- 
phia. From thence he went to the First 
Presbyterian church of Rome, N. Y. In 
1876 he was invited to take charge of 
the First Presbyterian church of Sara- 
toga Springs. In that important and de- 



796 



Biographical Sketches. 



lightfnl field he remained for nearly eight 
years. On Jan. 1, 1884, in response to 
a unanimous and urgent call, he became 
pastor of the Andrew Presbyterian church 
of Minneapolis, Minn. After continuing 
in that pleasant relation for some six 
years he resigned in order to join his 
daughter in the principalship of Stryker 
Seminary, a school for young ladies, of 
which he was the president. But it was 
not the Avill of Providence that he should 
demit the pastorate. Almost immedi- 
ately he was called back to his old and 
beloved charge in Thirty-fourth street, 
New York city, after he had been absent 
from them for twenty-one years. A paper 
signed by sixty-nine young people urging 
him to come could not be resisted. After 
laboring there most earnestly and success- 
fully for six years Dr. Stryker, much 
against the will of his people, on account 
of his declining years was induced to ac- 
cept a call to the pastorate of the Asburj' , 
Park Reformed church, and was installed 
in that relation Jan. 16, 1896. 

The subject of this sketch has always 
been a very active man. For forty-eight i 
years he has been engaged in pastoral 
work without intermission. He has only 
lost four Sabbaths in all that long period 
from sickness. He has been president 
and corresponding secretary of the New 
York Temperance Society, grand worthy 
patriarch of the Sons of Temperance in , 
Minnesota and Eastern New York, and 
director of the National Temperance So- 
ciety from its organization in 1865. He 
has written largely for the papers from 
his youth, and is the author of a number 
of volumes, among them "Gems for the , 
Saviour's Crown " and a book of poems 
entitled, " Words of Comfort." He is a I 
member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, 
to which none are eligible except college 



graduates who have stood in the first rank 
of their respective classes. In 1866 he 
was honored with the degree of D. D. by 
the University of New York, in recogni- 
tion of his literary and scholarly talents. 

Dr. Stryker was united in marriage 
June 6, 1849, to Miss Caroline H. Smock, 
daughter of Henry and Maria Smock, of 
Freehold, New Jersey. Their children, 
all living, are Elizabeth, Henry C, 
Herman B., Margaretta L., and Anna 
R. Henry was an alumnus of Rutgers 
College, and a graduate of the Columbia 
Law School, attorney and counsellor-at- 
law in Minneapolis. Margaretta is the 
wife of William W. Conner, a graduate 
of Princeton College, and they have three 
children. Anna has for several years 
been the principal of Stryker Seminary. 
The mother of these children, a highly 
accomplished and devoted christian wo- 
man, died May 27, 1889, and Oct. 12, 
1891, Dr. Stryker was married to Emily 
S. Hanaway, principal of the Fortieth 
Street Primary School, New York city. 
This gifted lady possesses rare literary 
talents. Besides contributing extensively 
to different papers she is the author of 
several poems. 

Dr. Stryker is now occupying an im- 
portant field in Asbury Park as pastor of 
the Reformed church. He was president 
of the general synod of the Reformed 
church of America in 1895. He is con- 
stantly in demand to lecture and deliver 
special sermons and addresses, and al- 
though well along in life seems to be in 
his prime and good for another score of 
years' work. That which gives vitality 
to him is his trust in God and a remark- 
able degree of cheerfulness. He is full of 
humor, as all will testify who have heard 
him deliver his popular lecture entitled, 
" The Funny Side of a Pastor's Life." 



Biographical Sketches. 



797 



A NDREW BOLLSCHWEILER, a re- 
-^-^ spected citizen and an excellent 
musician of Perth Amboy, New Jersey, 
is a son of Frederick and Catharine 
(Keefer) BoUschweiler, and was born ' 
April 26, 1860. His paternal grand- j 
father, Frederick Bollschweilei', was a ! 
native of Germany, where his life-time i 
occupation was that of farming. Fred- i 
erick BoUschweiler, his father, after re- 
ceiving an education at the common ! 
schools, possessed himself of an outfit 
consisting of a horse and wagon and a 
stock of readily salable merchandise, 
with Avhich he traveled through the ' 
country districts and smaller towns solic- 
iting purchasei's for his wares. He was 
subsequently appointed a roadmaster, 
which position he occupied for many 
years. In religious faith he adhered to 
the doctrines taught by Martin Luther, 
and in the embrace of the church founded 
by that celebrated German ex-monk he 
died in 1874. He was married to Catha- 
rine Keefer. They were the parents of 
nine children: Katharine, Rosa, Lisetta, 
Rhinehalt, Robert, Frederick, Pauline, 
Ernest, and Andrew. 

Andrew BoUschweiler received a com- 
mon-school education at his birthplace, 
and at an early age went with his brother 
to acquire a knowledge of the manufac- 
ture of terra-cotta ware. He subse- 
quently went to various places in Switzer- 
land and worked in establishments de- 
voted to that business. His brother and 
he were together during this time, and 
later when he turned his feet back to his 
native town, the brother was by his side. 
In 1882 he immigrated to this country, 
and at Perth Amboy found employment. 
He remained but two weeks in this ser- 
vice, then went to Boston, and later to 
other places in search of work. He 



again returned to Perth Amboy, staying 
three months ; went to Chicago, remain- 
ing half a year ; thence to Boston for the 
second time, where he continued to reside 
for six months. In 1888 he settled down 
at Perth Amboy, where he has since re- 
mained. 

Mr. BoUschweiler has had a thorough 
musical education, and was formerly 
leader of the band at Perth Amboy. In 
politics he is a democrat, although free 
enough from party shackles to vote for 
the best man. He was married in March, 
1889, to a daughter of William Hartman, 
and they have had born to them one 
son, Albert, and a daughtei", Katharine, 
who died in infancy. 



GEOEGE A. CLINTON, proprietor of 
the Middlesex Granite and Mai-ble 
Works, at New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
is a son of William and Lydia Clinton, 
and was born in Brooklyn, N. Y., Oct. 
9, 1858. His parents at the time were 
residents of Brooklyn, N. Y., but subse- 
quently removed to a farm at Franklin 
Park, New Jersey. 

Mr. Clinton received a, common-school 
education, and was early trained to work 
upon the farm. He remained at home 
with his father until he was nineteen 
years of age, when he went to learn the 
stone-cutting trade at New Brunswick, 
New Jersey. This trade mastered, he 
followed it up to the present time. In 
1893 he started business in New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, and is now the pro- 
prietor of the Middlesex Granite and 
Marble Works, having the largest run of 
trade in New Brunswick. He is an 
active and enterprising business man, 
with full conception of the manifold de- 
tails of his large business, and possesses 



798 



Biographical Sketches. 



the executive facilities essential to suc- 
cessfully manage it. He is an active re- 
publican, but not necessarily a strong- 
partisan. He is a member of the First 
Reformed church of New Brunswick, 
and delights in active church work. He 
is also identified with several fraternal 
organizations, such as the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, Lodge No. 6, of 
New Brunswick ; the Order of Free and 
Accepted Masons, Lodge No. Ill, of New 
Brunswick ; the Junior Order of Ameri- 
can Mechanics, at Milltown, New Jer- 
sey ; and Relief Council, No. 40, O. U. 
A. M., of New Brunswick. 

Mr. Clinton married Miss Mar^^ Voor- 
hees, daughter of Jacob Voorhees, of 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, Nov. 1, 
1881, and they have two children : El- 
mer v., and George De Witt. 



nnvR. WILIJAM ROBERT MATTISON, 
-*-^ a retired physician and a leading 
citizen of North Plainfield, Somerset 
county. New Jersey, is a son of Elijah 
K. and Catharine (Egbert) Mattison, and 
was born at Reading, Steuben Co., N. Y., 
March 22, 1822. He is descended from 
a sturdy and highly reputable Scotch 
ancestry ; and his patei'nal grandfather, 
John Mattison, who was a native and 
life-long resident of New Jersey, was a 
farmer by occupation. He was killed at 
Boar's Head, Somerset county, while on 
a trip on horseback from his home in 
New York state to the scenes of his boy- 
hood at that place, by falling from a 
horse. He married Miss Kechum, and 
had a large family of children. 

Elijah K. Mattison (father) was born 
at Boar's Head, in Somerset county, 
New Jersey. He was . a farmer, and 
about 1812 migrated to Steuben county. 



N. Y., and later removed to Ontario 
county, where he raised his family, and 
resided up to his death, in Nov., 1847, 
which resulted b}^ being thrown out of 
his carriage. He and is wife were good 
presbyterians religiously. 

Dr. Mattison obtained a good academic 
education, and subsequently taught three 
years in the public schools of New York 
and New Jersej-. In 1849 he entered 
upon the study of medicine under the 
preceptorship of Dr. Firman Field, of 
Mount Pleasant, Hunterdon countj', this 
state, with whom he read three years, in 
the meantime attending lectures in the 
College of PIn'sicians and Surgeons, New 
York, graduating in 1852. Soon after 
his graduation he engaged in the practice 
of his profession at Hope, Warren coun- 
ty, this state, where he continued suc- 
cessfully until the breaking out of the 
civil Avar. In Aug., 1862, he entered the 
service as an assistant surgeon of the 
Third New Jersey regiment, but resigned, 
owing to illness in his family, where- 
upon he practiced at Somerville, this 
state, where he continued until 1864. 
Owing to ill-health he was forced to retire 
from active practice, and in 1882 he 
located at North Plainfield, where he 
established his present drug business, in 
which he has since continued. Politi- 
cally he is a democrat, and served as the 
first clerk and treasurer of the borough 
of North Plainfield, and is now serving 
as justice of the peace and notary public. 
He is prominently identified with the 
masonic fraternity, and was the first com- 
mander of Winfield Scott Post, G. A. R. 
He married Fannie T., a daughter t)f 
Andrew Race, of Milford, Hunterdon 
county. New Jersey, and to them have 
been born six children : Edgar B., a 
mechanic residmg at New Brunswick, 



Biographical Sketches. 



799 



New Jersey; Catharine E., deceased, 
who was a graduate of the New Jersey 
State Normal School, and a lady of bril- 
liant attainments; Jeanetta A., and 
Fanny E., both of whom are located at 
Biltmore, N. C, where the former is a 
piano instructor, and the latter is a mem- 
ber of Vanderbilt's Memorial church 
choir, at that place ; William E., and 
Frank E., who died young. 

The original immigrant of the Egbert 
family was the maternal great-grand- 
father, who came from England with 
some others, and located on Staten Island, 
N. Y., and it is a family tradition that 
Ethel Egbert was in a direct line of 
ascent. Benjamin Egbert was a tanner, 
and resided in Hunterdon county, New 
Jersey. He was a democrat, and served 
thirty years on the bench of Hunterdon 
county, and was an able judge. His 
children were five in number : one of 
whom was William, who was a lay-judge 
on the Hunterdon county bench. 



TTENEY WIEDENHAUPT is one of 
-*—'- the large class of the German- 
American citizens v/ho have added so 
materially to the wealth and prosperity 
of the United States during the past two 
or three decades. He is one of the most 
successful business men of Perth Amboy, 
and is a son of William and Wilhelmina 
(Foss) Wiedenhaupt, and was born at Cub- 
litz, in Brandenburg, Germany, March, 
25, 1852. 

William Wiedenhaupt (father) was 
born at Schifellein, in Germany, and re- 
sided in that country all his life. He 
began life as a shoemaker, which he fol- 
lowed for a number of years. Later in 
life he engaged in truck-farming and 
market-gardening, and accumulated con- 



siderable real estate. Mr. Wiedenhaupt 
served in the German army for fifteen 
years. In recognition of his valuable 
service he received a grant of money and 
was offered a government position, which, 
however, he refused to accept. In relig- 
ious matters Mr. Wiedenhaupt was a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. He married Wilhelmina Foss, 
a daughter of William Foss, of Cublitz, 
Germany, and to this union were born 
nine children : Hermann, William, Wil- 
helmina, Henry, Bertha, deceased ; Fran- 
cis, Albert, Frederick, and Theresa. 
William Wiedenhaupt, Sr., died at Bran- 
denburg, Germany, in 1882, and his wife 
in 1871, at the same place, where both 
are buried. 

Henry Wiedenhaupt, at the early age 
of twelve years, left school to learn the 
trade of butchering and dressing of meats. 
In 1867 he came to America, landing at 
Castle Garden, New York ; he proceeded 
to South Norwalk, Conn., where he found 
a home with an uncje of his mother. 
He afterwards followed his trade at New 
York for one and a half years, and later 
at Hoboken and Jersey City. He subse- 
quently was employed as a foreman by 
the Pennsylvania Railroad Co. for fifteen 
years. In 1883 Mr. Wiedenhaupt es- 
tablished his butchering business at No. 
90 Smith street, Perth Amboy, where he 
has since built up a large and flourishing 
trade. 

Inheriting the religious beliefs and 
principles of his family, he is a substan- 
tial member and supporter of St. Peter's 
Lutheran church, of Perth Amboy, and 
fraternally belongs to the Algonquin 
Lodge, Knights of Pythias, of the same 
place. Mr. Wiedenhaupt wedded Miss 
Sophia Eice in 1872, who died June 2, 
1895, having become the mother of a 



800 



Biographical Sketches. 



family of eight children : Elizabeth, 
Heniy, engaged in butchering at West- 
field, New Jersey; William, associated 
with his father ; Sophia, Ida, and Edward, 
Jose^^hine, and Minnie, the last three de- 
ceased. Mr. Wiedenhaupt occupies the 
front rank of Perth Amboy's substantial 
and enterprising citizens. 



TDERNARD RODDY, of South Amboy, 
-^-^ New Jersey, is a prominent man in 
the affairs of that borough, and is en- 
gaged in business as a cigar-maker and 
tobacconist. He is a son of Robert and 
Ann (Glover) Roddy, and was born Dec. 
25, 1832, in New York city. The Roddy 
family is of Danish descent, but the di- 
rect ancestors of our subject settled in 
Ireland. 

Mr. Rodd}^ attended the common 
schools of his native city until he was 
twelve years of age. He learned the 
trade of cigar-making in New York city, 
and in 1864 came to South Amboy and 
opened a cigar factory and store, where 
he continued very successfully for twenty- 
five years. He erected a new stone dwell- 
ing in 1889 near his old location, which 
he has occupied since. He has been a 
building and loan stock solicitor for the 
" Enterprise," the " South Amboy," and 
the " Star " building and loan associa- 
tions. He conducts real estate and in- 
surance agencies. He also acts in the 
capacity of a public and private auction- 
eer. In 1881 he was commissioned a 
notary public, and he has served as com- 
missioner of deeds since 1882. Mr. 
Roddy has been a republican in politics 
since the formation of that party, in 
1856. He has held various local offices 
in South Ambo}', having served as county 
coroner for three years, from 1876 to 



1879, and was township committeeman. 
He was an ardent advocate for the 
borough, and presided at the public 
meetings that were held for discussion 
as to the advisability of corporate change. 
He served in the first council after the 
borough of South Amboy was formed. 
He has been a member of the Republican 
executive committee of Middlesex county 
for the last twenty years, and at the pres- 
ent time is its vice-president. He is one 
of the commissioners of the sinking fund 
of South Amboy, and also a member of 
the board of health. Mr. Roddy is an 
active and earnest christian, and devotes 
a great deal of his time to advancing the 

I interests of the First Baptist church in 
South Amboy, of which he is a member, 
and of its Sunday-school, wherein he has 

i been superintendent for the past fourteen 
years, and chairman of the board of 
trustees. Mr. Roddj' is a mason and a 

; Knight of Pythias. He belongs to St. 

1 Stephen's Lodge, No. 6-3, F. and A. M., 

[ of South Ambo}', and has presided as its 
worshipful master. He is one of the 
original members of Good Samaritan 
Lodge, No. 52, K. of P., at South Am- 
bo}^, and was its first representative in 
the Grand Lodge; treasurer of its board of 
trustees, and a member of a committee to 
build a new hall at South Amboy, costing 
$15,000. Mr. Roddy was married May 
8, 1856, to Mary E. Fear.son. Tp this 
union were born two sons: Bernard, a 
foreman on the Pennsjlvania Railroad 
Co.'s docks, and Charles A., a carpenter 

[ in the employ of that compan3^ 

I The paternal grandfather, John G. 
Roddj-, lived and died in Ireland. J3e 
was a cloth merchant at Clones, County 
Cavan, Ireland, and for many years was 
engaged with his son Charles in the manu- 
facture of watch crystals in Belfast. He 



Biographical Sketches. 



801 



had four sons : John G., Jr., Charles, 
Bernard, and Robert, all of whom, except 
the latter, graduated' from Trinity Col- 
lege. 

Robert Roddj (father) was born in 
Ireland. He came to this country at the 
age of eleven years and attended private 
schools in New York city until he was 
sixteen, when he became a drug clerk in 
the employ of his brother John, on " Old 
Slip," in that city. He followed this 
business for four years, after which he 
engaged in the fur trade, first as a clerk in 
the house of Reymond & Co., New York 
city, where he remained several years, 
and subsequently as a trader and shipper 
on his own account at various points in 
the west and in Albany, N. Y. In 1846 
he enlisted in a company of New York 
volunteers. He served until the close of 
the war with Mexico, and returned wear- 
ing a sergeant's stripes. Sergeant Roddy 
resumed the fur business until 1862, 
when he again volunteered in the service 
of the United States army, and in the 
Nineteenth army corps, commanded by 
General Banks, was in active duty as far 
south as the Gulf of Mexico for more 
than a year. He Avas wounded and made 
a prisoner at Brazo, near New Orleans, 
but was subsequently exchanged and 
placed in the convalescent camp near 
Lake Pontchartrain, where he died in 
1863. He was originally a democrat in 
politics, and was one of a committee of 
citizens of New York city appointed to 
receive Andrew Jackson upon the occa- 
sion of his visit there in 1832. He 
changed his political views when the 
Mexican war ended, in 1848, and became 
a whig and an enthusiastic supporter of 
Zachary Taylor. His wife died June 13, 
1849. They had nine children : William 
and Fanny, both deceased : Bernard, 



Robert, Josephine, deceased; John G., 
Fanny, afterwards Mrs. William Day- 
ton ; Josephine, who married William M. 
Hatherly, and James. 



/^SCAR SCHROEDER, a successful 
^-^ wholesale liquor dealer and bottler 
of Perth Amboy, Middlesex county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Adolph and Julia 
(Barr) Schroeder, and was born, Feb. 24, 
1864, at Fraustadt, Germany. His father 
became a hussar in the Prussian army, 
and served as such during the Franco- 
Prussian war. He was a member of the 
mounted police force from 1871 to 1878, 
and was presented with the "Iron Cross " 
in 1871. He was the burgomaster or 
mayor of Soborro from 1878 until his 
death, in 1892. His widow is still sur- 
viving, and lives in the Fatherland. 
Their children are : Oscar, Max, and 
Arthur. 

Oscar Schroeder attended school at 
Fraustadt until the age of fourteen years. 
He learned the printing trade, and in 
1880, at the early age of sixteen, came 
to this country, and immediately secured 
employment as a typographer on Franh 
Leslies Weekly at New York. He worked 
at this occupation until the close of the 
memorable printers' strike of that year, 
when he became a waiter and general 
helper in restaurants. He Avas engaged 
in this capacity primarily at New York, 
subsequently visiting and working in 
restaurants at New Orleans, St. Louis, 
and Chicago. In 1884 he enlisted in the 
United States regular army for the term 
of five years, serving the first three years 
as cook and baker, and two years in the 
hospital corps. He received an honor- 
able discharge from the army in 1889, 
and then made a bi'ief visit to the home 



802 



Biographical Sketches. 



of his birth in Germany. He returned 
to America in the spring of 1890, and 
located in Perth Amboy, where he opened 
a wholesale liquor and beer-bottling busi- 
ness, under the name of H. 0. Bower & Co. 
In 1892 he acquired, by purchase, the 
sole proprietorship and entire control of 
the business, which he located at No. 24 
Smith street, Perth Amboy. Mr. Schroe- 
der was married, Sept. 22, 1892, to Agnes 
Sieben, a daughter of Jacob Sieben, of 
Keyport, New Jersey. To their union 
have been born two children : Gertrude, 
and Oscar, Jr. 



/CHARLES CHAUNCEY HOMMANN, 
^-^ counsellor-at-law, a civil engineer, 
and the present city survej'or of Perth 
Amboy, Middlesex county. New Jersey, 
is a son of William and Fidelia (Smith) 
Hommann, and was born, May 21, 1851, 
at Green Bay, Wis. The name Hom- 
mann is of German origin, the ancestors 
of our subject, down to his grandfather's 
day and generation, having been natives 
of Saxony. 

Charles C. Hommann received his ear- 
lier education in the public schools of 
various towns, a sort of itinerant educa- 
tion forced by changes in pastorate of his 
father, who was an Episcopal clergyman. 
He entered Lafa3'ette College in his seven- 
teenth year, but left before graduation. 
After leaving college he. entered the office 
of General Egbert L. Viele, in New York 
city, as a student in civil engineering. 
He followed the profession of civil engi- 
neering, and was engaged in that work 
on vai'ious railroads in the United States 
and in Central America. In 1876 he 
went to South Amboy, New Jersey, and 
studied law with the late Charles Morgan, 
Esq. He was admitted to the bar, from 



I that gentleman's office, as an attorney in 
1880, and as a councellor in 188G. In 
1880 he removed to Perth Amboy, where 
he entered into the active practice of his 
profession, and has since resided. He 
holds the office of city surveyor of Perth 
Amboy, in which capacitj-, during the 
last twelve years, he has done the engi- 
neering on all the municipal improve- 
ments undertaken by that town. He is 
a democrat politically, and member of St. 
Peter's Episcopal church at Perth Am- 
boy. He is an active member of that 
well-known military organization, the 
First Troop of New Jersey, the Essex 
Troop, of Newark, commanded by Cap- 

I tain Frederick FrelinghuAsen, a son of 
ex-United States Senator Frelinghuysen, 
of this state. Mr. Hommann was mar- 

i ried, in March, 1886, to Mrs. Bessie Hig- 
gins, a widow, having two sons, Eugene 
ElUott, and John de Bree. Mrs. Hom- 
mann has one child by her second mar- 
riage, Charles Chauncey, Jr. 

The paternal grandfather, John Chris- 
topher Hommann, was the original emi- 
grant of the family from Saxon}^ to this 

I country. He landed on these shores 

I shortly after the close of the Eevolution- 
ary war, and settled in Philadelphia, 

I where he remained until his death, in 
1837, in the eighty-fourth year of his 

j age. Before coming to this country he 
was an officer in the regular standing 
army of Saxony. In religious faith and 
practice he was a discijile of Martin 
Luther. His Avife, Constantia (Herbert) 
Hommann, bore him eight childi-en : Con- 
stantia Hupfeld, wife of Charles Fred- 
erick Hupfeld ; John Christopher, Char- 
lotte, wife of ReA^ Isaac Smith ; Charles, 

! Sarah, married to Charles Harrison ; 

; Amelia, who married Dr. Levi Bartlett ; 
Jane, married Rev. Williams ; and Wil- 



Biographical Sketches. 



803 



liam. Coustantia Hupfeld, the elder, de- 
ceased in 1880, at the age of ninety-five 
years. 

William Hommann. father of C. C. 
Hommann, was born in March, 1814, in 
Philadelphia. He was a gentleman of 
collegiate education, and a gi'aduate, in 
1835, of the General Theological Semi- 
nary of New York, and the Divinity 
School of the Protestant Episcopal church. 
He was a clergyman of the Episcopal 
church for thirty-five years. He was the 
beloved and respected rector of many of 
the churches of Pennsylvania, Missouri, 
Wisconsin, and, latterly, in this state. 
He departed this life, March 12, 1870, at 
the age of fifty-six years; his wife hav- 
ing died in March, 1866, in the fifty- 
second year of her age. They left two 
children : Charles Chauncey, and James 
W. The latter died in 1875, in early 
manhood, while engaged in the study oi 
medicine, which he commenced in Mew 
York city ; he had previously gi'aduated 
from the College of Pharmacy in Phila- 
delphia. 



TAMES M. GLENN, the popular and 
^ well-known proprietor of the Hotel 
Central, at Perth Amboy, Middlesex 
county, New Jersey, is a son of William 
R. and Lydia Ann (Hansbury) Glenn, 
and was born June 30, 1852, in the city 
of Philadelphia. His ancestrj^ is of Scotch 
origin, the immigrant ancestor having 
come to this country from Scotland and 
settled at Philadelphia. 

James M. Glenn attended the public 
schools in the city of his birth until he 
was fifteen years of age. He then entered 
the store of B. C. Worthington & Son, of 
Philadelphia, wholesale dealers in and 
importers of cigars, with whom he re- 
mained as clerk for several years. In 



1872 he was admitted to partnership in 
that house, and became the junior mem- 
ber of the firm, thenceforth known as 
B. C. Worthington, Son & Co. He sev- 
ered connection with the Worthingtons 
in 1873, and opened a wholesale and 
retail cigar business of his own, on South 
Eleventh street, Philadelphia, which he 
prosecuted very successfully for three 
years. He sold out his business in 1876, 
and connected himself with the noted 
Kiralfy Brothers, then just arrived from 
Europe. He devoted capital and services 
in aiding them to produce their wonder- 
ful spectacular plays, beginning with the 
"Black Crook," which created such a 
furore in the Quaker City in the Centen- 
nial year. He continued with the Kiral- 
fy s for two years, when he quitted the 
theatrical for the hotel business, and soon 
developed a marked faculty in that call- 
ing. He managed the Sea Breeze and 
Avenue Hotels at Cape May for three 
years, to the entire satisfaction of multi- 
tudes of summer patrons, and he also 
conducted hotels during the summer 
season at Coney Island, Point Pleasant, 
and other well-known resorts. His time 
was occupied during the winter months 
in the management of the Great Western 
Hotel, in Philadelphia. He removed to 
Perth Amboy in 1890, and resumed pro- 
prietorship of the Hotel Central, on Smith 
street, where he still remains in the en- 
joyment of an exceedingly profitable 
business. Mr. Glenn has always been an 
enthusiastic democrat, and for a number 
of years he has been a delegate to the 
various conventions of his party. He is 
a member of Ragan Lodge, No. 28, 
Knights of Pythias, in Philadelphia, and 
is also a member of New Brunswick 
Lodge, No. 324, B. P. 0. Elks, at New 
Brunswick, New Jersey. He is an active 



42 



804 



Biographical Sketches. 



member of the fire department of Perth 
Amboy, and was appointed fire marshal 
of the city by its board of aldermen in 
1891. He was married May 28, 1874, 
to Malinda Thompson, a daughter of 
Charles C. Thompson, of Philadelphia. 

The paternal grandfather, James Glenn, 
was born and reared in Philadelphia. 
He was a soldier and an officer in the 
American arm}' during our war with 
Great Britain, 1812-1815. His wife, 
Mary Glenn, nee Wilson, deceased in 
Aug., 1896, at the age of ninety-four 
years. They were the jaarents of four 
children : Elizabeth, married to Hamilton 
Conway, of Philadelphia ; Margaret, de- 
ceased; Washington, and William E., 
father of our subject. 

William E. Glenn (father) was born in 
Philadelphia, and received his education 
in the public schools of that city. He 
was engaged for a number of years in 
the manufacture of window shades and 
blinds in that place, and subsequently he 
went into the cigar business, wherein he 
continued until his death, which occurred 
in 1856. He was a lively democrat in 
politics, a presbyterian in religion, and* 
an odd fellow in fraternit}'. His widow 
3-et survives him, and is a resident of 
PhiladeljDhia. She is the mother of two 
children : James M., our subject, and 
Mary, who resides with her mother. : 



TTERSON BROTHERS, proprietors of 
-' — ^ the well-known Packer House at 
Perth Amboy, New Jersey, the oldest 
hotel in that place, have one of the most 
noted hostelries in the eastern part ot 
this state. It is located on the corner of 
South and High streets, and was estab- 



Matthew E. Herson, are masters of their 
profession, and the foinner is well known, 
having been at one time connected with 
the Eichelieu Hotel of Chicago. Prior 
to his coming to Perth Amboy, he was 
the popular steward of the Larchmont 
Yacht Club, of New York, one of the 
wealthiest and best-known organizations 
of that kind in this country. He was 
also connected with the Morton House, 
corner of Broadwaj' and Union Square, 
New Y'^ork city, and subsequentl}^ Avith 
the Lotus Club, of the same place. The 
Packer House is patronized by the best 
class of the traveling public. The Herson 
Iji'others are equallj^ interested in the 
conduct of the business, and deserve spe- 
cial credit for the success they have 
achieved. They are popular hosts and 
competent hotel men, and their present 
position is due to their own personal 
efforts and business sagacit3^ 



lished two hundred 



The 



present proprietors, Messrs. James J. and 



Tp B. WALKER is a well-known busi- 
-'-^* ness man of Perth Amboy and 
proprietor of a thriving grocery store on 
Smith street, in that cit3\ He is a son of 
T. and Jean (Barker) Walker, and first 
saw the light in 1864, in Middlesex 
county. New Jersey. His family has 
long been activelj' identified with agri- 
cultural and business pursuits in this part 
of the state. His paternal grandfather, 
Frederick Walker, was a successful and 
respected farmer throughout his life. He 
was the father of three children : T., 
Henry J. and Jean J. Mr. Walker's 
father, T. Walker, spent his life in ope- 
rating his extensive farm in Middlesex 
count3^ He was a democrat, but never 
took an active part in the political con- 
ti-oversies of his day. He was a devout 
chui'ch member, and was widely known 



Biographical Sketches. 



805 



as a man of sound judgment and gener- 
ous impulses. He passed away in 1875. 
His wife, who was Miss Jean Barker, and 
who is still living, bore him four children ; 
E. B., Kate, Edward and Joseph. 

After receiving his elementary educa- 
tion in the common schools of Middlesex 
county, Mr. Walker (subject) attended 
Glenwood Institute for one term. He 
then drove a milk-wagon three years for 
E. D. Brown, of South Amboy. The 
succeeding eight years of his life were 
spent as clei-k in a store. In 1892 he re- 
moved to Perth Amboy and established | 
his present grocery business under the 
firm name of Walker Bros., one of his 
brothers being associated with him. 
Their store is a handsome, well-stocked 
establishment in a busy part of Smith ' 
street, and their business is an extensive ■ 
one. j 

Mr. Walker's political sympathies are 
with the Democratic party, but in local 
affairs he uses liberal judgment and sup- 
ports the city's best interests iri'espective j 
of party prejudices. He is a member of ' 
the Knights of Pythias and the Knights 
of the Golden Eagle. On April 4, 1895, ^ 
he was happily wedded to Miss Hattie 
Emmons, daughter of John Emmons, a 
well-known citizen of Perth Amboy. 

Mr. Walker is shrewd and energetic ! 
in business, pleasing in manners and taste- 
ful in address. He has a wide circle of 
friends, is possessed of rare social talents, 
and is everywhere respected as one of the 
solid business men of this prosperous 
city. 

T A. SEXTON, of South Amboy, New 
^ * Jersey, is a member of the firm of 
Sexton & Donnell, operating an extensive 
mill in that city for the manufacture and 
sale of all kinds of material entering into 



the construction of houses. He is the 
only son of William and Mary Elizabeth 
(Aken) Sexton, and was born May 9, 
1852, in New York city. He received 
his early education in St. Louis, Mo., 
whither his father had removed and re- 
mained for a time ; subsequentl}' he at- 
tended Pennington Seminary for two 
years. He began active life in 1870, 
working at his chosen trade of carpenter- 
ing. He spent a winter in Florida, in 
the same line of work, and then came to 
South Amboy, where he became a con- 
tractor and builder, and successfully pur- 
sued that calling until the year 1872, 
memorable in the annals of this country 
as the beginning of a protracted season 
of paralysis to our commercial and in- 
dustrial business, and to every form of 
enterprise. Mr. Sexton then became 
associated with his father in the furni- 
ture business for a year or two. In 1870 
he went to Kansas, and at Ottawa, in 
that state, pursued his trade as a con- 
tractor for upwards of a year, and thence 
returned to South Amboy. During the 
period covered by the years 1879-1891 
Mr. Sexton was a builder of houses, with 
headquarters at South Amboy, and he 
enjo3^ed a good degree of success. He 
became a member of the firm of Sexton, 
Miller & Donnell ; their business con- 
sisted of dealing in building material of 
all kinds, their specialty being mill-work. 
The firm name was subsequently changed 
to Sexton & Donnell, which was necessi- 
tated by the retirement of Mr. Miller, 
and the business is carried on under that 
title to the present time. It is the largest 
and most successful one of its kind in Mid- 
dlesex county, which is due, in great 
measure, to Mr. Sexton's ability and long 
experience. Mr. Sexton is a member of 
the Episcopal church, and politically he 



806 



Biographical Sketches. 



is a democrat. He is a member of sev- 
eral secret societies : I. 0. R. M. ; I. 0. 
0. F. ; Knights of Pythias, and Knights 
of the Golden Eagle. He was elected 
pi'esident of the Star Building and Loan 
Association of South Amboy, and served 
in that capacity for three years. He be- 
came commodore of the South Amboy 
Yacht Club, and is an active and efficient 
member of the fire department of that 
town. 

Mr. Sexton was married Dec. 22, 1872, 
to Lucretia S. Herring. To this union 
were born four children : Mary Elizabeth, 
Josephine Aken, James Andrew, and 
William. 

William Sexton (father) was born in 
Monmouth county. New Jersey, and re- 
ceived a common-school education. He 
left school at an early age and worked 
for several years on a farm. At the age 
of seventeen years he commenced to 
learn the trade of stair-building, in which 
calling he worked faithfully until he 
attained his majoritj^ He spent the en- 
suing three years as a ship's carpenter on 
a whaler, after which he migrated to 
Calilbrnia, where he remained about 
twelve months. He made a second trip 
to the Pacific slope in 1852. He came 
to South Amboy in 1854, and engaged in 
business as a builder. This trade he 
pursued the remainder of his life at vari- 
ous places in the United States. He was 
successively in Keokuk, Iowa ; St. Louis, 
Mo. ; and Memphis, Tenn. He was in 
the latter city during a portion of the 
civil war, and secured a large and profit- 
able contract for making tent^j^ins for the 
confederate government. After leaving 
Memphis he I'eturned north, and resided 
for a time in Titusville, Pa. He subse- 
quently returned to South Amboy and 
entered the furniture business, which he 



conducted with considerable success for 
several years. He superintended the 
construction of the Jerome Race Course, 
at Fordham, N. Y. Mr. Sexton was a 
member of the Episcopal church, and 
politically was a republican. He died in 
1894 ; his widow is yet living, and re- 
sides at South Amboy. 



1\ /TILAN ROSS, a successful real-estate 
-'-'-*- and insurance broker and collector, 
also treasurer of the borough of Asbury 
Park, Monmouth county. New Jersey, is 
a son of Milan and Elizabeth (Dolbier) 
Ross, and was born Jan. 6, 1861, at Rail- 
way, Union county. New Jersey, his pa^ 
ternal ancestry being English. He re- 
sided in Rahway, attending the public 
schools, until he was fifteen years of age, 
and in 1876 removed to Asbury Park, 
where for about a year he remained in the 
employment as junior clerk of Hon. 
James A. Bradley. In the spring -of 
1877 Mr. Ross entered the real-estale of- 
fice of Willisford Dey, the leading broker 
of Asbury Park at that time, and during 
the space of six years was continuously 
in the emjjloyraent of this gentleman, 
filling consecutively the positions of clerk, 
cashier and manager of his office busi- 
ness. On January 1, 1885, he opened 
the Milan Ross real-estate and insurance 
business agency at No. 208 Main street, 
in the town first above mentioned, and 
continues to this time in successful man- 
agement of an extremel}^ prosperous busi- 
ness. He is to-day the leading man in 
that line of important occupation on the 
North Jerse}- coast, and conducts a gen- 
eral insurance and brokerage agency. 
Mr. Ross is also an owner and a devel- 
oper of local real estate, and is the pro- 
moter and successful manager of the Deal 



BioGRAPHicAi^ Sketches. 



809 



Beach Land Co., a syndicate of which 
Mr. Ross is a member, that purchased 
through him the Hathaway, Drummond 
and Hendrickson farms near Asbury 
Park. The transaction was a large one, 
involving an aggregate of $.380,000, the 
largest broker's sale ever made in that 
section. His company is now develop- 
ing this tract and the new hamlet called 
" Darlington " gives every promise of 
soon becoming a thriving town. In 1894 
Mr. Ross admitted to a partnership in 
his business Randolph Ross, his brother, 
thus forming a strong combination of two 
active, energetic and enterprising men of 
affairs. Mr. Ross is a prominent figure 
in the affairs of the Republican party at 
Asbury Park, having been many times 
elected as a delegate to county and state 
conventions, and in various ways he 
stands conspicuous as a party leader. He 
has served as collector and treasurer of 
the borough since 1884, and was elected 
each time with no opposition, endorsed 
by the citizens irrespective of party save 
once. In 1889 he was elected a director 
in the First National Bank of Asbury 
Park, serving continuously since then 
and active in the management of its af- 
fairs. He is also a director in the Mon- 
mouth Trust and Safe Deposit Co., and is 
treasurer of two amusement companies 
there, the " Neptune " and the " Asbury 
Park," both of which are " star " attrac- 
tions to summer visitors. Mr. Ross was 
a member of the Wesley Engine Com- 
pany from 1877 to 1894, serving five 
years as its foreman, and he is now an 
honorary member of the Asbury Park 
fire department. In matters of religion, 
he is a member of the First Methodist 
Episcopal chui-ch of Asbury Park, and a 
member of its official board. In fraternal 
and social affairs he is a member of the 



following organizations : Asbury Lodge, 
No. 142, F. and A. M. ; Standard Chap- 
ter, No. 35, R. A. M., and Carson Com- 
j mandery, No. 15, Knights Templar, all 
of Asbury Park, and Mecca Temple, 
I No. 1, Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles 
j of the Mystic Shrine at New York. Mr. 
j Ross was united in marriage Nov. 4, 
! 1886, to Nellie, a daughter of David H. 
, and Lydia Wyckoff, of Matawan, New 
Jersey. This union was blessed July 31, 
I 1891, by a son, Milan, Jr. Mr. Ross has 
! fashioned himself from a boy, just from 
! school and crude in business affairs, into 
a quick, enterprising, shrewd and suc- 
cessful man of means and resources. His 
stride has been rapid from clerk to capi- 
talist in his adopted town, and he is well 
on the road to affluence. While always 
a busy man he is not too deeply en- 
grossed in his own business to take an 
interest in educational as well as other 
matters of moment of his town, and he is 
known and esteemed as a progressive 
citizen cordially enlisted in every work 
of borough improvement. Personally he 
is a gentleman of engaging manners, 
popular both within and outside his of- 
fice, and he is a member of the Monmouth 
Social Club. 



TT"r R. TOBIAS, the third son and 
^^ ' fourth child of William and 
Nellie Tobias, was born near the city of 
Reading, Berks county. Pa., on Dec. 7, 
1849. 

The Tobias family is one of well-known 
prominence in eastern Pennsylvania, its 
ancestors being among those early inniii- 
grants who came from the Palatinate and 
located along the line of the Schuylkill 
river and its northern tributaries, passing 
through the counties of Berks and Mont- 
gomery. 



810 



Biographical Sketches. 



John Tobias, his grandfather, was a 
thrifty and industrious farmer and builder, 
and spent all his life in Berks count^^, the 
place of his nativity. He was an exem- 
plary member of the comniunit}- in which 
he resided, and a consistent communicant 
of the Lutheran church. He raised a 
family of seven children. 

The second son. William, father of W. 
R. Tobias, was a farmer and builder for 
many 3'ears. near Reading, Pa.. Later 
in life he went to Lidiana, to live with 
his daughter, and remained there until 
his death. He was a life-long democrat 
and a member of the Lutheran church. 

W. R. Tobias left home at the early 
age of eight years, and never enjoyed a 
day's schooling in his life. He worked 
upon a farm until he arrived at the age 
of fourteen years, when he took to rail- 
roading,, at which he spent the next four 
years. He at the same time had, how- 
ever, devoted all his spare moments to 
study and the acquirement of knowledge, 
so that he was now enabled to do some 
newspaper work, and later on he made a 
trip to South America, on a sketching 
tour as an art student. His intention at 
the time was to study and follow the art 
of painting and drawing, but returning, he 
devoted his time instead to art sketches, 
at which he continued until he Avas 
twenty-eight years of age. He then 
started the photographing business in New 
York, and conducted it there until 1881, 
Avhen he removed to Northumberland, 
Pa. Here he remained until 1886, when 
he came to Perth Amboy, and estabished 
himself in his present business. Mr. 
Tobias is also engaged in the bicycle 
business, being interested in the estab- 
lishment conducted by the firm of Tobias 
& Watson, dealers in and manufacturers 
of bicycles and sundries. Mr. Tobias 



mari'ied Miss Jessie Palmer, daughter of 
John Palmer, May 28, 1877. 



/CHARLES E. BUELL, son of Joseph 
^-^ Case and Marv (Kellogg) Buell, is a 
resident of North Plainfield, New Jersey, 
but was born at WoUcottsville, in the 
town of Torrington, Litchfield count}'. 
Conn., May 4, 1841. He received his 
education in the public schools and at 
the Wesley an Academy, at Wilbraham, 
Mass., where his early life was passed, 
and from which town he enlisted to serve 
his country in the great civil war, hav- 
ing enlisted as early as April 20, 1861, 
for three months' service in the Third 
Massachusetts regiment ; and afterwards 
for three years in the Tenth Massachu- 
setts regiment, serving until April 23, 
1863, when he was honorably discharged. 
His regiment was in the campaign around 
Richmond, under McClellan, and at the 
battle of Fair Oaks, Va., one of the 
bloodiest battles known in the annals of 
war, he was wounded while in the line of 
duty. 

Upon his return fom the army he en- 
tered upon the study of electrical science 
and the art of telegraphy, becoming an 
efficient telegraph manager, and finally 
promoted to be a superintendent of tele- 
graph. In the years 1872 to 1880 he 
was employed as accountant in the car 
department of the New Yoi'k, New Haven 
and Hartford Railroad Co., at New 
Haven, Conn. In 1880 he accepted a 
place in the tenth census, as an expert 
accountant and statistician, in the pre- 
paration of the financial statistics of the 
railroads of the United States. Subse- 
quently he was placed in charge of the 
preparation of the extensive tables of 
statistics relating to the systems of tele- 



Biographical Sketches. 



811 



graph and telephone for the tenth cen- 
sus, and in this connection he prepared 
an exhaustive history of the telephone 
for the United States government. He 
is the inventor and patentee of valuable 
systems and devices relating to tele- 
phones, to the storage of electricity to 
automatic fire alarms, and automatic 
sprinklers ; his inventions being widel}' 
used, and the descriptions and claims 
forming the subject-matter of a hundred 
patents. 

In 1889 he was appointed by Robert 
P. Porter, the superintendent of the 
eleventh census of the United States, as 
chief of the sixth division, and assistant 
in gathering and tabulating the statistics 
of all religions in the United States. 

The Buell name, varying in its orthog- 
raphy, as found in France and Germany, 
from Buol to Buhle, has descended 
through centuries and ages of the world's 
history in Europe and America, and its 
advent into this country was cotempor- 
aneous with its discovery by Columbus ; 
for Bernardo de Buil, a Benedictine monk, 
was sent with Columbus on his second 
voyage, in 1493, by the pope, as vicar of 
the new world. 

The direct and less-remote immigrant 
ancestor of Charles E. Buell, however, 
was William Buell, a son of Sir Robert 
Buell, of Chesterdon, England, and came 
to America with his mother, Goode Buell, 
on the ship " William and Mary," in 
1636, landing at Nantucket, and a year 
later settling on the main land, at Dor- 
chester, Mass. 

In 1652 William Buell was living in 
Plymouth colony, and, together with his 
wife and five other persons, was indicted 
by the zealots of Plymouth colony for 
" being a Baptist," and for observing 
the seventh day of the week as the Sab- 



bath-day — the first persons to suffer re- 
ligious persecution in this country. 

Peter Buell, a son of William Buell, 
lived at Somers and at Simsbury, Conn., 
being spoken of in the town records of 
Simsbury as " Sergeant of the Train- 
band" of Simsbury. 

Joseph Buell, a great-grandson of Peter, 
born at Sandisfield, Mass., a silversmith 
by trade, served in the Continental army 
under Count Pulaski, and, in command of 
a squadron of cavalry, fought at Princeton 
and Monmouth, and in other engage- 
ments during the Revolution. He was a 
warm friend of Nathaniel Hale. Lake 
Buel, Mass., was named after one of his 
sons, Samuel Buell, for his gallant rescue 
of six persons from drowning. 

Joseph Case Buell, father of Charles 
E., and son of Joseph Buell, was born at 
Sandisfield, Mass., March 28, 1793, and 
was a hatter and furrier by trade. He 
was a soldier in the war of 1812, and 
was among the band of patriots who 
wrought victory in the very shadow of 
death at Plattsburg, N. Y., against twelve 
thousand British regulars. 

Joseph Case Buell was an active aboli- 
tionist, and of a strong religious charac- 
ter, preaching without compensation in 
the jails and reformatories in New Eng- 
land. He died at Wilbraham, Mass., 
aged seventy-five years. 

Besides Charles E. Buell, his children 
were : Mary, wife of Daniel Garfield ; 
Susan, wife of Hiram Wells ; Julia, wife 
of L. P. Coe; Samuel Kellogg, James, 
Robert Henry, Ellen, wife of Albei^t 
Hartung ; and George Clay Buell. 



TpDWAUD AND CHARLES W. SIMON- 
-^-^ SON are the pojDular and successful 
proprietors of Hotel Simonson, a widely- 
known commercial house of Spring Lake, 



812 



Biographical Sketches. 



New Jersey. This establishment was 
erected in 1884, and has been operated 
by the Messrs. Sinionson since tlie spring 
of 1893. It is furnished and fitted up 
with all first-class appointments, and 
maintains a large patronage throughout 
the entire year. 

Edward Simonson, junior member of 
the firm, was born at Suffield, Hartford 
county, Conn., and spent his early life in 
New York city, where he also received 
his education. In 1884 he came to Free- 
hold, Monmouth county, and secured a 
position as clerk in the Monmouth House, 
then as proprietor at New Bedford, Holm- 
del, and Farmingdale, and in 1895 came 
to Spring Lake, where he entered into 
partnership with his brother Charles, and 
became one of the proprietors of the 
Simonson house. Edward Simonson is 
an active politician and a leading demo- 
crat in his district. He is one of the in- 
corporators of the Farmingdale Tribe, I. 
0. R. M., and is a member of the local 
order of K. G. E., Spring Lake. 

Charles W. Simonson was born at 
Suffield, Conn., and, like his brother Ed- 
ward, was given a public-school education 
in the city of New York. He began life 
as a printer in New York, and worked at 
that for some years, coming to Mon- 
mouth county in 1888, and was clerk in 
Jernee's hotel. Spring Lake, until 1893, 
when he purchased the property and 
operated the same until the spring ol 
1895. At that time, as above stated, 
the firm of Messrs. Simonson Brothers 
was established and the Simonson house 
has since been operated by them. They 
are wholesale district agents for the Bal- 
lantine Brewing Co., and do a large busi- 
ness in that line, furnishine a large 
patronage with all the wants and re- 
quirements of shore trade. Charles W. 



Simonson is prominently identified with 
the political aftairs of his county, and as 
a democrat is a leader in his community 
and pi'ogressive as a citizen. Messrs. 
Simonson are prominent in social circles, 
and as business men well deserve the 
success that has followed their career. 



/CHARLES E. KELLY, the enterprising 
^ merchant of New Market, Middle- 
sex county. New Jersey, is a son of 
Patrick and Sarah (Ebbrecht) Kelly, of 
ILagerstown, Washington county, Md., 
where he was born March 26, 1848. 
The Kelly ancestry is one of the most 
prominent and best known in the annals 
of Irish history. The branch to which 
he belongs, however, traces its source to 
Hugh Kelly and Mary (Duffey) Kelly, 
of Seven Churches, Kings county, Ireland, 
the paternal grandfather, who was a 
stei'ling Irish patriot and a warm friend 
of Ireland's great leaders, Emmett, O'Con- 
nell, and Robert Peel. 

Patrick Kelly was born in Kings 
county, Ireland, in 1810. He came to 
America while yet a young man, and lo- 
cated at Hagerstown, Washington county, 
Md., where he resided ever after. He 
engaged in railroading, at which he con- 
tinued until 1861, when he met with an 
accident which caused the partial loss of 
his eyesight, and eventually its total loss 
in 1884, when he died. He married Miss 
Sarah Ebbrecht, daughter of John Eb- 
brecht, of Washington count}', and grand- 
daughter of John Moyer and Susan (Bach- 
tell) Moyer, in 1838, and they had born 
to them the following children : Mary, 
Elizabeth, Hugh, Charles E., Ellen, Jos- 
eph, Annie, and Jennie. 

Charles E. Kelly received a common- 
school education at Hagerstown, Md., and 
at the age of fourteen went to Washing- 



Biographical Sketches. 



813 



ton, D. C, and sought employment. This 
was about 1862, and he secured a posi- 
tion on the Washington and Alexandria 
railroad, which was then operated by the 
government. This position he retained 
for about thi'ee years, after which he re- 
turned to Hagerstown. He engaged with 
Zeller & Son, of Hagerstown, dealers in 
coal, lumber, and fertilizers, with whom 
he was employed for about three years. 
Subsequently he moved to New Jersey, 
and secured employment on the Morris 
and Essex railroad, where he continued 
for nine months. He then engaged with 
the contractors who were about to con- 
struct the Lehigh Valley railroad of Penn- 
sylvania, and later assisted in building 
the Raritan River railroad. In Oct., 
1880, he located at New Market, and en- 
tered into his present business in March, 
1890, that of a dealer in specialties, such 
as coal, lumber, and fertilizers. He has 
also established a similar business in Mor- 
ris count}'^, and has a fine trade through- 
out this section of New Jersey. Mr. 
Kelly is a democrat, but does not work 
with his party. He may be justly styled 
an independent democrat. He was elected 
assessor two years ago, in 1894, by a 
majority of eleven votes, in a strong re- 
publican township, over his opponent, 
Mr. A. S. Corriell. He has been a trus- 
tee of the public schools of New Market 
for eight or ten years, and was the dis- 
trict clerk of the board. He was married 
Oct. .31, 1871, to Miss Mary M. Macaway, 
daughter of John Macaway, a prominent 
farmer of Washington county, and they 
have had born to them the following 
children : Martha, since deceased ; Jo- 
seph, employed on the Lehigh Valley 
railroad; Charles, with the firm; William, 
since deceased ; and Mary M., now nine 
years old. 



A G. HALL, the oldest florist and seed- 
-^--^* man in the city of New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, is a son of Charles H. 
; Hall, and was boi'u, July 4, 1833, in Lon- 
don, England. 

His father was a jeweler by trade, a 
man of considerable mental breadth and 
culture, and a devout christian, and mem- 
ber of the Episcoj)al church. He was 
the parent of three children : Caroline, 
A. G., and William H. 

A. G. Hall obtained a rudimentary edu- 
cation in the national schools of his 
country, attending school in London. At 
the age of twenty, desiring to escape the 
crowded economic conditions of his native 
country, he came to the United States. 
He first located at Utica, N. Y., and 
worked at almost anything that came to 
hand for a brief period. Then, after a 
short stay at Frankfort Hill, he came to 
New York city, and soon secured a posi- 
tion as private gardener near Coney Isl- 
and. He secured a position as gardener 
on the Greenwood cemetery force. Then, 
after serving in the same line for brief 
periods at West Troy and Clinton, N. Y., 
he came to New Brunswick. Believing 
that he had mastered the details of the 
florist's art, he embarked in the business 
on his own account, becoming the pioneer 
florist of New Brunswick. The business 
being a new one to the people of that 
place, it was with great difficulty that 
Mr. Hall introduced it to popular favor 
among them, but, by that persistence 
which has ever been charactei'istic of the 
race from which he sprang, he succeeded 
in placing it upon a sound financial basis. 
He has been in the floral business for 
many years, and it is his most earnest 
endeavor to give his patrons the benefit 
of his long experience. At his popular 
establishment everything in the line of 



814 



Biographical Sketches. 



plants and cut flowers can be had at all 
times. He makes a specialty of floral 
designs for funerals, weddings, etc., and 
has a first-class assortment of eveiything 
usually found in a first-class establish- 
ment of the kind. Politically Mr. Hall 
is a republican, but is inclined to be in- 
dependent in local matters, voting for 
men rather than parties. He is a charter 
member of the Knights of Honor. Mr. 
Hall is an enterprising business man, 
whose success is due to industry and the 
enforcement of the strictest probity in 
all matters of business. He is a gentle- 
man of refined and cultivated tastes, and 
is an ardent student of archeology. 

As a diversion Mr. Hall has made a 
valuable collection of archaeological speci- 
mens, gathered from all quarters of the 
globe. Among some of the more note- 
worthy specimens are : Relics, classic and 
religious, from Rome, Bible-lands, Asia 
Minor, Syria, Egypt, Algeria, Tunis, Tur- 
key, Krim Tartary, Persia, Cii'cassia, Rus- 
sia, and India ; Delhi's pure gold needle- 
worked draperies ; curious samples of the 
Mogul's inimitable school of art indus- 
try ; Hebrew scrolls and coins ; Egyptian 
papyri, coins, scarabses, and talismans of 
Osiris ; tablets, axioms of faith ; Koranic, 
Talmudic, Coptic, Sanscrit, with the ca- 
balistics of dervishes and marabouts; 
gold bronzes, elaborately engraved in 
Persian proverbs, and Parthian horsemen ; i 
folio albums of the Nile Land — Turkey's 
Janissary age — Oriental bric-a-brac and 
trinkets, mosaics, cameos, rosaries, pearls; 
Gagliardi's original portrait of Pio IX ; 
Gainesboro's original porti-ait — John Cal- 
vin and John Howard ; Gothic arms, 
shields; Oriental manuscript and medie- 
val czars ; Mexican curios ; Toltec Aztec ; 
Edicts of St. John — Hospitalers and me- 
dieval bulles papales. | 



"TAMES WAIT, doing business at No. 
^ 23 Smith street, is one of the oldest, 
and most progressive and successful citi- 
zens of Perth Amboy, New Jersey, 
where he was born July 6, 1824. 

He is the son of John 0. and Elizabeth 
(Crow) AVait, and his paternal grand- 
father, David Wait, was a native of Scot- 
land, and coming to the Colonies at the 
time of the Revolutionary war, enlisted 
on the side of the patriots, and entered 
the American army at the age of twenty- 
one years. He took part in an engage- 
ment at Manhattan Island, N. Y., and 
was taken prisoner, and retained as a 
prisoner of war until peace was pro- 
claimed in 1783. He then went to James- 
town, Va., and finally to Perth Amboy. 
Later he began business on his own ac- 
count, and was successful. 

David Wait was a man of good educa- 
tion, and was held in high esteem by all 
who came into social or other relations 
with him. Politically he was an old- 
line whig, and both he and his wife were 
actively engaged in the work of the 
Presbyterian church. They reared a 
family of eleven children : David, 
Marguerett, Agnes, Matilda, Katharine, 
Joseph, John, Isaac, James, William, and 
Philip. David Wait, Sr., deceased in 
1810. 

John Wait (father) was born at Perth 
Amboy, and learned the baking business, 
in which he afterwards engaged and con- 
tinued successfully until his death. He 
was a democrat in public matters. Among 
the various offices he held were those of 
overseer of the poor and of roads. He 
was a believer in the doctrines of the 
Presbyterian church, and married Miss 
Elizabeth Crow, and they had eight sons 
and four daughters : Daniel Thompson, 
Marguerett, Matilda, Francis, Samuel, 



Biographical Sketches. 



815 



James, Ellis, Philip, Mary, Amanda, 
Martha, and John 0. 

James Wait attended the common 
schools of Perth Amboy. He learned 
the baking trade with his father, and at 
the age of twenty-one was given an 
interest in the business. He continued 
three years with his father, when he 
withdrew and established his present 
business on his own account. He has 
been successful, and during the course of 
his energetic and well-managed life as a 
business man has accumulated a compe- 
tence, and takes much pleasure in look- 
ing over his fine farm of one hundred 
and thirty acres, situated in Woodbridge 
township, a rich agricultural district. 

Mr. Wait is a democrat, and has served 
his community as collector, and as a 
member of council. He is a member of 
the Presbyterian church, and in Sept., 
1848, was united in maiTiage to Miss 
Anna Hughes. Eight children were born 
to this union : Anna (Mrs. Edward Belp), 
James, Bessie (deceased), Anna, Francis, 
George, Leon, and Jennie (the latter 
three deceased). 



A B. FARE, a prominent insurance 
^^^* agent and well-known citizen of 
Somerville, Somerset county, is a son of 
William A. and Sarah (Smith) Fare, and 
was born May 5, 1848, at Sunny side 
Post Office, Hunterdon county. New Jer- 
sey. His paternal grandfather, Andrew 
Fare, was a thriving farmer all his life, 
was a staunch democrat in politics, and a 
member of the Presbyterian church. 
His children were : Elizabeth, Mary, 
William A., Grant, and Philip. 

William A. Fare (father) was a pros- 
perous farmer in Hunterdon county until 
1877, when he entered the insurance 
business with his son, the subject, and 



remained with him until his death, in 
1891. He was active in politics on the 
democratic side during early life, and was 
a devoted adherent and elder of the 
Reformed church. His children w^ere 
A. B., the subject; Anna, boi'n 1850 
J. W., born 1852; Peter, born 1854 
Louis, born 1856 ; Sarah, born 1859 
Mary, born 1862 ; Ellen, born 1866, and 
Emma. 

A. B. Fare was educated in the com- 
mon schools of Sunnyside, in Hunterdon 
county, and spent his bo34iood on his 
father's farm at that place. In July, 
1873, he entered the sewing-machine 
business at Easton, Pa., and in Decem- 
ber, 1874, became agent at that place for 
the Mutual Benefit Life Lisurance Co., 
of Newark, New Jersey, and the Girard 
Fire Insui-ance Co., of Philadelphia. 
He came to Somerville in January, 1894, 
where he has since been stationed as 
special agent of the Mutual Benefit Life 
Insurance Co. of Newark, having charge 
of the Trenton district. His territory 
covers a large portion of West Jersey. 

Mr. Fare is a democrat in politics, and 
a member of the Presbyterian church. 
He is an active christian, and was for ten 
years leader of the choir at Annandale, 
New Jersey. On Sept. 17, 1873, he was 
married to Miss Amelia Stryker, and 
they have had five children : Edgar, born 
May, 1878; William S., born March, 
1882; Edith, born Sept., 1875, deceased 
in 1877; William E., born Aug., 1876, 
deceased in 1877; Lottie E., born March, 
1880, deceased in infancy. 



"p\R. JOHN G. WILSON, the subject of 
-*-^ this sketch, was born at Bridgeton, 
Cumberland county. New Jersey, on Oct. 
10, 1852. His father was the Eev. 
Charles E. Wilson, a well-known Bap- 



816 



Biographical Sketches. 



tist clergyman, for many years pastor 
of the church at Hohndel, Monmouth 
countj^, New Jersey, where lie was lo- 
cated after leaving his Bridgeton charge. 

The Wilsons are an old Jersey family 
of Scotch-Irish origin, whose ancestors 
settled in Hunterdon county on coming 
to America. 

Dr. Wilson received his academic pre- 
paration at Peddie Institute. From there 
he went to the Suflfield Scientific and 
Literary Institute in Connecticut, and 
after graduation, spent two years in 
travel and the study of medicine. He 
then entered the University of Pennsyl- 
vania, and graduated with the degree of 
M. D. in 1876, soon afterwai'd settling at 
Perth Amboy, where he has since re- 
mained, building up an extensive prac- 
tice, and becoming well known through- 
out the county and state, both as an able 
physician and skilled surgeon. He is a 
member of the County, State and Ameri- 
can Medical Associations. For many 
years he has been surgeon of the Lehigh 
Valley railroad and physician of the port 
of Perth Amboy. 

Dr. Wilson is unmarried. He devotes 
himself unremittingly to the duties of 
his profession, recreating himself only 
when rest becomes absolutely necessary 
by ocean voyages and foreign travel. 
Although he has never taken a promi- 
nent part in politics, he is looked up to 
and respected as a citizen as well as a 
doctor, and his influence is always di- 
rected to all that advances the better 
interests of Perth Amboy. 



"OICHARD SHORTRIDGE, the proprie- 
-*-*' tor and manager of the Natatorium 
at New Brunswick, New Jersey, is the 
youngest son of John and Ellen (Wood) 



Shortridge, and is himself a native of 
England, being boi'n there on July 6, 
1863. He is descended from John Short- 
ridge, one of the first contractors to en- 
gage in the construction of railroads in 
England, and who gained no inconsider- 
able fame from his extensive enterprises 
in that line of business. He was a man 
of great energy and strong character, and 
these characteristic traits have been pre- 
eminently marked in all his descendants. 
He was a devout and exemplary member 
of the Presbyterian chui'ch, and a man 
greatly esteemed in all social and busi- 
ness circles. He was the father of five 
children : John, Jr., William, Sarah, El- 
len, and Jeanie. 

John Shortridge, Jr., the father of the 
subject, was educated for the English 
army, but did not accept his appointment 
to the service, preferring the life of an 
active business man. He engaged in- 
stead in the manufacture of firearms of 
every description, and in this business he 
continued for many years and with 
marked success. He was a member of 
the Presljyterian church, and was highly 
esteemed in social and business circles. 
He died in 1876, leaving the following 
children : John, who is an artist, now 
residing in Italy ; Thomas, a physician ; 
Herbert, a physician ; Ellen, married to 
John Coad ; Anna D., and Richard. 

Mr. Shortridge was educated for the 
navy cadetship, and subsequently spent 
three years in that service. He next en- 
tered the merchant marine service, and 
for some time was employed on a steamer 
engaged in the Montreal trade. Later 
he went to Calcutta, and after spending 
six months there he engaged in two vo}'- 
ages around Cape Horn. He also visited 
South Australia, where he remained for 
some time, but without finding a satisfac- 




it^'^^.^^^:^^^sUJLLj 



Biographical Sketches. 



819 



tory habitat for a permanent location. 
He finally returned to Ireland, where he 
spent the next five years, and while there 
he married Miss M. O'Shaughnessy, mem- 
ber of a noted old Irish family, and has 
two bright and interesting children, Rich- 
ard and Ellen. In May, 1895, he came 
to this country and located himself in 
New Brunswick. He engaged in exten- 
sive building operations from the very 
start, his first being the construction and 
erection of eleven neat and substantial 
brick dwelling-houses at New Brunswick. 
He next built the Natatorium of New 
Brunswick, of which he has full charge 
himself as manager and proprietor. It 
has a very fine pool of running water, 
and is fitted up with all essential con- 
veniences. 

Mr. Shortridge has a sunny and jovial 
nature, is kind-hearted and generous to a 
fault, yet ever mindful of the responsi- 
bilities resting upon himself as they do 
upon all men. He is an active and en- 
terprising man, and one of New Bruns- 
wick's most popular business men. 



TTENRY AUGUSTUS HULL, senior 
-*—'- partner in the firm of Hull & Ire- 
dell, of New Brunswick, New Jersey, is 
the oldest practicing dentist in Middle- 
sex county ; he was born at Columbia, 
Pa., Oct. 19, 1831, and is the eldest of 
the four bo3's born to Aaron B. and Electa 
(Love) Hull. He was married to Miss 
Catharine S. Merrell, daughter of R. S. 
and Jane Wilson Merrell, of Millstone, 
New Jersey, on Nov. 4, 1868 ; four chil- 
dren, all boys, were born to them, none 
of whom are living. Mrs. Hull passed 
away May 31, 1893, and an adopted 
daughter. Miss Mary S. Williamson Hull, 
presides over the well-appointed home on 
Bayard street. 



Dr. Hull traces his genealogy iii direct 
line back to George Hull, the ancestor 
of the Hulls of Fairfield county. Conn., 
who sailed from Plymouth on the ship 
" Mary and John," and arrived May 30, 
1630, at a place on Nantasket, afterward 
called "Hull," in honor of his brother 
Joseph. They located at Mattapan, 
Mass., and named their plantation " Dor- 
chester." These first comers, chiefly from 
Somerset, Devon, and Dorset, were many 
of them persons of note and figure, and 
Mr. Hull, the progenitor of the American 
branch of the family, was dignified then 
and always after with the title of mister 
or master, a title of honor in those days. 
George Hull was deputy from Dorchester 
to the first general court held in Boston, 
1634, the most notable body ever assem- 
bled among the founders of New Eng- 
land. In 1636 he removed his family 
and immediate followers to the Connecti- 
cut valley, and founded the town of 
" Windsor," which he represented at the 
first general court assembled at Hartford, 
May 1, 1637, and which he continued to 
represent until 1646, when he removed 
to Fairfield, where he died in 1659, aged 
about seventy years. He was a warm 
personal friend of Governor Roger Lud- 
low, and as a legislator and magistrate 
was instrumental in establishing two of 
the free and enlightened commonwealths 
of New England. Mr. Trumbull, histo- 
rian of Connecticut, groups him with 
those whose names are worthy of per- 
petuation. 

Truly the subject of this sketch is 
justified in being proud of his ancestry. 
His paternal great-grandfather was Jede- 
diah Hull, whose name appears promi- 
nently in the military record of the in- 
vasion of Canada, by General Wooster, 
in 1758, and during the Revolution. 



820 



Biographical Sketches. 



Bradley Hull, his grandfather, lived 
quietly as a hospitable landed former at 
Reading, Fairfield county, where Aaron 
Bradley Hull, father of Dr. Hull, was 
born in 1806. Aaron Bradley Hull 
married Electa Love, daughter of Robert 
Love, a descendant of one of the oldest 
families of Rhode Island, and who was 
one of the pioneer settlers of central 
New York, having established the town 
of Bridgewater, near Utica. He first 
engaged in the dry-goods business in 
Columbia, Pa., and subsequently moved 
to Danbury, Conn., where he continued 
in the mercantile business until 1862, 
when he retired, and made his x'esidence 
at Stratford ; his wife. Electa, died there 
in 1869, while his years were lengthened 
until 1887. 

At the early age of thirteen years 
Henry A. Hull left school to clerk in his 
father's store, and at the age of eighteen, 
becoming interested in the subject of 
dentistry, he placed himself under the 
instructions of that able practitioner, Dr. 
James T. Stratton, of New York city. 
In the early part of 1852 Dr. Hull en- 
gaged as an assistant with Dr. A. D. 
Newall, of New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
at that time one of the most skillful and 
proficient dentists in the state. Two 
years later he opened an oflice in Rail- 
way, New Jersey, and practiced his pro- 
fession there for five years, or until the 
beginning of the war. 

When the war-cloud threatened the 
perpetuity of his country, the martial 
spirit of his New England ancestors 
predominated, Dr. Hull closed his dental 
office and enlisted in the Eleventh Con- 
necticut volunteer.s; being mustered into 
service Oct. 3, 1861, for three years. He 
was 251'omoted corporal of Company I, 
and was subsequently transferred to 



Company D as first sergeant. His regi- 
ment was assigned to the Burnside expe- 
dition to Newberne, N. C, afterwards 
becoming a part of the Third division of 
the famous Ninth army corps, which 
was formed at Newport News. 

Sergeant Hull's business acumen and 
executive ability being recognized bj^ his 
superiors, he was ordered on detail ser- 
vice as head clerk of the commissary 
department, at Fort Magruder, Williams- 
burg, Va., and as clerk in the adjutant 
general's office, of the Twenty-fouth army 
corps, at Richmond, and at the disband- 
ing of the twenty-fourth army corps he 
was detailed for duty in the office of 
chief commissary of musters for the de- 
partment of Virginia. After serving two 
years of the first term he re-enlisted for 
a further term of three j'ears, and 
was mustered out of service Dec. 21, 

1865. Dr. Hull is now a member of 
Kearney-Janeway Post, No. 15, G. A. R., 
of New Brunswick, New Jerse3^ 

Returning from the war in March, 

1866, he again associated himself with 
Drs. A. D. Newall and E. W. Robbins, 
who then occupied the offices over the 
National Bank of New Jersey, which are 
now occupied by Drs. Hull and Iredell. 
Dr. Newall retiring, and Dr. Robbins 
soon thereafter dying. Dr. Hull asso- 
ciated with him Dr. James G. Palmer, 
and continued the business under the 
firm name of Hull & Palmer until 1888, 
when Dr. Harvej^ Iredell having pur- 
chased Dr. Palmer's interest, the firm 
name was changed to Hull & Iredell, as 
now continued. 

Dr. Hull is a past president of the 
New Jersey State Dental Society; an 
active member in the Northern New Jer- 
sey Dental Society, and also a member 
of the American Academy of Dental 



Biographical Sketches. 



821 



Surgery. The firm of Hull & Iredell do 
a large and lucrative business, having for 
their patrons the best citizens of New 
Brunswick and Middlesex county. 

Dr. Hull is a man of acknowledged 
business ability, and is interested in many 
important enterprises in his city. He is 
one of the managers of the New Bruns- 
wick Savings Institution ; president of 
the Fourth Excelsior Building and Loan 
Association, and a director in the Second 
Merchants' Building and Loan Associa- 
tion. In politics he is a republican, and 
takes an active part in local affairs, hav- 
ing represented the people of the Fourth 
ward as alderman for two years, and 
served as a member of the board of edu- 
cation for a like term. Being of a genial, 
sunny disposition, he values highly the 
social relations of life, and is an active 
member of the several masonic bodies 
from entered apprentice through lodge, 
chapter, council, commandery K. T., and 
consistory to the 32d degree, not excepts 
ing the mystifying " Nobles of the Mys- 
tic Shrine ; " Dr. Hull being a member 
of Mecca Temple, of New York city. 
He is a past high priest in his chapter, 
and a past eminent commander in his 
commandery, and while he is honored 
and respected by all who know him, those 
who know him best honor him most. 



TSAAC S. HARNED, justice of the peace 
-*- of Perth Amboy, was born in that 
town April 30, 1818. He is a son of 
Abraham Harned. His paternal grand- 
father, Jonathan Harned, was born in 
Woodbridge township. New Jersey, and 
was a methodist minister. To his mar- 
ried life were born six children : Abra- 
ham, deceased; Nathan, deceased; Cor- 
nelius, deceased ; Jonathan and Ellis. 
Abraham Harned (father) received a 



common-school education. He then en- 
gaged in farming near Perth Amboy. 
He was a life-long democrat. His mar- 
riage was blessed with eight children, as 
follows : Isaac S., Lewis M., deceased ; 
Nancy, married to Joseph Palmer, and 
since deceased ; Elizabeth, deceased ; 
Mary Jane, married to Thomas Stacey, 
who has since died; Susan and Lydia, 
deceased; and Frank. 

Isaac S. Harned received his education 
at a country school, and then worked on 
a farm for five years. He then removed 
to New Brunswick and secured a position 
in a grocery store, where he remained 
four years. In 1837 he went to New 
York city, where he secured a position in 
the grocery business. In 1845 he en- 
gaged in the grocery business on his own 
account, and he has successfully con- 
ducted that business since, a period of 
thirty-one years. For twenty years 
Squire Harned has been a justice of the 
peace, and continues to hold that office, 
he being now the oldest justice in the city. 
For a time he was a member of the city 
council. He is a republican in politics, 
and has been a member of the Presby- 
terian church since 1837. Squire Har- 
ned is one of the most public-spirited 
men of Perth Amboy, and has taken for 
many years an especial interest in the 
matter of improving the streets of that 
town. 

He married Ann Acres, and to them 
have been born the following children : 
Thomas P., Isabella, married to William 
Zeprill; Abraham and Fremont. 



TTTILLIAM W. ANDERSON, a sash and 
^ ' blind manufacturer at Bound 
Brook, Somerset county, a represent- 
ative citizen of Somerville, New Jer- 
sey, and for many years a prominent 



822 



Biographical Sketches. 



contractor and builder at the latter place, 
is a son of Jacob and Mary (Brown) 
Anderson, and was born March 4, 1848, 
at Milford, New Jersey. The name is of 
Scotch origin. 

Jacob Anderson (father) was born at 
Perrinville, Monmouth county, and was 
a carpenter by trade. He was a Avell- 
known and successful contractor and 
builder at Milford and afterwards at New 
Sharon, Somerset county, until his death. 
During the last ten years of his life he 
resided upon a farm which he owned 
near New Sharon. He was a repulilican 
in politics, a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church at New Shai'on, and at 
one time a member of the I. 0. 0. F. His 
wife was Miss Mary Brown, and they 
had seven children : Carrie M., wife of 
John B. Brown, deceased, a farmer at 
New Windsor, New Jersey ; Abijah, a 
carpenter and builder at Allentown, New 
Jersey ; William W. ; George W., en- 
gaged in the lumber business at Hunter, 
N. Y., in the Catskill mountains ; Thomas 
B., a carpenter and builder at Crosswicks, 
Burlington county ; Lydia B., wife of J. 
B. Flock, a fiirmer of Mercer county ; 
Jacob, deceased. 

AVilliam W. Anderson received his ! 
education in the New Sharon public 
schools. He learned the carpenter trade 
with his brother, Abijah Anderson, at 
Allentown, New Jersey, and for twelve 
years he successfully followed this trade 
at Hamilton Square, Mercer county. In 
1887 he removed to Soinerville and 
gradually enlarged his business until he 
became one of the most prominent con- 
tractors and builders in that section of 
Somerset county. He retired in 1889, 
but shortly prior established a sash and 
blind factory at Bound Brook, which he 
has continued to operate successfully ever 



since. Mr. Anderson is a republican in 
politics, a member of the Baptist church 
at Somerville, and a member of the Royal 
Arcanum. In February, 1874, he was 
married to Miss Mary McCabe, a daugh- 
ter of John McCabe, a farmer of New- 
town, New Jersey, and they have had 
one child, Jennie M. Anderson. 



T EWIS D. EASTBURN, the popular 
-*-^ young druggist of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey, is the son of the late Robert 
Eastburn and Julia (Solomon) Eastburn, 
of New Brunswick, and a native of the 
same city, having been born on Nov. 7, 
1865. 

The late Robert Eastburn (father) was 
the founder of the establishment now 
presided over by the son. He had been 
for many j'ears one of New Brunswick's 
most reliable and enterprising merchants, 
and was held in the highest esteem by 
the entire communit}. His life and busi- 
ness career were marked with every char- 
acteristic of honorable and fair dealing, 
and his activity and good judgment were 
rewarded with a well-deserved success. 
After leaving school he entered a dry- 
goods establishment, where he spent 
several years in learning the business, 
and subsequentl}' he engaged in the same 
business upon his own account. He dis- 
posed of the dry-goods business and went 
into the drug business at New Bruns- 
wick, which he carried on until his death, 
in Jan., 1886. He had been in former 
years a democrat in politics, but during 
the later years of his life he supported 
the Republican party and its jirinciples. 
He was active in all church work, and a 
sincere and earnest christian, holding 
membership in the Presbj'terian church 
of New Brunswick, and of which he had 



Biographical Sketches. 



823 



been both a deacon and an elder. He 
had four children : Charles, Robert, Anna, 
and Lewis D. 

Lewis D. Eastburn was the youngest 
son of Robert Eastburn, and received his 
education in the public schools of New 
Brunswick. At an early age he entered 
his father's drug store as a clerk, where 
he remained constantly up to the time of 
his father's death, actively assisting in 
the management of the business. After 
the death of his father he bought the 
store from his mother, and since then has 
conducted it in his own interest. He is 
doing an excellent business. He is an 
ai'dent republican in politics, and is an 
active member of the Junior Order of 
United American Mechanics. He mar- 
ried Miss Anna Davis, a daughter of Mr. 
William Davis, and has four children : 
Helen, Robert, Lula, and Frederick. 



TpUGENE F. MORRELL, a prominent 
-*— ^ and active insurance man of Som- 
erville, and one of the best-known young 
business men in Somerset county, is the 
only living son of John and Sarah 
(Anten) Morrell, and was born, July 18, 
1858, at Somerville. His education was 
obtained in the public schools of his 
native town, and in a military school in 
Trenton, which he attended for three 
months. He then learned the carpen- 
ter's trade, and applied himself to it until 
he was sixteen years old. Mr. Morrell 
is the local representative of the Metro- 
politan Life Insurance Co. of New York 
at Somerville, handling all the affairs of 
that corporation in Somerset county. He 
is a republican, and an active worker in 
county affairs. He is an industrious 
member of the Sons of Temperance, and 
of the Jr. 0. U. A. M., of Somerville. 

43 



Mr. Morrell married Miss Mary A. C. 
Bellis, daughter of Jacob M. Bellis, by 
whom he has had three children : Ray- 
mond S., Eugene R., and John, de-- 
ceased. 

There is no more successful and enter- 
prising young business man in Somerset 
county than Mr. Morrell. During the 
twenty-two years that he has spent in in- 
surance work, he has proven himself en- 
ergetic and clear-headed. He is well- 
known and popular all through the 
county, and is one of the most influen- 
tial men of Somerville in religious, politi- 
cal and social matters. 

Elijah Morrell (great-grandfather) was 
a cabinet-maker during his entire life, a 
prominent member of the Dutch Re- 
formed church, and justice of the peace 
there for twenty years. His children 
were : Elizabeth ; Sarah, wife of George 
Proboice, and Nettie. 

John Morrell (grandfather) was a well- 
known wheelwright and undertaker all 
his life. He was an active republican, 
and a member of the Reformed church. 
His children w^ere : John, Jerry, and Wil- 
liam. 

John Morrell (father) was born at Som- 
erville, where he was a successful cabinet- 
maker. He was widely known and re- 
spected, was very well-informed on all 
the questions of the dsiy, and was active 
in both church and political work. He 
married Miss Sarah Anten, by whom he 
had four children : Thomas, Julia, and 
Rhoda E., all deceased ; and Eugene F. 



T3EV. JAMES T. SCHOCK, pastor of 
-*-^ the Reformed church, and presi- 
dent of the board of education of Key- 
port, Monmouth county. New Jersey, is 
a son of Edwin and Ann Katharine 



824 



Biographical Sketches. 



(Linderwrith) Schock, and was born April 
22, 1S51, at Centre Post Office, Salem 
county, New Jersey. 

. Tiie family name is of German origin 
and was primaril}- spelled Shoch. Later 
it was changed to Sclioch, which gave it 
more euphony to the German ear. A 
second change transformed it to Schock. 

The paternal grandfather, Henry 
Schock, acquired a common-school edu- 
cation, and subsequently learned the trade 
of a baker. He followed that calling all 
his life in the city of Philadelphia. In 
religion he was a member of the Lutheran 
church, and in politics an old-line whig. 
He was married to Sarah Castor. She 
died in 1852, at Frankford, Pa. They 
were the parents of thirteen children : 
Rebecca, born Dec. 3, 1789 ; Jacob, born 
April 14, 1791 ; Henry, born Oct. 20, 
1792; Hannah, born Nov. 20, 1794; 
Elizabeth, born Dec. 20, 1796 ; Isaac, 
born Dec. 25, 1798 ; Maria, born Oct. 8, 
1800; Jonathan, born Dec. 17, 1802; 
William, born Nov., 1804 ; David, born 
Oct. 24, 1806 ; Nicholas, born Feb. 23, 
1807, and Sarah and Edwin, twins, born 
Januar}^ 1, 1811. 

Edwin Schock was born at Frankford, 
Philadelphia. He received a common- 
school education in his early boyhood. 
He supplemented this by an extensive 
reading of Ijooks, of which he was very 
fond. He was a hard student, and prac- 
tically educated himself. He became a 
minister in the Methodist Episcopal 
church, at the age of twenty-eight yeai's, 
and officiated at various places in southern 
New Jerse}'. He was president of the 
conference of that church at the time of 
his death, July 3, 1854. In politics he 
was a Avhig-republican, and a member of 
the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
His widow is now living at CoUiugswood, 



Camden county. New Jersey, aged eighty- 
tlu'ee years. 

They had seven children : William, 
deceased ; Sarah E., David H., a clergy- 
man in Philadelphia ; Emma K., Melissa, 
deceased at the age of thirteen years; 
Mary, and Rev. James T. 

Rev. James T. Schock received his 
preparatory training at Pennington Semi- 
nary, New Jersey, after which he took a 
collegiate course at Wesleyan University. 
He was appointed April 1, 1876, princi- 
pal of the Bayard street public school. 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, where he 
remained until June 30, 1887. In that 
year he accepted a call to the pastorate 
of the Reformed church of Bound Brook, 
remaining in that charge for more than 
four years. On Sept. 1, 1891, he was 
transferred to Keyport, and became pas- 
tor of the Reformed church of that place. 

Rev. Schock is a republican in politics. 
He was elected president of the board of 
education of Keyport, in March, 1895, 
and he holds that important office at the 
pi'esent time. He is a member of the 
Ancient Order of United Woi'kmen. 

He was united in the bonds of mar- 
riage, June 28, 1876, with Lydia B. 
Reed, a daughter of William B. Reed. 
The result of this union was four chil- 
dren : Viola, deceased ; Beulah, Martha, 
and Emma, deceased in her sixth year. 

Rev. Schock takes a deep and an abid- 
ing interest in the work of his church 
and school, and he is much engrossed in 
the general educational affixirs of Key- 
port. 



TTTILLIAM H. KNAPP, a successful 
'^ grocer at Red Bank, Monmouth 
count\", New Jersey, where he resides, 
and partner in the enterprising firm of 
Knapp & West, general merchants at 



Biographical Sketches. 



825 



Sea Bright, in the same county and state, 
is a son of Jacob and Harriet Brown 
Knapp, and was born, Nov. 29, 1841, at 
Madison, Morris county. New Jersey. 

The family is of German origin, the 
Knapp immigrant having left the old 
country and settled at Bridgeport, Conn., 
in 1680. One of his eight sons was the 
great-grandsire of Mr. Knapp, and the 
father of Rufus Knapp, and subsequently 
settled in Stamford, Conn., where he 
died. 

Jacob Knapp, son of Rufus and father 
of William H., who heads this sketch, 
"was born at Stamford, in 1814, and died 
1882, at Madison, New Jersey, whither 
he emigrated when yet a young man. 
He was a successful and prosperous far- 
mer by occupation, and in addition to his 
other crops he raised large quantities of 
broom corn, which during the winter 
season he would manufacture into brooms. 
He was also a railroad builder. 

In politics he was an uncompromising 
whig, and later a republican ; bearing his 
share of active work for his party, but in- 
variably refusing public office. In spirit- 
ual matters he was a member of the 
Presbyterian church. His wife, Harriet i 
Brown, was born in 1812, at Madison, ' 
where she yet resides on the homestead 
farm. Their marriage resulted in the 
birth of three sons and three daughters : 
Charles A., William H., Benjamin F., 
Sarah E., deceased ; Mary L., and Su- 
san B. 

Willian H. Knapp attended the public 
schools at Madison, and later a select 
school in the same town. After leaving 
school he followed clerking, and later 
learned broom manufacturing with his 
father, and became a broom manufac- 
turer and dealer in broom-corn at New 
York city ; he spent a year as assistant 



supei'intendent of a company engaged in 
operations in the oil regions at Pitt Hole 
Creek ; was with his brother, Charles A., 
for two years in a tinware and stove 
business at Millburn, New Jersey ; re- 
sumed the manufacture of brooms on a 
large scale, at which he continued for six 
years, then sold out and engaged as a 
traveling salesman for Freeman Brothers. 
Mr. Knapp, during a portion of the period 
of his service with the New York Biscuit 
Company, was also connected with the 
John W. Castree Company, and subse- 
quently with James G. Powers & Co. 
In 1881 he removed to Red Bank, New 
Jersey, and in the following year associ- 
ated himself in partnership with E. A. 
West, of Sea Bright, New Jerse}-, under 
the firm name of Knapp & West, suc- 
ceeding, by purchase, to the general mer- 
chandise business of J. W. Sherman, in 
that town. Mr. Knapp formerly spent 
most of his time as traveling salesman 
for the firm. In 1891 he retired from 
the road, and thenceforward has devoted 
his time to managing the financial affairs 
of his firm, and looking after other inter- 
ests in Red Bank. The Sea Bright store, 
twice destroyed by fire, once in 1888, 
later on June 16, 1891, covers, in addi- 
tion to an area of its OAvn of 8625 square 
feet, the entire first floor of an adjoining 
building, all of which space is occupied 
by an enormous stock of general merchan- 
dise, methodically yet attractively' ar- 
ranged. The two upper stories of the 
commodious brick store-building have 
been converted into a series of handsome 
flats. Their annual sales aggregate $60,- 
000. Feb. 19, 1887, Mr. Knapp, in part- 
nership with S. H. Allen, opened a gro- 
cery business at Red Bank, under the 
name of Knapp & Allen. This firm re- 
mained intact until Aug. 21, of that year. 



826 



Biographical Sketches. 



when Mr. Knapp assumed control of the 
business. 

In politics he is a republican, in relig- 
ion a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, and in fraternity a member of 
Mystic Brotherhood Lodge, No. 21, Free 
and Accepted Masons. 

Mr. Knapp was united in marriage, 
Jan. 6, 1863, to Mary J. Hammond. 
This union has resulted in the birth of 
four children : Frank, H. E., engaged in 
a successful boot and shoe trade at Red 
Bank, New Jersey ; E. R., in his senior 
}ear at Stevens Institute ; and Mary A. 

In 1890 Mr. Knapp erected a beautiful 
home on Riverside avenue. Red Bank. 
It is after the Queen Anne style of ai'chi- 
tecture. 



Xp C. VAN DERWATER, the energetic 
-*- • and successful proprietor of the 
condensed milk manufactory, is one of 
tlie most promising young business men 
of Millstone and vicinity. He is the son 
of Stephen Van Derwatei', and was born 
in the state of New York, 186-3. The 
Van Derwaters are of Holland descent, 
and the name dates back to the remote 
events of New York's early settlement. 

Adolph Van Derwater (paternal grand- 
father) was a builder. To him and his 
estimable wife Avere born the following- 
children : Stephen ; second, unknown ; 
Phoebe, married Mr. C. Green ; and 
Katharine, wife of James Dome, but who 
died in 1834. 

Stephen Van Derwater (father) re- 
ceived a connnon-school education, and, 
upon leaving school, apprenticed himself 
to learn a trade, which he followed for 
some years. He then established a foun- 
dry, and later engaged in the milk busi- 
ness, and finally became the proprietor of 
a grocery store. He was one of the most 



active politicians of his day. His re- 
ligious ideas led him to connect himself 
with the Dutch Reformed church, of 
which he was a substantial member. 
Among other impoi'tant relations, he was 
an officer in the standing army. Stephen 
Van Derwater's family consisted of the 
following children : Jeane, Edwin (de- 
ceased), James, Stephen, William C, and 
our subject. The father passed away in 
August of 1893. 

F. C. Van Derwater (subject) for four 
years was engaged in the etching busi- 
ness, and afterwards engaged in dealing 
in horses for two years. Mr. Van Der- 
water grasped the opportunity of en- 
gaging in the manufacture of condensed 
milk, and, as above stated, is to-day lo- 
cated at Millstone, New Jersey, and op- 
erates one of the most successful plants 
of this kind in the state. Bj^ strict, 
detailed attention to the growing de- 
mands of his business, Mr. Van Derwater 
has placed his enterprise upon a fii-m 
basis, and in the front rank with his 
fellow-competitors. He has strong repub- 
lican pi'oclivities, and eagei'l}' shares the 
burden of the work and responsibility 
with his fellow party leaders. 

In June, 1887, F. C. Van Derwater 
married Edna E., a daughter of William 
A. Hyde, and this marriage has resulted 
in the birth of one daughter and two 
sons : Edna, born 1889 ; Stephen, born 
in 1891 ; and Garrett, born in 1893. 



TOHN H. LIPPINCOTT, a prominent 
^ farmer, and highly reputable citizen 
of Little Silvei', Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, is a son of Charles and Sarah 
(Worthley) Lippincott, and was born 
near his present place of abode, then 
known as Rumpsou, on Inauguration 
day, March 4, 1835. 





's^ /.J^kl^ 



1^£^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



829 



He is of English descent, and the fam- 
ily of which he is a member was founded 
in this country in pre-Revolutionary 
times. The family is an extensive one, 
and members of it may be found in 
nearly every state of the Union. A more 
complete genealogical record of the fam- 
ily will be found in the sketch of James 
E. Lippincott. 

George Lippincott (grandfather) was a 
farmer and hotel-keeper of Shrewsbury 
township, Monmouth county, and mar- 
ried Hulda Lyttle, who bore him seven 
children, three sons and four daughters : 
Henry, George, Charles, Patience, Eliza, 
Sarah, and Fannie, all of whom are de- 
ceased. 

Charles Lippincott (father) was also a 
native of Monmouth county, born in 
Shrewsbury township, in 1799, and died 
in that township in 1876, having passed 
his entire life near the scene of his birth. 
He was reared upon a farm, but in early 
life learned the carpenter trade, and did 
carpentering, contracting, and building 
for twenty years. He relinquished that 
trade, and resumed farming the remainder 
of his life. Li early life he was a staunch 
whig, being a great admirer of that 
prominent statesman, Henry Clay; but 
upon the organization of the present Re- 
publican party in 1856, he became iden- 
tified with its fortunes, voting for its 
first candidate, John C. Fremont. He 
married Sarah Worthley, who has since 
passed away, having given birth to 
three children that grew to maturity : 
Louisa, the wife of Timothy White • 
William C, and John H., all of Shrews- 
bury township. 

John H. Lippincott was born and reared 
in Shrewsbury township, and has always 
resided there, engaged in the tranquil 
and peaceful pursuits of husbandry. He, 



together with his brother, William C, 
owns and cultivates the old homestead, 
which comprises one hundred acres of 
valuable land, fertile, well-improved, and 
under a high state of cultivation. Mr. 
Lippincott has always been identified 
with the Republican party. He has been 
closely identified with the Episcopal 
church for more than a quarter of a cen- 
tury. He was largely instrumental in 
having a new church erected in Little 
Silver, which is located upon his prop- 
erty. During his long and continued 
service in connection with the Episcopal 
church, he has filled every office in that 
organization, and is the present treasurer. 
He usually rej)resents the church in its 
annual conventions, and his has ever 
been the home of the clergy, irrespective 
of church or creed. In 1867 he married 
Deborah C. Parker, a daughter of Cap- 
tain Henry B. Parker. They are the 
parents of three children : Lucy, Louisa, 
and Harry. 

TAMES H. SEXTON, a leading funeral 
^ director in Monmouth county, at 
Asbury Park, New Jersey, is also one of 
the most enterprising and progressive 
citizens of the state. He is a son of 
Michael and Frances (Todd) Sexton, and 
was born Feb. 15, 1847, near Manas- 
quan, Monmouth county. The history 
of the life and success of James H. Sex- 
ton from schoolboy to the prominent posi- 
tion he occupies as a citizen, presents a 
notable example and proof of the possi- 
bilities open to industry, ability and in- 
tegrity such as have been displayed in all 
of Mr. Sexton's varied relations. He re- 
ceived his educational training in the 
common schools of Wall township, after 
which he prepared under private tutors 
to enter upon a theological course at 



830 



Biographical Sketches. 



Pennington Seminary, but owing to seri- ! 
ous throat trouljle which he contracted 
he was obliged to abandon the pursuit of 
this earl}' but noble ambition. He sub- 
sequently, in response to the solicitation 
of friends in his neighborhood, was in- 
duced to supply an urgent demand for an 
undertaker in that community. After [ 
serving a short time as an assistant in \ 
undertaking and the upholstery business 
he prepared himself for the regular prose- 
cution of that business by opening up 
rooms at Farmingdale, where he re- , 
niained for one and one-half years. From 
this initiative beginning he came to As- 
bury Park in 187.3, where he has built 
up one of the largest undertaking patron- 
ages in the state of New Jersey. He is 
the propiietor of two establishments at 
Asbury Park, and is interested with his 
brother, J. G., in the firm of Sexton 
Brothers in furniture and undertaking at 
Long Branch, where they have continued 
since 1888. Mr. Sexton, it will be ob- 
served, is almost entirely self-educated 
and trained by study and observation in 
the conduct of his business, which has 
modernly grown to the dignity of a pro- 
fession. His superior knowledge and 
skill and mastery of his profession are am- 
ply attested in his financial success and 
the name he has established for himself. 
He is extensively interested in various 
other business enterprises. He was one 
of the projectors and founders of the 
Glenwood Cemetei'y Company at Long 
Branch, and is at present its vice-presi- 
dent. He was president of the Indus- 
trial Loan and Investment Co. of Tren- 
ton, at Asbury Park, and vice-president 
of the Eepublican Loan and Investment 
Co. He owns the old Sexton homestead 
farm near Spring Lake, New Jersey, be- 
sides valuable real-estate interests at As- 



bury Park, and is superintendent of Mt. 
Prospect Cemetery at that place. He is 
a valuable member of the Asbury Park 
board of trade, and has always been 
found in support of all movements of 
enterprise tending toward the betterment 
of the town. Politically he is a gold 
democrat, but never takes any active 
part in politics. Fraternally he is speci- 
ally prominent, being a member of Mecca 
Temple, Knights of the Mystic Shrine, at 
New York cit}' ; the Commandery at 
Asbury Park, and of the Blue Lodge and 
the R. A. M., both of Manasquan. He 
is a member of the Knights of the Golden 
Eagle, of Town City Council, and the Red 
Ci'oss. Religiously he has been specially 
active and useful, being a member of the 
ofhcial board of the First Methodist Epis- 
copal church in Asbury Park, superin- 
tendent of the Sunday-school for many 
years, at present an exhorter and is soon 
to be elevated to the highest function 
within the reach of laj'men, that of local 
preacher. In Sunday-school work he de- 
serves special credit as well as in musi- 
cal circles of both church and Sunda}'- 
school, having established a number of 
the latter in country districts which have 
led to the erection of churches. He is 
an earnest temperance worker and has 
personally secured three thousand faith- 
ful membei's to the pledge, having served 
six years as president of the Asbury 
Park Temperance Association. 

On Oct. 20, 1880, he was married to 
Lillie T., the on\y child of Elwood and 
Mary (Bush) Rodgers. Their children, 
three in number, all died in infancy. The 
.Sexton name, of which James H. Sexton 
is the worthy scion and highly creditable 
representative, is of sturdy German ori- 
I gin, the American progenitor having 
been James Sexton, who with his two 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



831 



brothers, John and Robert, came to this 
country from Germany about 1742 and 
located at New Durham, on the banks of 
the Hudson, in the state of New Jersey. 

William Sexton (grandfather) was a 
son of James Sexton, the immigrant 
ancestor, and was born at New Durham, 
New Jersey. He was engaged in farm- 
ing in Wall township, Monmouth county ; 
besides he had other business interests in 
New York city, residing in the former 
place all his life. Politically he was a 
whig and a republican, and served in the 
war of 1812. He married Catharine 
Fisher, and their children were : Sarah, 
Mary, William, Martha, Michael, John 
and Catharine. 

Michael Sexton (father) was born in 
Wall township ; received a common- 
school education, and was engaged in the 
mercantile business in New York up to 
his retirement, residing successively at 
New York, South Amboy, later at New 
Bedford, and since his retirement, in 
1883, he has resided at Spring Lake. He 
is a democrat and has served as coroner 
of Monmouth county several terms, as 
well as that of township committeeman. 
Religiously he is a local preacher, at the 
present time of the Methodist Protestant 
church at Spring Lake, and has always 
been a very zealous churchman. His 
wife, who is still living, bore him the fol- 
lowing children : David W., J. H., Mary, 
deceased, Catharine, John G., Lizzie, 
J. Hartshorne, deceased, Michael Lee, 
George B. M., Francis, Amelia, deceased, 
and Josephine L. 



T^ANIEL RICE, Je., who won a world- 
-*-^ wide reputation for his clever work 
as a circus clown, and for many years one 
of the most popular entertainers at these 
great public exhibitions, is a son of Dan- 



iel and Elizabeth Rice, and was born in 
New York city, Jan. 25, 1823. 

His paternal grandfather, Daniel, was 
born in Edinburgh, Scotland, and was in- 
structed in the common schools of that 
city. He came to the United States in 
1790, and located in New York citj^, 
where he was engaged in the general 
mercantile ti'ade all his life. He took 
an active interest in the affairs of the 
Presbyterian church. His two children 
were Daniel and Sarah (Mrs. William 
Miller). 

Daniel Rice (father) was born in New 
York city, and was a man of broad edu- 
cation, being a graduate of Union Col- 
lege. He was a lawyer by profession. 
He served in the war of 1812, and Avas 
always actively engaged in the work of 
the Democratic party. Li religious be- 
lief he was a presbyterian. He became 
the father of one child, Daniel, Jr. 

No man has sustained a wider reputa- 
tion in the amusement-loving world than 
the distinguished and world-famous prince 
of clowns, Daniel Rice, Jr., now retired, 
in the peaceful days of his old age, to 
review at leisure the varied and multi- 
plex scenes and experiences of his remark- 
able career. He was a pupil in the com- 
mon schools of New York city, and ended 
his school days with a two years' course 
at Kellogg's Seminary. He then became 
a jockey, and rode in the races for John 
McCoon, on Long Island, and later at 
Colt's Neck, New Jersey. 

In 1840 he began the great work of his 
life as a clown, at a salary of $15 per 
month. The wonderful adaptability of 
Mr. Rice for this profession soon pushed 
him up the ladder of fame, and his ser- 
vices rapidly grew more and more valu- 
able, and so great a public favorite was 
he that during the last nine years of his 



882 



Biographical Sketches. 



appearance in the ring he received a sal- 
ary of $1000 per week. 

He retired from public life in 1882, 
and now resides in Long Branch, New 
Jersey, where he is engaged in prepar- 
ing an autobiography of his most inter- 
esting life. 

Politically Mr. Rice was an old-line 
whig, but not an active party man. 

He was married three times ; first to 
Miss Anna Curren, daughter of Lloyd 
Curren, of Pittsburg, Pa., and to this 
union were Ijorn two children, Catherine 
and Elizabeth, deceased. His second wife 
was Miss Rebecca McDonald, a daughter 
of Henry McDonald, and to this mar- 
riage was born one daughter, Charlotte, 
deceased. 

His present wife was Mrs. Marcellus 
Robinson, daughter of Col. H. Jones, of 
the United States Survey. 



T ARS OKSEN, an enterprising builder 
-L^ and carpenter of Perth Amboy, is 
a native of Denmark, where he was born, 
March 25, 1854. His father was born in 
Denmark, and for many years was a 
letter-carrier and a member of the Danish 
police force. He was a member of the 
Lutheran church. To his marriage were 
born six children. 

Lars Oksen received a common-school 
education in his native country, and then 
learned the carpenter trade, which he 
followed until the year 1875, when he 
emigrated to this country and located at 
Perth Amboy. Here he entered into 
business on his own account, as carpenter 
and builder, in which he has since con- 
tinued, and in which he has made a sub- 
stantial success. Mr. Oksen is a republi- 
can in his political faith, an active chris- 
tian, a member of the Lutheran church, 
and a member of its board of trustees. 



THRED. LUPTON, Jr., the well-known 
-*- and enterprising proprietor of the 
stone and marble works at Matawan, 
New Jersey, is the son of Fred, and 
Caroline Lupton, and was born at Mata- 
wan, March 18, 1865. 

The paternal grandfather (Thomas 
Lupton) was born in London, England, 
and was a man of good education, and 
followed tailoring as the means of a live- 
lihood. 

To him and his estimable wife were 
born two sons : Thomas and Frederick, 
both of whom live in Matawan. 

Fred. Lupton (father) received a com- 
mon-school education at Manchester and 
Manasquan, New Jersey. He then se- 
cured employment in a stone-quarry, 
and a few years later had mastered the 
business. On going to Chicago he worked 
as a foreman in the same business until 
he returned to New Jersey and opened a 
small yard at Manasquan; later he opened 
a yard at Freehold, doing business there 
until 1856. Then he removed to Mata- 
wan, where he formed a partnership with 
his father, Thomas Lupton. Subsequently 
he purchased his father's interest in the 
enterprise, and conducted the business 
himself until 1886, when he sold the 
Freehold yard and located one in Key- 
port, New Jersey. From this time the 
business was carried on under the name 
of Lupton & Son, until the year 1890, 
when another son was admitted to the 
partnership and the name of Lupton & 
Sons established. Later in the same 
year the father retired from active busi- 
ness, which the sons now carry on. 

In politics he is an ardent i-epublican, 
and has held a number of local political 
positions. He is very active in support 
of the Presbyterian church, of which he 
is a member. 



Biographical Sketches. 



833 



Fred. Lupton, Sr., married Caroline W. 
McPsesiiy, this union resulting in the 
following children : James W., Robert, 
deceased; Harvey (deceased); Fred., Jr., 
Edwin S. (deceased), Edwin S., Carrie W. 
(Mrs. Henry D. Ely), of Honesdale ; Mag- 
gie May, wife of Capt. S. C. Thompson, of 
Spring Lake. 

Fred. Lupton, Jr. (subject), after being 
educated at Glenwood Institute, Mata- 
wan, entered the employ of his uncle, 
Thomas Lupton, and clerked in the lat- 
ter's hardware store for the space of one 
year. Then he secured a position as 
stock clerk in New York city, where he 
remained until he was seventeen years of 
age. He then represented a paper-house 
on the road for four months, after which 
he returned to his home in Matawan. Li 
1883 he proceeded to learn the stone and 
marble business, and has continued until 
at the present time he has four yards in 
operation : One in Orange county. New 
Jersey; one in KeyjDort, one in Mata- 
wan, one in Perth Amboy; and also has 
marble-works located at Quincy, Mass. 
Politically he is a republican. In religious 
doctrines Mr. Lupton is a presbyterian 
and fraternally is a member of the Jr. 0. 
U. A. M., Columbian Lodge, No. 77. 

On May 12, 1885, Mr. Lupton married 
Sadie E. Wilkins. This union has been 
blessed with three children : Hazel, Wal- 
lace, deceased, and Roland. 



TJRA J. MANDERVILLE, of the firm of 
-*- Manderville & Hall, enterprising and 
successful real-estate and insurance men, 
and also heavy brokers in building mate- 
rials at Perth Amboy, is a son of Ira 0. 
and Ellen K. (Welch) Manderville, and 
was born at Foundryville, Pa., April 29, 
18G5. 



Ira Manderville (grandfather) was a 
carpenter and later a farmer at Trucks- 
ville, Pa., for many years. He was a 
whig, and a member of the Baptist 
church. His children were : Samuel, 
Maria, Charles, Elijah, Ezra, Ira 0., 
Alonzo, and Delphine. 

Ira 0. Manderville (father) was born 
: on big father's farm at Trucksville, Pa., 
and attended the district school. He be- 
came road foi'eman for the Lackawanna 
and Bloomsburg railroad, and afterwards 
became assistant road master for the 
Lehigh and Luzerne railroad, which posi- 
tion he still fills. He resides at present 
in Hazleton, Pa. 

In addition to his ofiicial duties above 
referred to, Mr. Manderville deals exten- 
sively in real estate. In local affairs he 
is very active. His children are : Harry 
Ellsworth, and Ira J. 

Ira J. Manderville received his early 
instruction in the public schools and 
graduated from the Hazleton high school 
with the class of 1880. After leaving 
school he became a ticket and freight 
agent for the Lehigh Valley railroad, and 
also learned telegraphy. He then ac- 
cepted a position as coal shipper for Par- 
dee Sons & Co., of Mt. Pleasant, Pa., and 
remained with them for three and one- 
half years, when he entered a partner- 
ship with his brother. This firm, known 
as H. E. Manderville & Co., were engaged 
in the manufacture of sheet metal, wire, 
and jobbers of grocery sundi-ies. He was 
associated with his brother at Hazleton 
for three years, and then established him- 
self in the same business at Berwick, Pa., 
but two years later returned to Hazleton 
and resumed his relations with his for- 
mer partner. 

Some time later Mr. Manderville again 
entered the employ of Pardee Sons & 



834 



Biographical Sketches. 



Co., as paymaster and bookkeeper, and 
one and one-half years later removed to 
Perth Ambo}^ to become chief clerk and 
bookkeeper for the H. C. Pardee works. 
After one year he was made manager, 
which position he held until June 1, 
1895, when he resigned to engage in the 
real-estate, insurance, and building mate- 
rial business. He at once formed a part- 
nership with Conrad F. Hall, and under 
the stj'le of Manderville & Hall, they have 
established an eminently successful busi- 
ness. 

In politics Mr. Manderville is an active 
republican, and at present is a member 
of the board of aldermen of Perth Am- 
boy. 

He is a presbyterian in religious faith, 
and fraternally is a member of the Rari- 
tan Lodge, No. 63, F. and A. M., the 
Roj'al Arcanum, Knights Templar, and 
Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. 

On June 14, 1888, Ira J. Manderville 
married Miss Ida Leckie, daughter of 
Dr. J. W. Leckie, of Hazleton, Pa., and 
this happy union has been blessed by the 
birth of two boys : Ira Leckie, and John 
Leckie. 

Mr. Manderville is a man of rare busi- 
ness qualifications and is highly esteemed 
and respected. 



TOHN P. FL.INAGAN, an enterprising 
^ and successful merchant of New 
Brunswick, is of Irish parentage and 
birth, he having been born in the town 
of Dover, Ireland, in 1845. He is a 
son of Martin and Mary (Kavanagh) 
Flanagan. 

John P. Flanagan received the bene- 
fits of a common-school education at his 
native place, and came to the United 
States in 1856 and located in New York 



city. Here he obtained the position of 
bookkeeper, and remained there for sev- 
eral years. In July, 1861, he enlisted in 
the army, much against the wishes of his 
mother, who had emigrated to this coun- 
try with him. On his discharge from 
the army he settled in New Brunswick, 
and engaged in the grocery business. 
He has occupied the same location for 
thirty-four yeai's, and has built up a large 
and successful business. Mr. Flanagan 
is an active politician, an earnest worker 
for the Democratic part}', popular with 
his associates, and has been honored by 
them with the appointment to seveial 
offices. He was a member of the state 
board of prison inspectors for six 3'ears, 
from 1889 to 1894, inclusive, and was 
appointed its president by Governor 
Green. He has been also a member of 
the excise board for Middlesex county, 
and has filled a number of minor local 
offices. He is a member of St. Peter's 
Roman Catholic church. 

He was married to Mary Coine in 
1873, and their marriage has been blessed 
with eight children : John, Anna, James, 
Mary, deceased in infancy ; William, 
Eddie, Loretta and Harold. 



"TpLWOOD R. BROWN, D. D. S., gradu- 
-*-^ ate of the New York Dental Col- 
lege, and a successful practitioner of den- 
tistry at South River, New Jersey, is a 
son of Nelson P. and Maiy (Cottrell) 
Brown, born in Middlesex county, this 
state. 

Dr. Brown's family was founded by 
English emigrants, who settled in New 
Jersey in early colonial times. They 
were extensive land-owners, and founded 
a town, which, in their honor, was chris- 
tened Browntown. His mother is of 



Biographical Sketches. 



835 



French Huguenot stock, and her ances- 
tors were also among the early settlers 
of New Jersey. 

His father, Nelson P. Brown, attended 
the common schools in early life, and 
then was apprenticed to learn the trade 
of masonry. He became a proficient 
workman, and soon drifted into contract- 
ing, in which he was quite successful. 
He was one of the contractors on the 
Trenton penitentiary. In 1862 he en- 
listed in the Fourteenth regiment, New 
Jersey volunteers, and served until he 
was honorably discharged from the ser- 
vice of the United States. He was 
wounded three times. He married Mary 
Cottrell, and to them were born three chil- 
dren : Anna E., William C, deceased ; 
and Elwood R., the youngest of the 
family. 

Dr. Brown acquired his early mental 
training in the public schools, and the 
Freehold Academy. Leaving the acad- 
emy, he was employed on a farm with 
his maternal grandfather, William F. 
Cottrell, for a period of five years. In 
1876 he entered the office of Dr. S. W. 
Bogardus, of Williamsburg, N. Y., with 
whom he studied dentistry for three 
years. He afterwards entered the New 
York Dental College, from which institu- 
tion he was graduated in the class of '80. 
Soon after graduating he began to prac- 
tice. In 1888 he located at South River, 
his present place of residence. He is a 
consistent member of the Presbyterian 
church, and in politics he is a republican. 
He takes a lively interest in school af- 
fairs, and was elected a member of the 
board of school trustees in 1894, of which 
board he is now president. He is also a 
member of the Knights of Pythias, of 
which he is past chancellor ; also of In- 
dependent Order of Red Men. 



TpDWARD FARRY is the progressive 
-'-^ and enterprising owner and mana- 
ger of a large brick works at Matawan, 
New Jersey. He is a son of John H. 
and Delia (Haywood) Farry, and was 
born at Matawan, Feb. 11, 1868. 

His grandfather, John H., Jr.. was a 
native of New York city, N. Y. Upon 
reaching manhood he engaged in farming 
at New Jersey Falls, at which he remained 
until his death. His children were : John 
H., Sylvester, and Edward. 

John H. Farry was also born in New 
York city, Jan 22, 1830. He received a 
common-school education, and later lo- 
cated on a farm in New Jersey. But 
several years later he removed to Mata- 
wan, where he undertook the manage- 
ment of the Matawan Hotel, which he 
continued to operate for a period of 
twenty-eight years. 

During this time he was actively at 
work in the interests of the Democratic 
party, and became a prominent leader 
and office-holder in that district, having 
filled the office of supervisor so satisfac- 
torily that he was continued in the same 
position by his fellow-citizens for thirteen 
years. He also held many other local 
offices. 

In religious creed Mr. Farry was an 
Episcopalian. 

He married Miss Delia Haywood, and 
the following children were born to them : 
Ella (Mrs. Thos. E. Conover), Elinor B. 
(Mrs. H. H. Longstreet, of Matawan, 
New Jersey), Mary, Edward, John H., 
Jr., and G. N. 

Edward Farry, after some years in the 
public schools of Matawan, entered the 
Glenwood Institute of the same place, 
and continued there until seventeen years 
of age, when he went to Trenton and 
took a course at Steward & Hammond's 



836 



Biographical Sketches. 



Business College, from which he gradu- 
ated. During the ensuing six months 
he engaged in the real-estate business in 
New York city, and during the follow- 
ing year he worked as a clerk in one of 
the Central Railroad offices. He then 
returned to Matawan, and finally engaged 
in brick manufacturing. 

Mr. Farrj^ is a democrat, and has been 
very actively engaged in the affairs of 
his party since he has become a voter. 
He has held many local offices, and was 
a freeholder for four years. 

He is an attendant of the Presbyterian 
church of Matawan, and belongs to the 
Knights of Pythias and Knickerbocker 
Lodge, I. 0. d. F., No. 52. 



nPEXBROOK AXTOXIDES, founder and 
-'- senior member of the firm of An- 
tonides & Son, leading pharmacists at 
Manasquan, and a prominent citizen of 
that town, is a son of Abraham and 
Lydia (Tilton) Antonides, and was born 
May 14, 18-34, in Holmdel township, 
Monmouth county. The name is of 
Holland Dutch origin. His paternal 
grandfather, General Antonides, was a 
blacksmith in Holmdel township, and a 
well-known resident there. His children 
were : John, Archibald, Phoebe, Abra- 
ham, Eliza, and Deborah. Abraham 
Antonides (father) was born and educated 
near Colt's Neck, and was a blacksmith 
by trade. He was a prosperous and re- 
spected farmer of Middlesex township, 
Monmouth county, to the time of his 
death, in 1872. He was a member and 
elder of the Dutch Reformed church at 
Middletown, and an old-line whig and 
republican. He was married to Miss 
Lydia Tilton, by whom he had eleven 
children : Delia A., Charles, Elizabeth, 



Tenbrook, Ivry, Jane, Eleanor, Laura, 
William, Emma, and Stephen. 

Tenbrook Antonides was educated in 
the district schools of Holmdel township. 
In earl}- life he worked upon his father's 
farm, and after his marriage in 1856 
managed the farm for three 3ears. He 
purchased a farm near New Bedford in 
186a, which he operated until 1872, 
when he engaged in the hotel business at 
New York city for two years. He was 
subsequently a produce-dealer and butcher 
at South Amboy for a short time. He 
removed to Farmingdale, where he studied 
pharmacy, and where he opened a drug 
store in 1876. Li 1878 he removed to 
Manasquan and established his present 
drug business. His son, Joseph, was 
taken into partnership, and the present 
firm formed in 1888. Mr. x^ntonides is a 
democrat in politics, and a member of 
the Presbyterian church at Manasquan. 
He is a mason and a chapter officer, a 
member of the Red Men and K. of P. 
In 1856 he was married to Miss Rebecca 
Thompson, daughter of Joseph Thomp- 
son, a well-known farmer and distiller of 
Leedsville, by whom he has had two 
children : Melvina, wife of Dr. W. L. 
Kilworth, of Belmar, and Joseph, the 
junior member of the firm. 

Mr. Antonides is a successful and en- 
terprising business man, is popular, and 
enjoys a Avide patronage. He is an active 
supporter of his church, and is at the 
front of every religious or social move- 
ment for the well-being of the town. 

Joseph Antonides, son of the fore- 
going, and lus business partner, was born 
Dec. 11, 1864, near New Bedford, Wall 
town.ship. He was educated at Freehold 
Institute, where he took a business course 
in 1883. During 1884 he was engaged 
as a clerk in Brown's drug store at Madi- 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



837 



son, and the suminex' of 1885 he spent 
in a drug store at Asbury Park. He 
then took a pharmaceutical course, grad- 
uating in 1887. He immediately joined 
his father at Manasquan, and the present 
firm was founded in 1888. Mr. Anton- 
ides is a democrat in politics, and was 
town clerk of Manasquan during 1892 
and 1893. His religious affiliations are 
with the Presbj'terian church. He is a 
member of the Exempt Firemen, Hook 
and Ladder, No. 1., and is clerk of the 
exchequer of Castle No. 34', Knights of 
the Golden Eagle. He married Miss 
Annie M. Schofield, daughter of Joseph 
E. Schofield, a prominent lumberman of 
Madison. They have three children : 
Reba, Mina, and Lyle. 

Mr. Antonides, Jr., is well known and 
popular among the young and progressive 
element of Manasquan. 



JAMES H. QUINN, a wholesale and re- 
^ tail ice-dealer, of Long Branch, New 
Jersey, is a son of Michael and Julia 
Quinn, and was born at Long Branch, 
New Jersey, Nov.' 28, 1870. 

The Quinn family originated in Ire- 
land. 

Michael Quinn was born in County 
Limerick, Ireland. He came to America 
and finally located in Long Branch, where 
he engaged in the ice business, and had a 
very successful business career. He was 
also a grading contractor, and operated 
extensively in that line of work in Long 
Branch and vicinity. 

He was a democrat, but never an active 
party worker. In church matters Mr. 
Quinn was a strict member of the Ro- 
man Catholic church. His children 
were : James H., Mary Ellen, and 
Michael, Jr. 



James H. Quinn, subject of this sketch, 
was a pupil in the public schools of Long 
Branch, and attended the same until he 
attained the age of eighteen years. He 
then associated himself with his father, 
and together they did contract and grad- 
ing work. In 1893 Mr. Quinn turned 
his attention to the ice business, and has 
been very successful. 

In political doctrine and belief he is in 
line with the supporters of the Demo- 
cratic party, but is not an active worker. 
He is also a staunch member of the Catho- 
lic church of Long Branch. By his in- 
dustry and marked ability to meet the 
requirements of a business life Mr. Quinn 
promises to make for himself a successful 
and honorable career, and is regarded as 
one of the leading and energetic young 
workers in the commercial circles of his 
community. 

Tp M. TAYLOR, president of the F. M. 
-*- • Taylor Publishing Co., and vice- 
president of the Holly Wood Land Co., 
is a son of Frank M. and Josephine P. 
Taylor, and was born at Long Branch, 
New Jersey, Feb. 28, 1864. 

The Taylors are of Irish descent, and 
Hugh Taylor (paternal grandfather) was 
born in Ireland, and received his educa- 
tion in the city of Dublin. He came to 
America and settled at Catskill, N. Y. 
He was a democrat, and belonged to the 
Protestant Episcopal church. His chil- 
dren consisted of the following : Sarah, 
Mattie, John, deceased ; Frederick, Julia, 
and Frank M. 

Frank M. Taylor (father) was born at 
Catskill, N. Y., and having received a 
common-school education, he became a 
commission merchant, and finally re- 
moved to Long Branch, New Jersey, 
where he became superintendent of the 



838 



Biographical Sketches. 



Long Branch pier. In political opinion, 
Mr. Taylor was a conservative democrat. 
He always tried to fulfill his diitj^ as a 
voter, but never asjaired to any office. 
His children were : F. M., Walter, and 
Susan, deceased. Frank M. Taylor died 
in 1889. 

F. M. Taylor received a public-school 
education, and was graduated from the 
Long Branch high school in 1884. He 
then became a clerk in the Ocean House 
of Long Branch, and filled the same po- 
sition in a hotel at Catskill, N. Y., for 
four years. He then became editor of 
the Tri-WeeMy, of Long Branch, for two 
years. He afterwards became manager 
of the editorial department of the Asbury 
Park P)-ess, and in 1887 purchased the 
Long Branch Record, which paper he 
published himself until 1895, when the 
paper passed into the hands of the F. M. 
Taylor Publishing Co., of which he is 
president. Among other interests, Mr. 
Taj'lor is vice-president of the Holly 
Wood Land Co. Politicall}' he is an 
independent democrat. 

Mr. Taylor married Ella W. Morris, 
daughter of tlie late Jacob W. Morris, of 
Long Branch, in 1888. This union has 
been blessed by the birth of one daugh- 
ter — Elizabeth. 

He is an active, hard-working journal- 
ist, and devotes his best efforts and time \ 
to the interests of his paper, and to the 
good of the community and county in 
which he resides. 



Tn C. EICHARDSON, a well-known ' 
-^—^' hotel man at Branchport, Mon- 
mouth county, New Jerse}', is a son of 
James B. and Mar}^ (Wilcox) Richard- 
son, and was born, Oct. 10, 1837, at Mt. 
Holly, Burlington county, New Jersey, j 



The paternal grandfather was a native 
of Berks county. Pa., where he lived and 
died in unbroken occupation as a farmer, 
except during a period commencing June, 
1812, and ending Feb., 1815, for he, like 
Putnam, left his plow, and went forth to 
fight the red-coats, under Jackson. He 
was the father of six children : Benja- 
min, Samuel, James B., subject's father; 
Elizabeth, Rachael, and Priscilla. 

James B. Richardson had a fair educa- 
tion from the common schools, and began 
his active life as a shoemaker, but the 
greater portion of his existence was 
spent as a hotel-man in Burlington and 
Mercer counties. New Jersey, and in 
Bucks county. Pa. He lived in quiet re- 
tirement at Branchtown, New Jersey, 
with his son, from 1881 up to within two 
weeks of the date, Oct. 13, 1896, on 
which this sketch was written, when he 
died, in his eightj'-fourth jear. In poli- 
tics he was a democrat. He was a good 
man and true, and his influence will sur- 
vive him. The result of his marriage to 
Mary Wilcox was four children : E. C, 
Susan Elizal^eth, William, and Ambrose, 
the two latter deceased. The mother 
died in 1881, and lies bj- the side of her 
husband and her two sons in the ceme- 
tery at Bordentown, New Jerse}'. 

E. C. Richardson attended the public 
school at Mt. Holly. He sought and 
found emploj'ment in various hostelries, 
until he was twenty-six years of age. 
From 1863 to 1866 he managed a hotel 
in Philadelphia, and was subsequently in 
that business for himself at the following 
places : Hightstown, Freehold, and Red 
Bank. He removed to Branchport in 
1890, and since that time has been con- 
ducting his present hotel business. In 
politics he is a democrat of exceeding 
great activity, and at one time served 



Biographical Sketches. 



839 



ably and faithfully as a councilaian at 
Hightstown. Mr. Richardson was mar- 
ried to Sarah Alston, a daughter of Abram 
Alston, of Jobstown, Burlington county, 
New Jersey, and to their marriage were 
born three children : Georgiana, Benja- 
min K, and Thomas A. 



J CONRAD SMITH, postmaster at 
^ • Keyport, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, and manager of the Matawan 
and Keyport railroad, is a son of John 
and Elizabeth Stephens (Conover) Smith, 
and was born May 11, 1842, at Holmdel, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey. 

John Smith (father) was born in New 
Jersey. He learned the trade of a tailor, 
and he followed that occupation at 
Holmdel nearly all his life. He was also 
engaged in the hotel business. He died 
in 1846, and was survived by his widow 
until 1861. They were the parents of 
eight children : Hannah, married to Wm. 
Wykoff; EUzabeth, wife of H. Smith; 
Julia, Sidney, George, Holmes, Robert, 
and J. Conrad. 

J. Conrad Smith attended the public 
schools at Keyport. Mr. Smith was 
elected Sept. 8, 1887, superintendent and 
manager of the Matawan and Keyport 
Street Railway Co., a most suitable 
selection, owing to his experience. He 
has conducted the affairs of the road very 
successfully during the intervening nine 
years, and is regarded by his company as 
a valued and an efficient manager. 

He has been an active democratic politi- 
cian for many years, and he has filled 
nearly, if not all, the offices in his town- 
ship, besides having served as postmaster 
of Keyport since 1892. 

Mr. Smith was married March 14, 
1866, to May E. Horner, a daughter of 



Captain A. R. Horner. To this marriage 
have been born five children : Lizzie, 
Flora, Joseph B., George C, and Frank. 



TTTILLIAM H. THOMPSON, who is the 
' ^ present postmaster of Somerville, 
Somerset county, New Jersey, and a suc- 
cessful furniture dealer of that town, is a 
son of Jacob Thompson, and was born 
March 12, 1847, in Hunterdon county, 
this state. 

His grandfather, Abraham Thompson, 
was a farmer, and he pursued that call- 
ing during his entire life. 

Jacob Thompson (father) was for many 
years a farmer. He received a common- 
school education, but quitted his studies 
at an early age and went to work, assist- 
ing in the cultivation of his father's 
lands. About ten years prior to his 
death he opened a grocery store in Som- 
erville, which he conducted on a very 
profitable basis. He was a republican 
and a methodist, and held important posi- 
tions in the church of that denomination. 
He was the father of four children : An- 
drew (deceased), J. H., William H. (sub- 
ject), and Samuel, deceased. 

William H. Thompson attended the 
common schools ; he then became a clerk 
in a store, where he remained fourteen 
years. He then embarked in his present 
very successful furniture business, and 
forthwith laid the corner-stone of his 
present business. Mr. Thompson has 
been an active republican politician for 
many years. He was appointed post- 
master at Somerville, in 1892, by Presi- 
dent Harrison, and no better testimonial 
to his efficiency can be written than the 
fact of his retention in that office during 
the succeeding years of a democratic 
administration. He has made marked 



840 



Biographical Sketches. 



changes in the system and routine of his 
office, and the people of Somevville and 
vicinity now enjoy a better mail service 
than at any previous period. In religion 
Mr. Thompson is a member of the Re- 
formed church. He holds membership in 
two secret societies : Knights of Pythias 
and Knights of Honor. To his marriage 
union was born one child. 

Mr. Thompson is deservedly popular ', 
in the community in which he lives, and ' 
enjoys the confidence and respect of all 
who know him. He is affable and oblig- 
ing in his demeanor in all his social and 
business relations. 



GEORGE B. MINTON, a rising pharma- 
cist and druggist of Sea Bright, Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, is a son of 
James and Caroline (Bennett) Minton, 
and was born Nov. 18, 1857, at Red 
Bank, Monmouth count}'. New Jersey. 

The family is of English origin, and 
was founded in New Jersey by the greats 
grandsire of Mr. Minton some time pre- 
vious to the Revolutionary war, in which 
he and a brother took part. The brother 
was captured by the British at Nave- 
sink Highlands, and his fate was never 
known. 

John Minton was a native of Middle- 
town township, where he for many years 
was engaged at farming, but passed his 
later days at Red Bank, where he died 
in 1868, in successful occupation as an 
oysterman. In politics he was a whig, 
and in religion a member of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church. He married a 
Miss Smith, and reared a family of two 
daughters and three sons, one of whom 
was James, the subject's father. 

James Minton was born in Middletown 
township, New Jersej^, and when yet a 



child removed with his parents to Red 
Bank, where since that time he has been 
continuously engaged in business as an 
oysterman. In religion he is a member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church at 
Red Bank, and in politics a democrat. 
His wife, Cai'oline Bennett, bore him three 
children : Margaret, married to Abram 
Everett, of South Amboy, New Jersey ; 
George B., the subject, and Walter. 

George B. Minton was educated at the 
Sleeper Institute, Red Bank, and at the 
age of twenty years took a position as 
clerk in a drug-store owned by Charles 
Reckles. He applied himself diligently 
to the stud}' of the dispensatory, as well 
as the business of the dispensary, and 
three years later, in 1880, Mr. Minton 
passed an examination before the New 
Jersey state board of pharmacy. From 
January, 1881, to 1889 he was employed 
ill the drug business at Brooklyn, N. Y., 
subsequently i-emoving to Sea Bright 
and remaining as the valued assistant of 
Dr. Janes, a well-known pharmacist and 
druggist, until the autumn of 1893. The 
following spring Mr. Minton ojjened a 
drug-house of his own in Sea Bright, and 
asked the people of that town for a share 
of their patronage. He met with a gen- 
erous response, and his business, ener- 
getically conducted on careful, neat, and 
orderly lines, is increasing from day to 
day. Mr. Minton is a democrat of broad- 
gauged, liberal views ; a member of Sea- 
side Lodge, Knights of Pythias, and a 
member of the New Jersey State Pharma- 
ceutical Association. He is unmarried. 



WILLIAM PRICE, a noted hotel man 
at Pleasure Bay, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is a son of Capt. 
John and Mary Lane Price, and was 



Biographical Sketches. 



841 



born in 1827 at Ocean port, the same 
county. 

John Price (father) received a com- 
mon-school education, and after several 
years of probation as an ordinary sea- 
man he became captain of a vessel. He 
followed marine life until his death in 
1878. He was a whig in political mat- 
ters, and in fraternal association was an 
Odd Fellow and a Mason, his local affilia- 
tion in the latter order being with Wash- 
ington Lodge, located at Eaton town. 

William Price attended the public 
schools and later became a produce-dealer 
at Oceanport. He subsequently drifted 
to Pleasure Bay, where he located at a 
period when there were but two houses 
there and a sort of kitchen cabin. He 
occupied this cabin and established a 
modest restaurant, serving refreshments 
and light luncheons. After a time the 
place became an attraction to tourists, 
amongst the first of whom were such men 
as Dr. Kane, Eddie Stephens and Frank 
Leslie, and by degrees he enlarged his 
establishment until it developed into the 
present commodious and well-patronized 
summer hotel. Here Mr. Price dispenses 
a generous hospitality. 

Mr. Price is a noted sportsman and 
an expert in gun practice. In poli- 
tics he is a republican, and in secret 
fraternity he is a mason, enjoying the 
unique and rather unusual distinction of 
initiating his four sons into the mysteries 
of the craft. He is highly esteemed by 
his fraters, and by his neighbors. 

Mr. Price was married to Anna West, 
daughter of Elisha West, a former pro- 
prietor of the Newbold Hotel of Long 
Branch. To their marriage have been 
born five children : Lizzie M. Greene, 
Elisha W., John L., William C. and 
Thomas Frazer. 

44 



BH. WALCOTT, senior member of the 
• firm of B. H. Walcott & Co., of 
Red Bank, New Jersey, is a son of Ed- 
win W. and Sarah Frances (White) Wal- 
cott, and was born at Shrewsbury, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, Oct. 10, 
1869. 

Mr. Walcott is descended from a sturdy 
Holland-Dutch ancestry. His grand- 
father, Benjamin Walcott, was born near 
Eatontown, Monmouth county. New Jer- 
sey, but when a young man, in his 
twenties, settled upon a farm in Shrews- 
bury township, Monmouth county, this 
state, where he became one of the most 
prosperous and successful farmers of that 
county, owning several large and valu- 
able farms. He was a member of the 
Friends church, orthodox ; and an old- 
line whig and republican in politics. He 
died upon his farm April 24, 1894. He 
married Ma,rj Spinning, by whom he had 
ten children : Emeline, Elizabeth, Hen- 
rietta, Fannie, John, Charles W., David, 
Benjamin, Edward W., and George. 

Edward W. Walcott was born in 
Shrewsbury township, Monmouth county, 
and was reared upon his father's farm ; 
educated in the district schools, and fol- 
lowed farming with his father for some 
time, until he rented and moved upon a 
farm, which he cultivated until 1876, 
when he removed to Red Bank, New 
Jersey, and engaged in contracting and 
building, in which business he has been 
very successful. He is a republican and 
has served two terms as constable of 
Red Bank. His marriage with Sarah 
Frances White resulted in the birth of 
six children : B. H., Edwin, deceased ; 
Nevada, Ida, William, Jr., and Helen. 

B. H. Walcott attended the public 
schools and a private school at Eaton- 
town. He acquired a good business edu- 



«I2 



Biographical Sketches. 



cation, and upon leaving school entered 
the First National Bank of Red Bank, as 
bookkeeper, and retained that position 
for seven years. In 1892 he resij^ned to 
engage in business on his own account. 
He organized the firm of B. II. Walcott 
& Co., of Red Bank, wholesale and retail 
dealers in feed. He is a repuljlican in 
polities. Fraternally he is a member ol' 
the Kni<;lits of Pythias of Red Bank, 
and the Monmouth Boat Club. 



CHARLES E. cook: is a leading and 
successful member of the junior bar 
of Monmouth county, and one of the j 
most promising young lawyers of Asbury 
Park and vicinit}-. lie was born in New 
York city, March 16, 1869, and passed . 
his early life at that place and Montclair, 
New Jersey, attending the North Moore 
street school of New York city, and the 
public schools ol' Montclair, New Jersey, 
subsequently graduating from the As- 
\n\ry Park high school with the class ol' 
1885. He then instructed hhnself in 
stenography and typewriting, and became 
expert in the practice of the same, hav- 
ing previously been engaged as an office- 
boy by Mr. David Harvey, Jr. Mr. 
Cook Itecame associated with the firm o( 
J. (1. John.son & Co., publishers of law 
books, 23 Murray street, New York, and 
remained with the above house from 
1880 to 1890. Here he was successful as 
a .salesnuiu, and traveled extensively in 
the south and west. During his brief 
stay in Washington, D. C, wliih> traveling 
for tlic firm, in- attended law krtures at 
the Georgetown University. In the sum- 
mer of 1890, Mr. Cook entered the ofl^ce 
of Samuel Patter.son, Esq., counsellt)r-at- 
law, for three years, and was admitted to 
the New Jersey bar at the November 



term, 1893. Mr. Cook at once entered 
upon the general practice of his profes- 
sion at Asl)ury Park, and in the past 
three years has demonstrated his ability 
and power as a lawyer, and has rapidly 
risen to the front rank of the younger 
element of the Monmouth county bar. 
He makes a specialty of collections, set- 
tling. up of estates, etc. A democrat in 
politics, Mr. Cook has taken up the work 
of his party with a zeal and courage that 
will soon bring him into the van of 
those interested and intrusted with the 
control of local political and public 
affairs. He has frequently served as 
delegate to district and county conven- 
tions. 

On July 12, 1892, Mr. Cook was mar- 
ried to Miss Anna E. Chadwick, a daugh- 
ter of Capt. George Chadwick, a sea cap- 
tain of Point Pleasant, Ocean count}', 
and a granddaughter of Squire William 
L. Chadwick, a prominent citizen of 
Ocean county, and for many years em- 
ployed in the government service. Fra- 
ternally, Mr. Cook is an enthusiastic 
member of Monmouth Lodge, No. 107, 
Knights of Pythias, and is at present 
keeper of I'ecords and seal, and treasurer 
of his lodge. He is already enjoying 
both a lucrative practice and a bright 
prospect of a prosperous and eminently 
successful career. 



TT7ILLIAM II. PETERSON, a well- 
^^ known mason and contractor of 
South River, is a descendant of an old 
New Jersey I'amily. His paternal grand- 
father was Benjamin Peterson, who was 
a farmer ; in politics an active democrat, 
and took a great interest in the affairs of 
his party. 

Thomas Peterson (father) secux-ed a 




-^^t^,<§\ €aor^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



845 



common-school education, land became a 
boatman on a vessel plying on the Rari- 
tan river. Like his father he was a dem- 
ocrat, and was very active in politics. 
He was a member of the Methodist 
church, and an active christian. He was 
a steward and trustee of his church, and 
possessed the high regard of all his neigh- 
bors. He died Oct. 28, 1880. 

William H. Peterson was born at South 
River in 1838. He was sent to the 
public schools of his native town, and at 
a proper age commenced to work with 
his father as a boatman. At the end of 
five years he was apprenticed to learn 
the trade of stone-mason, which he has 
followed ever since, becoming a most suc- 
cessful contractor and builder. Mr. Peter- 
son is a republican. He has been very 
active in politics, and for seven years has 
held the position of commissioner of 
South River. He is connected with but 
one fraternal society, the Knights of 
Pythias. Mr. Peterson married Miss 
Mary F. Reid, and one child, Martha R., 
was born to them. This daughter mar- 
ried J. J. Kline. 

Mr. Peterson has for upwards of forty 
years been actively connected with the 
Methodist Episcopal church, and has 
been one of the officers of his church for 
many years. He is not only an active 
christian worker, but he is a good, con- 
scientious citizen, whose aim has always 
been to aid in the advancement of the 
community in which he lived. 



A BEAHAM H. BACH, a young and 
-^-^ an enterprising merchant of South 
Amboy, Middlesex county, New Jersey, 
is a son of Marcus and Rebekah (Lesen) 
Bach, and was born Sept. 18, 1873, in 
Brooklyn, N. Y. He descends from a 



long line of German Israelites, who have 
flourished as manufacturers and trades- 
men in Cologne, Rhenish province, Ger- 
many, since A. D. 1200. 

The paternal grandfather, Abraham 
Bach, was a native of Germany, and was 
born about the year 1752. After receiv- 
ing his education he entered into a gen- 
eral mercantile business. He closed out 
his business affairs in Germany and, in 
1866, at the remarkable age of about 
one hundred and fourteen years, came to 
America to reside with his sons, who had 
long preceded him hither. He had a 
lengthy, an honorable, and a successful 
business career. He died in 1872 at 
Brooklyn, N. Y. His wife died in 1881. 
They were the parents of seven chil- 
dren : Elias, Waltham, Marcus, Simon, 
Hermann, Carolina, and Beina. 

Marcus Bach was born at Cologne, 
Germany, in 1823. He entered his father's 
store as a clerk, remaining about six 
years. In 1845 he immigrated to this 
country, settled in Belleville, 111., and for 
five years conducted a very successful 
mercantile business. In 1853 he came 
east, located in Brooklyn, N. Y., and for 
a period of thirty-four years remained in 
business there. In 1887 he retired from 
business in favor of his second son, 
Isaac M. In politics he supports the 
party of Jackson and Jefferson, and in 
religion clings to the traditions of the 
elders and the doctrines of the Jewish 
synagogue. His wife, Rebekah, died in 
1879. The issue of their marriage was 
six children : Henry, Isaac M., Samuel, 
Abraham H., Sallie, married to Louis 
Hersh, and Josephine, the consort of 
Alexander Schiff". 

Abraham H. Bach, the youngest son, 
received his earlier education at the pub 
lie schools of Brooklyn, from which he 



846 



Biographical Sketches. 



was graduated in 1890. He subsequently 
graduated from the Long Island Business 
College. lie read law for eighteen months, 
but abandoned his aspirations to the bar 
and entered the employ of his brothers 
in the dr3-goods business for two years. 
and on March 2, 1890, removed to South 
Aniboy, where he opened up a business of 
his own, comprising dry goods, boots and 
shoes, millinery, and gentlemen's furnish- 
ings, lie conducts the largest store in 
South Ambo}-. He has thus far been 
successful in his enterprise. He is of the 
Jewish faith and persuasion, and is a 
trustee of the He))rew Orphan Asjlum 
of Brookl3n. Cycling is one of bis pas- 
times, whicl) is evidenced by his member- 
ship in the bicycle club of South Amboy. 
Mr. Bach was wedded April 5, 1896, to 
Sophia Ilerzog. 



WILLIAM BIRMINGHAM, a promi- 
nent grocer, as well as a leading 
citizen of South Ainbo}', New Jersey, is 
a son of Daniel and Honora (Maliat) 
Birmingiiam. and was born at Borden- 
town. in that state, Jan. 1, 185(J. 

His lather resided at Bordentown, New 
Jersey, the greater part of his life. He 
was a lireman on the Camden and Am- 
Ijoy railroad for a number of years, and 
subsequently served the Pennsylvania 
Railroad Co. in the .same capacity. He 
died ill 1891. He was a member of the 
Catholic church, and in political faith a 
democrat. His widow, Honora, died in 
1893, leaving three children : William, 
James, and Katharine. 

William Birmingham attended the com- 
mon schools at Bordentown until the year 
of his majority, when he came to South 
Amboy and took a position as clerk. In 
1875 he launched into his present gro- 



cery business for himselt", at South Am- 
boy. 

Mr. Birmingham is an active and zeal- 
ous democrat, and has held a numljer of 
local offices in South Amboy. He served 
as justice of the peace and commissioner of 
deeds. In 1881 he was elected township 
clerk, and subsequentlj^ became the clerk 
of the borough. He has been a trustee 
of the public schools of South Ambo}- 
since 1883, and was elected a member of 
its board of education. He is treasurer 
of the Star Building and Loan Associa- 
tion of South Amboj', and an agent in 
that town for the Trenton Building and 
Loan Investment Co. He is also a local 
agent for several fire insurance com- 
panies. 

Mr. Birmingham is a Roman Catholic, 
and a member of that church in South 
Amboy. He was married, Sept. 6, 1894, 
to Mary C. Coan ; they have one child : 
Mary. Mr. Birmingham is an active and 
useful man in his community, and is 
held in high esteem by his fellow-citizens. 



TAMES QUIRK, of the firm of Messrs. 
^ Quirk & Quirk, one of the leading 
and most successful plumbing establish- 
ments of the West End, Long Branch, 
New Jersey, is a son of Patrick and 
Annie (Connors) Quirk, and was born at 
Deal, Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
Oct. 14, 1857. 

Ireland is the ancestral home of the 
Quirk familj-, and James Quirk, paternal 
grandfather, was born in County Kings, 
where he resided all his life and pursued 
the calling of blacksmithing. 

Grandfather Quirk was a member of 
the Roman Catholic church, and took an 
active part in the afl'airs of bis congrega- 
tion. His ehildi-en were : William, 



Biographical Sketches. 



847 



James, Patrick, Mary (Mrs. William 
Ferns), Stephen and Thomas. 

James Quirk, Sr., was accidentally killed 
while shoeing a vicions horse. Grand- 
mother Quirk was a woman of remark- 
able vitality and vigor, and lived to the 
rare age of one hundred and seven years. 

Pati'ick Quirk was born in Kings 
county, Ireland. He came to the United 
States and located finally in Long Branch. 
He was an active democrat and an en- 
thusiastic working member of the Catho- 
lic church of Long Branch. He married 
Miss Annie Connors. Their family of 
children is as follows : Maria Ann, James, 
Mary Jane, Annie and Ella. 

The mother of Mr. Quirk died at Long 
Branch in Dec, 1863, and the father, 
July 15, 1882. 

James Quirk is another of that highly- 
esteemed class of men who have fought 
and gained the victory over adverse cir- 
cumstances, and have won place and 
position among their fellows. 

He was educated in the public schools 
of Long Branch, attending the same until 
only ten years of age, when he was 
obliged to face the stern realities of life 
and carve out his own career. He had 
several years' experience upon a farm 
after leaving school. After spending six 
months in the Ocean Hotel he learned 
the plumbing trade, which he followed 
for a period of twenty-three years, when 
he started in the same business on his 
own account, and has continued it ever 
since. 

He takes a deep interest in the politi- 
cal affairs of his district, but holds no of- 
fices. He is a democrat. The Catholic 
church of Long Branch finds in Mr. 
Quirk one of its strongest supporters and 
most diligent workers. He is fraternally 
connected with the Ancient Order of 



Hibernians and the Ancient Order of 
Foresters. 

On Sept. 1, 1879, Mr. James Quirk 
married Miss Catherine McElligott, a 
daughter of Mr. John and Catherine Mc- 
Elligott. This happy union has been 
blessed by the birth of four children : 
Catherine, Thomas, John and James. 



TOHN MULVEY, the well-known alder- 
^ man of the Sixth ward of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Thomas and Eleanor (Conley) Mulvey, 
and was born April 9, 1855, in that city. 
His paternal grandfather, James Mulvey, 
was an early settler in New Brunswick, 
and for many years a highly-esteemed 
citizen. He was a farmer by occupation, 
and thrifty and industrious by nature. 
He was a member of the Catholic church, 
and in politics was an affiliant of the 
Democratic party. His children were : 
Kose, Catharine, and Thomas. 

Thomas Mulvey was born in New 
Brunswick, and received his education in 
the parochial school of the parish of St. 
j Peter's. He learned the carpenter trade, 
, in which he engaged for the greater part 
I of his life. He was an ardent democrat 
in politics, and served as an alderman in 
New Brunswick for two terms. He was 
a highly respected member of St. Peter's 
Roman Catholic church, and greatly 
esteemed for his consistent and exemplary 
deportment, both as a citizen and a chris- 
tian. His children were : James, now a 
resident of New York city ; John, Thomas, 
since deceased ; and Frank, now a resi- 
dent of Bound Brook, New Jersey. 

Alderman John Mulvey attended the 
public schools of New Brunswick until 
he attained the age of sixteen years, 
when he engaged in the nursery busi- 



848 



Biographical Sketches. 



ness, and for five years devoted himself 
diligently to that occupation. Subse- 
i|uently he engaged in the wholesale 
liciuor trade. lie next started a retail 
rujuor store, of which he is still proprie- 
tor. He is an active democrat; was 
elected a member of the New Jersey as- 
sembly of 1887-88. In 1890 he was 
elected alderman of the Sixth ward of 
New Brunswick, which position he has 
held ever since, having been re-elected, 
and is now serving his third terra. He j 
is a member of St. Peter's church and ! 
one of its most active supporters. He 
was married to Miss Mary Gari'igan, and | 
to them have been born the following 
children : Kate, Mary, Thomas, who died 
in infancy ; John, Edward, and Frank. 



Mr. Furman married Miss Catherine 
Fisher, daughter of Peter Fisher, of the 
Say re & Fisher Brick Co., who was a 
pioneer brick manufacturer in this vicin- 
ity. He occupies a handsome residence 
in Sayreville, living there the year round. 

While not an active politician Mr. Fur- 
man has always been identified with the 
Democratic party, and served as free- 
holder from Saj-reville in 1885, 1886, 
and 1887. 



THDWIN FURMAN, son of Noah Fur- 
-'-^ man, deceased, is one of the active 
and especially successful business men of 
Sayreville. Born at South Amboy, Aug. 
15, 1857, he belongs to a family which 
for four generations has been a leading 
one in the business and .social life of his 
l)jrthplace, and one of the first to settle 
there. 

Upon leaving the Lawrenceville pre- 
paratory school, at South Amboy, he en- 
tered Princeton College, and took the 
classical course, graduating in the class 
of '79. He did not commence his busi- 
ness career until 1883, when he came to 
Sayreville, and assumed charge of his 
father's business establishment, long and 
favorablv known as the •• Old Worthing- 
ton Brick Works," manufacturing build- 
ing and sewer brick. These works are 
situiit»'d on the South Amboy road. The 
works have a capacity of twenty-five 
millions of bricks annually, and employ- 
one hundred and eighty operatives. 



'y HEODORE JOLINE, a leading grocer 
-*- and ex-postmaster of North Long 
Branch, Monmouth count}^ New Jersey, 
is a son of James and Edie B. Clane, 
and was born June 21, 1846, at Branch 
Port, New Jersey. 

His maternal grandfather was one of 
the original founders of Jersey Cit}^, 
where he held extensive tracts of land, 
the enhancement of which in value as the 
city grew made him a very wealthy man. 

The Joline family is of French origin. 
James Joline was born at Long Branch, 
New Jersey. He was a speculator and 
dealer in unimproved lands. He owned 
a large tract near Long Branch, where he 
resided. He was also largely engaged in 
the oyster business. In politics he was a 
democrat, and in religious faith a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
He was the fixther of the following chil- 
dren : John, William, James, Henry, Bar- 
tine, R., Harriet, Lydia, Jeanne, Anna, 
and Phoebe, deceased. 

James Joline (father) was born at 
Branch Port, Monmouth county, where 
he attended the public schools. He be- 
came engaged in the oyster trade. He 
also owned a small farm in Ocean town- 
ship, Monmouth county, which he culti- 
vated. Li political matters he was a 
democrat, but not an active worker for 



Biographical Sketches. 



849 



the party, and in devotional affairs he 
was a prominent member, class-leader, 
steward and trustee of the Methodist 
Episcopal church. He deceased March 
8, 1887, and is survived by his widow, 
now in her eighty-fifth year. They had 
born unto them five children : Daniel, 
Sarah, Jeanne, deceased ; Theodore, and 
another. 

Theodore Joline attended the public 
schools of Branch Port, and acquired the 
trade of masonry, which he followed ex- 
tensively for two decades, as a contractor 
and builder at Long Branch. He subse- 
quently became largely interested in the 
pound fishery business along the coast, 
with headquarters at Long Branch. In 
1884 he opened a grocery business at 
North Long Branch, which he conducted 
personally for several years, but at present 
has his son, George P. Joline, associated 
with him. Mr. Joline is a democi'at, a 
wide-awake and active politician. In 
1883 he was appointed a notary public 
for Monmouth county, an office he retains 
at present, and in 1890 he was elected 
justice of the peace of North Long 
Branch. He was appointed postmaster 
of the town during President Cleveland's 
first administration. 

Mr. Joline, when but a boy, aged fifteen, 
was among the first to respond to Presi- 
dent Lincoln's initial call for troops in 
1861. Enlisting for the nine months' 
service in Company P, Third New Jer- 
sey infantry, he was dispatched to the 
seat of war and, in the capacity of a 
drummer-boy, he led the van at the first 
battle of Bull Bun. In religion Mr. 
Joline is a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church at North Long Branch, 
and in his younger days he Avas a class- 
leader and a leader in the congregational 
singing. 



In fraternity he is a member of Sea 
View Lodge, No. 328, I. 0. 0. F. ; a 
member of Long Branch Encampment, 
No. 40, Daughters of Rebecca, and of 
J. B. Morris Post, No. 46, G. A. R., of 
Long Branch, and an active member of 
the fire company. 

Mr. Joline was united in matrimony, 
March 8, 1866, to Amelia Potter, a 
daughter of Jesse Potter, of North Long 
Branch, and to this union were born three 
children : George P., a grocer, to whom 
reference has been previously made ; Ida 
Bell, and Mattie, organist in the Meth- 
odist Episcopal church at North Long 
Bi-anch, supported by her brother, who 
leads the choir. 



/CHARLES V. SHROPSHIRE, of the 
^-^ firm of Shropshire & Fary, contrac- 
tors and builders of Sea Bright, New 
Jersey, is a son of James E. and Phoebe 
(Vannamon) Shropshire, and was born 
May 22, 1865, at Mauricetown, Cumber- 
land county, New Jersey. After attend- 
ing the common schools of that village 
he learned the carpenter trade under his 
father, and afterwards followed the same 
as a journeyman until 1894, when he be- 
came associated in the pi'esent firm of 
Shropshire & Fary, as successors to Hon. 
C. L. Walters, deceased. They are skill- 
ful artisans, good business men, and are 
enjoying prosperity in their business rela- 
tions. They are popular builders, and 
the many handsome residences erected 
at Sea Bright and elsewhere by them 
eminently attest the merits of their handi- 
work. Mr. Shropshire is a republican, 
and takes an active interest in the success 
of the party and its principles, but has 
never aspired to public office. He is a 
member of Navesink Tribe, No. 148, I. 



850 



Biographical Sketches. 



0. R. M., of Oceanic ; A.shlaiul Council, 
No. 2S, Junior 0. U. A. M., and a past 
councilor of that order. 

Robert Shropshire (grandfather) was a 
native and life-long resident of Ilester- 
ville, Monmouth comity, New Jersey, 
and a ineniber of one of the oldest families 
of South Jersey. He became a farmer, 
which occupation he followed all his life. 

James E. Shropshire (father) was born 
Aug. 14, 1828. lie learned the carpenter 
trade, which occupation, as a contractor 
and builder, he has pursued all his life. 
He has now practically' retired from active 
business, taking only an occasional con- 
tract. He is a republican in politics. 
He married Phoebe Vannamon, a daugh- 
ter of Joseph Vannamon, who was a 
native and life-hmg resident of Maurice- 
town. She was born June 7, 1834, and 
became the mother of five sons and two 
daughters : Millard, a carpenter at Mor- 
ristown ; Mosalene, Ijetty, the wife of A. 
L. Mills, at Morristown ; Charles V., 
Louis, Kinsly, and Carlton. 



TTENRY G. PARKER, cashier of the 
-*— *- National Bank of New Jersey, 
New Brunswick, Middlesex county, is 
a son of William and Anna (Griffith) 
Parker, and was born Sept. 2, 1866, in 
that city. The name is of English origin. 

The paternal grandfather, William 
Parker, was a native of England, where 
he was Iiorn. Tie died Dec. 26, 1876, at 
the age of forty-nine years and three 
months. 

William Parker (father of subject) 
was born at Nottingham. England. He 
received an academic education, and sub- 
sequently learned the manufacture of 
hosiery. After coming to this country 
he followed that occupation for a time in 



Connecticut, and later at New Bruns- 
wick. He was in the northern army 
during the civil war. 

In politics he was a republican, and in 
religion a member of Christ's Episcopal 
church at New Brunswick. He was mar- 
ried twice ; his first wife bore him one 
sou : George E. His second wife bore 
him two sons : Henrj' G. and William 
Frank, a graduate of Rutgers College, in 
the class of 1895, now associated with 
his stepfather, Alfred March, in knit- 
goods manufacturing, at New Bruns- 
wick, under the firm name of Alfred 
March & Co. 

Henry G. Parker (subject of this 
sketch) received his primaiy education 
in the public schools of his native city. 
He subsequently, in 1895, was graduated 
from the New Brunswick High school. 
After leaving school he was appointed to 
a clerkship in the Ninth National Bank 
of New York city, where he remained 
two years, and then occupied a similar 
position for about four years in the Mer- 
chants' National Bank, at 42 Wall street. 
In 1891 he was, by its directoi's, elected 
paying-teller of the National Bank of 
New Jersey, at New Brunswick, which 
he accepted. He was promoted to the 
position of cashier of that bank in 1894, 
which important office he still faithfully 
and satisfactorily fills. 

Mr. Parker is a republican in politics, 
and a member and vestryman of Christ's 
Episcopal church at New Brunswick. 
He is a director in three institutions at 
New Brunswick : the Mutual Fire Insur- 
ance Co., Security Building and Loan 
Association, and the Young Men's Chris- 
tian Association, of which latter he is 
also the secretary. He is a member and 
regent of Adelphis Council, No. 1015, 
Royal Arcanum. 



Biographical Sketches. 



851 



Mr. Parker, although a young man, is 
fully equal to the responsibilities of his 
position. His six years' experience in 
banks in New York city, worth more to 
any young man than a hundred treatises 
on finance, gave him enlarged views 
and ideas in financial matters, and the 
necessary force to utilize them to the best 
interests of his bank. 



"TOHN H. LOVE, the efficient principal 
^ of the public schools at Woodbridge, 
New Jersey, is of English birth, and was 
born at Hanley, Staffordshire, England, 
Dec. 7, 1868. He is a son of William 
S. and Mary A. (Brindley) Love. His 
paternal grandfather was a vei-y success- 
ful potter in England, and left an issue of 
three children : Louis, William S., and 
Bessie. 

William S. Love was educated at the 
common schools in England, and while 
yet a boy learned the pottery trade. He 
emigrated to the United States in 1885 
and located at Trenton, New Jersey, 
where he engaged in the pottery busi- 
ness, and in which he has been gratify- 
ingly successful. He is independent in 
politics. He is an active christian, and a 
member of Grace Episcopal church at 
Trenton. He is a member of the Order 
of Shepherds aiid Foresters, and of the 
Order of Ked Men. 

John H. Love was educated at the pub- 
lic schools of Hanley, England, and then 
served three years in the teachers' cen- 
tral training classes at Hanley. He then 
became a teacher for a time in the 
Wedgewood Listitute, of Budsen, after 
which he became a student at the Han- 
ley School of Art. For three years 
thereafter he was employed as mould- 
maker and modeler in a large earthen- 



ware manufactory at Hanley. In 1888 
Mr. Love came to the United States, and 
first located at Trenton, New Jersey. 
Shortly afterward he obtained a position 
as teacher in a public school near Salem, 
New Jersey, which he retained for one 
year, resigning it to accept the position 
of principal of public schools. Here he 
remained for two years, when he removed 
to Belmar, where he resided for three 
years. In 1895 he was elected principal 
of the public schools at Woodbridge by a 
unanimous vote of the trustees, and is 
now in charge of between four and five 
hundi^ed pupils and nine assistant teach- 
ers. 

Mr. Love is a member and vestryman 
of the Episcopal church at Woodbridge, 
and of the Order of Foresters, and is the 
leader of the Teachers' Professional Cir- 
cle of AVoodbridge township. In 1893 
he was married to Annie H. Newcomer, 
of Columbia, Pa., and to their marriage 
has been born one child — Verna Belmire. 

Mr. Love is very much devoted to his 
school work, and has proved himself a 
wise teacher and an able principal. He 
is eminently practical and thorough in 
his methods, and by his conscientious and 
faithful labor has earned the thorough 
respect and esteem of pupils and teachers, 
as well as of the citizens of Woodbridge. 



n^ I. BEDLE, a well-known business 
-*- • man (now retired) of Matawan, is 
the son of Joseph and Mary Bedle, and 
was born in New York city. May 27, 
1805. 

The Bedles come of good old English 
ancestry, and Thomas Bedle, paternal 
grandfather, first saw the light of day in 
Middletown township, Monmouth county. 
New Jersey. He was educated in the 



852 



Biographical Sketches. 



schools of liis native district, and then 
e8tal)li.shi'd a tanning and shoe business 
at Middletown, but hiter engaged in 



farming. 



He was an aggressive demo- 



crat, and an active member of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal cluHTh, in which he 
served as a tru.^ted and worthy official. 
He lived through the changing scenes of [ 
the American Revolution, and was a sol- 
dier in the Continental armies. The 
children born to him and his worthy wife 
were : Tliomas, Richard, Eliza, Joseph, 
Jan)es, Elizabeth, deceased ; Anna, Mar- 
tha, Catherine. , 

Joseph Bedle was a native of Middle- j 
town township, and, after having received 
a common-school education, learned the 
tanning and shoe business with his father. ! 
He followed this business for many years, 
and retired to his farm, where he resided 
for the rest of his life. In politics he 
was an enthusiastic and staunch demo- ] 
crat, and was an attendant of the Meth- 
odist church. His children were : T. I., 
E. B., Emma, and Maria, deceased. 

T. I. Bedle was first passed through 
the common schools of Middletown town- 
ship, and then entered the public schools 
of New York city. Having ended his 
preparation in the line of school work, 
he engaged in the boot and shoe business 
with his father, in New York city. Some 
years later he removed to Middletown 
Point, where he followed the same line 
of trade, and in 18.3.^ came to Matawan, • 
where he continued to deal in leather 
and shoes until 1880, when he retired. 
In his political affiliations Mr. Bedle ad- 
hered strictly and firmly to the princi- 
ples of the Democratic party. He was a 
justice of the peace for tliirty-five years, 
judge of the court for five years, and, in 
the course of a long and active political 
career, has held nearly all the township 



offices. In the matter of religious opin- 
ion and belief Mr. Bedle's views were in 
sympathy with the spirit and doctrines 
of the Baptist church, of which, for 
many years, he was a suljstantial and 
consistent member, and has l^een honored 
with many offices of trust. He is also a 
member of the I. 0. 0. F., of Matawan. 

In 1825 Mr. T. I. Bedle married a 
Miss Darsett, who became the mother of 
five children : Emma, wife of Benjamin 
Campbell ; Hon. Joseph, ex-goveruor of 
New Jersey, and now deceased ; Elihu, 
Henrietta, and Sarah, decea.sed. 



JOHN V. HUBBARD, a prominent 
^ livery-stable proprietor, and widely- 
known citizen of New Brunswick, was 
born January 7, 1857, at South Ambo}^, 
New Jersey, where he received his 
early education. In early years he 
became clerk in a grocery store, where 
he remained for three years. He then 
came to New Brunswick and engaged in 
the grocery business, which he followed 
until 1891. In the latter year Mr. Hub- 
bard entered ujdou his present livery 
business, which has been very prosperous. 
Mr. Hubbard is a republican in politics, 
and is a member of the I. 0. 0. F. and 
Jr. 0. U. A. M. of New Brunswick. His 
success in business has made him an in- 
Huential factor in local affiiirs, and he is 
respected as a man of earnest principles 
and strong convictions. He is energetic 
and progressive, and keeps fully abreast 
of the times. He is the father of four 
children : Edith, Lizzie, Camelia, and 
Warren. 

His father. V. Hubbard, received a 
common-school education, and was in the 
merchant-marine service all his life, being 
for many years captain of a vessel. He 



Biographical Sketches. 



853 



was a staunch republican, a member and 
trustee of the Second Presbyterian church, 
and a member of the I. 0. 0. F. His 
children are : Eliza, John V., and David E. 



/~\RVILL VAN WICKLE, D. D. S., a 
^-^ very successful dentist of Matawan, 
New Jersey, is the son of James Morgan 
and Elsie Van Wickle, and was born at 
Matawan, Sept. 29, 1855. 

The paternal grandfather, William Van 
Wickle, was a native of Canton, N. Y., 
and received a common-school educa- 
tion in the schools of the same place. In 
politics he was republican, while his relig- 
ious beliefs associated him with the Pres- 
byterian church. 

James Morgan Van Wickle had the 
advantages of a common-school educa- 
tion. He established himself upon a 
farm, and followed agricultural pursuits 
during the entire period of his active 
life. He was active in the political 
affairs of his district, and held a number 
of local offices as a return for his valu- 
able services to the Republican party, of 
which he was a staunch supporter. In 
religious doctrines and beliefs Mr. Van 
Wickle was a presbyterian. 

He married Miss Elsie Woolford, and 
their children are as follows : Alice M., 
wife of J. W. Johnson, carriage manu- 
facturer, of Long Branch ; Anna A., mar- 
ried H. R. Conovcr, farmer, of Malbury, 
New Jersey ; Ida Louise, now Mrs. Geo. 
B. Frisby, grain broker; Cathese (Mrs. 
Ben. G. Griggs) ; Laura D. E. Van 
Wickle, and Orvill. 

Orvill Van Wickle, having received 
his elementary instruction in the public 
schools of Matawan, pursued a higher 
course of study at the Glenwood Insti- 
tute of the same place. He then en- 



gaged in the gentlemen's furnishing goods 
business, at New Brunswick, New Jer- 
sey, where he remained for a period of 
seven years. Following this he went 
west, and clerked for Mr. Gossage, of Chi- 
cago, 111., for three years. 

Having returned to Matawan some 
time later, he was appointed postmaster 
of the same place under President Har- 
rison's administration. On the comple- 
tion of his term as postmaster Mr. Van 
Wickle attended the New York college 
of dentistry, and completed the course, 
graduating with the class of 1892. 

He settled down to practice in his na- 
tive town, and by skill and carefulness 
has built up a large practice. 

He is an active member of the Baptist 
church of Matawan, and is at the pres- 
ent time the president of its board of 
trustees. 



T3ICHARD H. EREICKSON, proprietor 
-*-*^ of the leading livery business of 
Freehold, New Jersey, is a son of John 
F. and Amanda (Youngs) Errickson, and 
was born in Freehold township, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, Sept. 21, 
1853. 

His paternal grandfather was John 
Errickson, who was a farmer and ope- 
rated a saw-mill in Freehold township. 
He was among the early residents of that 
township, and was a prosperous and well- 
to-do business man. 

John F. Errickson was born in Free- 
hold township. He was a carpenter and 
joiner by trade, but finally drifted into 
the livery business. In politics he is a 
staunch democrat. He married Amanda 
Youngs, and they became the parents of 
five children : Jesse C, J. Willis, Rich- 
ard H., Eliza, wife of Mr. Cotterall, and 
Alice. 



854 



Biographical Sketches. 



Richard H. Enickson received his 
mental training in tlie common schools, 
and on attaining liis majority became as- 
sociated with his lather in the livery 
business. When his fiither died he suc- 
ceeded to the business, which he has 
since conducted successfull}'. Frater- 
nally he is a member of the Royal Arca- 
num and the Ancient Order United 
American Mechanics. 

Mr. Eri'ickson married Nov., 1883, 
Miss Laura Hulsart. The progeny of 
this union is one daughter, Waneta Er- 
rickson. 



J 



.\MES H. LLOYD, a well-known and 
successful grading contractor of Long 
Branch, and who has an honorable rec- 
ord as a veteran of the late civil war, is a 
son of William and Hannah Lloyd, and 
was born at Long Branch, New Jersey, 
Feb. 10, 18^3. The Llo^d ancestry runs 
along the line of prominent old quaker 
families. 

William Lloyd was a native of the 
Quaker City of Pennsylvania (Philadel- 
phia), where he Avas born. He attended 
the public schools oi the above city, and 
upon reaching manhood became inter- 
ested in the hotel business. He first ope- 
rated the Allegheny House at Long 
Branch, and remained there five years. 
He then quit that line of business and 
located on a farm, and was enu-acred in 
agriculture near Long Branch for the en- 
suing ten years. He then removed to 
Hollywood, New Jersey, where he opened 
a boarding-house and operated that dur- 
ing the remainder of his life. 

Li political views Mr. Lloyd was an 
old-line whig. He wtis a member of the 
Mctiiodist E])iscopal clinrcli and also of 
the L O. 0. F. He was the father of 
eight children : Lydia (Mrs. James Wil- 



lenburg), Matthias, William, George, Jas. 
H., Theodore, Hannah (Mrs. Henry 
Steward), and Job. 

James H. Lloyd attended the Long 
Branch public schools until twelve years 
of age, and for some years w^orked at 
general employment, and later was en- 
gaged in the livery business at Long 
Branch. 

Mr. Lloyd has made an enviable i-ecord 
as a soldier in the great war of the re- 
bellion. He first enlisted at Trenton in 
1863, in the First New Jersey cavaliy. 
He was never off duty during his time of 
service and was engaged in many severe 
battles in the famous Virginia campaigns 
I'rom 1863 to 1865. At the battle of 
Harper's Farm, Virginia, April 6, 1865, 
he received a wound, but when his first 
term of service expired he re-enlisted and 
served in the same regiment to the close 
of the war, and was mustered out of ser- 
vice Aug. 22, 1865. 

After the war Mr. Lloyd returned to 
Long Branch, and for the past twenty 
years has been engaged in contracting 
and grading. He is an active member 
of the republican organization of this 
city, and also a member of Arrowsmith 
Post, No. 46, G. A. R., of Long Branch. 
By his marriage wath Miss Mary Ernest 
he has one son, Edward. 



YTTILLIAM GRIFFEN, Jr., proprietor 
* ' of tlie Ocean Bottling Works, of 
Asbury Park, New Jemey, is a son of 
William and Margaret Griffen, and was 
born in West Philadelphia, Jan. 1, 1862. 
William Griflen (father) was born and 
raised in Ireland, and came to the United 
States when quite a .young man. He 
.soon entered the employ of the Balti- 
more and Ohio Railroad Co., and en- 
gaged in the work of grading and con- 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



855 



tracting, which he followed continuously 
until 1875. In 1875, Mr. Griflfen located 
in Asbury Park, and took contracts for 
grading streets and general contract work, 
and also conducted a business as dray- 
man. He is now in charge of all grading 
and street cleaning for the borough of 
Asbury Park. He is active in local 
party affairs, and ardently sujDports the 
interests of the Democratic party. He 
is the father of five children : John, de- 
ceased ; William, Jr. ; James, Mrs. Jno. 
Daly, and Annie. 

William GrifFen, Jr., received his early 
education in the public schools of Phila- 
delphia, where he resided until thirteen 
years of age, after which he removed to 
Asbury Park, where he graduated from 
the borough high school. For two years 
he was associated with his father in con- 
tract work and the milk business, and in 
1891 he purchased the Ocean Township 
Bottling Works. This plant had been 
idle for five years, but was at once put 
into good condition, and, by his manage- 
ment, a large and successful business has 
been established along the New Jersey 
coast. He is district agent for the Tren- 
ton Brewing Co., of Trenton, New Jer- 
sey ; the Essex Brewing Co., and also the 
Pabst Brewing Co., of Milwaukee, Wis. 
Politically Mr. GrifFen is a democrat. In 
connection with other material interests, 
Mr. Griifen is associated with the local 
building and loan association of As- 
bury Park, and is the owner of a tract of 
real estate in West Park. In 1886 he 
was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. 
Kernan. 



nV/TRS. M. W. BUEKE, widow of the 
-^-^ late M. W. Burke, who was a 
dealer in meats at Perth Amboy for 
many years, is conducting a grocery busi- 



ness in that town, and her successful 
management of it is a source of gratifica- 
tion to her many friends. She is a daugh- 
ter of William and Jane Scandling, for- 
merly of Jersey City, but now residing in 
Perth Amboy. 

Her father originally learned the trade 
of a Aveaver, and he was engaged in that 
business for a time in Jersey City. He 
then learned the art of glass-blowing, and 
for about ten years followed that occu- 
pation. He also learned the trade of a 
mason, but he subsequently quitted that 
occupation and engaged in the coal busi- 
ness, which he followed for about fifteen 
years. He retired from business, and is 
living a quiet life in Pei'th Amboy. 

Mr. Scandling is a democrat and a 
catholic, and is the father of four chil- 
dren : Dennis, Martin, Mary, and Kath- 
arine. 

Mrs. Burke succeeded to the business 
of her husband, which he established 
and carried on until his death. It was 
in a prosperous condition when she as- 
sumed its charge, and sbe pursued the 
meat business most successfully for about 
three years. Later deciding to enlarge 
her sphere of business action by retiring 
from the old business and opeiiing a store 
for general merchandise, she started her 
grocery, accordingly, locating at 213 State 
street, where she now is, and commenced, 
what she yet enjoys, a successful career 
as a trades-woman. 



rpHOMAS C. BEOWJSr, a prominent 
-L farmer, and a highly representative 
citizen, residing at Woodbridge, Middle- 
sex county, New Jersey, is a son of James 
M. and P. J. H. Brown, and was born on 
the old paternal homestead, where he re- 
sides, on August 11, 1848. He is of 



856 



Biographical, Sketches. 



Scotch desceiit, the iiiiinigriuit ancestor, 
George Brown, the American progen- 
itor of the lainily, having come from 
Scothind to this country when about 
seventeen years of age, and located at 
Woodbridge, where his name appears as 
one of the first trustees of the first Pres- 
byterian church organized in that phace. 

Tiioinas C. Brown, paternal grand- 
father of Thomas C. Brown, Sr., was a 
son of John, was born Dec. 23, 1787, and 
married Abigail Moores, also of Scotch 
extraction. He died March 12, 1845. 
His father was John Brown, son of 
Thomas, and was born Nov. 1, 1752, and 
died on the homestead Feb., 1828. 

James M. Brown, father of Thomas C. 
Brown, was born at Woodbridge, August 
5, 1819. He completed his education in 
the public schools of Woodbridge, where- 
upon he served as a clerk for four years 
in the general store of W. & P. Brown, 
at Railway, and afterwards in a store of 
his brother at New York. Owing to 
feeble health he subsequently spent seven 
years on a coasting vessel, Ijut upon the 
death of iiis father, in the spring of 1845, 
he returned to Woodbridge to assist in 
the management of the farm, whei-e he 
resided in tiie successful occupation of 
the same up to bis death in 18S3, at the 
age of sixty-four 3'ears. He married 
Phoebe J., a daughter of Crowell and 
Fannie L. Hadden, of Brooklyn, N. Y., 
who bore him two children : Louis, who 
died at the age of seven years, and 
Thonnis C. Both Mr. and Mrs. Brown 
were zealous members of tiie Presbyte- 
rian church of Woodbridge. She was a 
lady of rare intellectual attainments and 
culture, and was well accomplished in 
both vocal and instrumental music. She 
died Dec. 6, 1880, aged fifty-three years. 
Mr. Brown was for many years a mem- 



ber of the board of trustees, and a deacon 
in the Presb\terian church at Wood- 
bridge. Politically he was a republican, 
but, as a whig, in 1840 cast his first vote 
for William Henry Harrison, and up to 
his death adhered strictly to that line of 
political faith. He was president of the 
Rondout and Kingston Gas Light Co., of 
Rondout, N. Y. 

Thomas C. Brown received his educa- 
tion in the common schools of Wood- 
bridge township, and the Elizabeth Acad- 
emy. Upon leaving school he remained 
with his father upon the farm, associated 
with him until his father's death in 1883, 
when he succeeded to the proprietorship 
of the same, and which he has since 
operated. He owns seventj^-five acres of 
well-improved and highly -pi'oductive land, 
and under the best state of cultivation. 
He is a republican in politics, but has 
never been an active partisan. He has 
been elected overseer of roads by the 
township three times, an evidence that 
he is the right man in the right place. 
He is a niemljer of the Presbj'terian 
church at Woodbridge, and has been a 
trustee of the church for a long time. 
He is active and zealous in all church 
work and church aft'airs, either temporal 
or spiritual. He built the sexton's house, 
which was the carrying out of his father's 
idea, and also finished up the Sunday- 
school building. 



TTTILLIAM CLINTON is one of New 
' ' Brunswick's well-known self-made 
men. He is an active and prosperous 
business man and the proprietor of an 
extensive steam granite and marble- 
works. He is a descendant of one of 
the thrifty, enterprising Scottish families 
wliich have given stamina to so many 



Biographical Sketches. 



857 



communities in the new world, and is a 
son of William and Mary Clinton. He 
was boi-n in Scotland in 1831, and spent 
the early part of his life in his native 
land. After obtaining such elementary 
education as the common schools afforded 
he went to work on a farm, thus laying 
the foundation for that physical vigor 
and indomitable energy which contrib- 
uted so much to his success in after life. 
In 1849 he came to the United States, 
and for some years sought his fortune in 
many places. He worked for a short 
time in New York city, then went to 
Bovina, Delaware county, N. Y. Here 
he worked upon a farm for a short time, 
but soon becoming dissatisfied with his 
surroundings, returned to the metropolis. 
His next venture was in the west. He 
went to Minnesota and located on a gov- 
ernment grant of one hundred and sixty 
acres of land. His stay here was not all 
that he expected, the field for his ambi- 
tion being too limited in the then uncul- 
tivated condition of the west, and after 
two months he started eastward again. 
He worked for short periods in Chicago, 
Milwaukee, Buffalo, and Brooklyn, and 
finally in the latter city became inter- 
ested in a marble works. This proved to 
be the turning point in his life, and by 
close application, diligence, and the adop- 
tion of correct business methods he de- 
veloped the plant very extensively. After 
that he removed to New Brunswick and 
started the well-known steam granite and 
marble works, which he now operates. 
In addition to his business establishment 
he owns and operates a handsome farm 
at Franklin Park, New Jersey. Mr. 
Clinton is a republican in politics. He 
is a member of the I. 0. 0. F. He was 
married to Miss Lydia Rinehart, daugh- 
ter of Richard Rinehart, of Philadelphia, 



and their union has been blessed with five 
children : William S., George E., Mary, 
Helen, and Emma G. 

Robert Andrew Clinton, grandfather 
of the subject, was a native of Scotland 
and a well-known farmer in that coun- 

William Clinton, the subject's father, 
was also a native of Scotland. He was 
possessed of a good common-school edu- 
cation, and was a farmer all his life. He 
had the following children : James, Hugh, 
and Laura, all now deceased, and Wil- 
liam. 



TOHN FEE, JE. , the popular proprietor 
^ of the Riverside Hotel, and a pro- 
gressive and well-to-do business man of 
South River, New Jersey, was born at 
Sayreville, Middlesex county, this state, 
March 26, 1861. 

He is of Irish extraction, and his 
father, John Fee, who was a native of 
Ireland, emigrated to America and settled 
at Sayreville. There he entered the em- 
ploy of Sayre, Fisher & Co., and finally 
became a large property owner, and a 
man of considerable afiluence in his com- 
munity. He now lives in happy retire- 
ment, making his home with the subject. 

John Pee, Jr., married Miss Cora 
Mackey, and they are the parents of two 
daughters : Alice and Florence. 

At the age of five Mr. Fee was brought 
to South River by his parents, and here 
obtained such mental training as her 
public schools afforded. In 1876 he went 
to Newark, New Jersey, and there ob- 
tained employment in a grocery for three 
years. Returning to South River at the 
expiration of this time, he embarked in 
the cigar business, in which he continued 
five years. In 1884 he engaged in the 
hotel business at No. 13 River street, 



858 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



Newark, aud two years later we find him 
in the employ of Mr. Vorhees, at Wash- 
ington Hotel, South Kiver. Here, how- 
ever, he remained but a sliort time, when 
he opened the Riverside Hotel, of which 
lie has since been proprietor. In addition 
to his hotel business, Mr. Fee is district 
agent for the Home Brewing Co. of New- 
ark, and Hodkin's mineral waters. 

He is active and inlluential in the coun- 
cils of the Democratic party. He has 
never been an " office seeker," yet he has 
filled several positions of honor and trust, 
among which are: Freeholder of East 
Brunswick township, two terms, from 
1889 to 1893, inclusive; assistant ser- 
geant-at-arms of the assembly of New 
Jersey, and chairman of a bridge com- 
mittee. 

T EONARD SHEIDIG, proprietor of one 
-'— ^ of the leading saloons of New 
Brunswick, is one of the few men in his 
line ol' business who have become masters 
of their profession. He is of German an- 
cestry ; a son of Fred and Katharine 
(Peters) Sheidig, and was born at South 
River, Middlesex county. New Jersey, 
March 31, 1855. 

Fred. Sheidig was born in Germany, 
where he was educated in accordance 
with the educational system of common 
schools of that country. In 1852 Mr. 
Sheidig camo to the United States and 
located in Middlesex county, New Jer- 
sey, and has been engaged in farming at i 
South River up to the present time. ' 

He is a firm believer in the ideas of ' 
legislation and principles as advocated by 
the Republican party. He is an active 
member of the Dutch Reformed churcli. 
Mr. Sheidig married Miss Katharine 
Peters, and they have had born to them 
nine children : Leonard, Margaret (Mrs. 



Kelthong), Edward, Eliza (Mrs. Kel- 
tliong), John, Fred, Mary, Henry, de- 
ceased, and George. 

Leonard Sheidig was born and reared 
on his father's farm in Middlesex county. 
New Jersey, and Avhile a boy attended 
the common schools of his liome district. 
He then engaged in farming for his father, 
and continued that occupation for a period 
of nine years, when he came to New 
Brunswick and tended bar for Mr. R. H. 
Bicker. He remained with him fornine 
years, and in 1888 engaged in the saloon 
business on his own account, and has 
been very successful in his chosen line of 
trade. 

Mr. Sheidig is a republican in politics, 
but alwaj's votes for the best man. He 
is a member in good standing of the fol- 
lowing fraternal and beneficial organiza- 
tions : Jr. 0. U. A. M., Red Men, Ger- 
man Benevolent Society of Milltown, and 
is a meml^er of the New Brunswick fire 
department. 

On Dec. 23, 1889, he was united in 
matrimony to Miss Olger, aud to this 
union have been born four children : 
Laura, Pauline, Leonard, deceased, and 
Tressie, deceased. 



M' 



"ILTON A. EDGAR, an extensive clay 
miner of Perth Am boy, Middlesex 
count}', New Jersey, is a son of Albert 
and Susan Tappen Edgar, and was born 
Nov. 17, 1850, in Woodbridge toAvnship, 
count3^and state above mentioned. Wood- 
bridge was also tha place of nativity and 
home of Capt. Samuel Edgar, the great- 
grandfather of the subject. His occupa- 
tion was fiirming, and he was a cajjtain in 
the Continental army, during the Revo- 
lutionary war. He came to his home on 
temporary leave, and one night a small 




O^^^)^0uyt^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



861 



band of British cavalry, who had been 
informed by tories,came up and attempted 
to capture him, and failing in this they 
slaughtered his swine. His wife, seeing 
the trail of blood, and thinking her hus- 
band had been murdered, fell to the 
ground a corpse. In politics Capt. Edgar 
was a republican, and in religion a mem- 
ber and elder of the Presbyterian church. 

Thomas Edgar, the paternal grand- 
father, received a common school educa- 
tion and subsequently became a successful 
farmer. He served in the war of 1812, 
as captain of a cavalry regiment, and at 
its close resumed and continued farming 
for several years, in Woodbridge town- 
ship, and at a later period removed to 
New York city, where for a long time he 
occupied the position of a United States 
inspector of customs. He was also a very 
successful speculator in wood. In politics 
he was formerly a national republican, al- 
though he voted for Andrew Jackson and 
later became an old-line whig. In reli- 
gious matters he was an active member, 
as well as an elder of the Presbyterian 
church. He died in 1849, of cholera, and 
his wife succumbed to the same disease 
within twenty-four hours after his death. 
Their children were : Isabella, married to 
Josiah Dunn ; James, deceased at the 
age of eighty-nine j^ears; Freeman, de- 
ceased in youth ; Caroline, wife of John 
Van Nortwick ; Smith, died while young; 
Albert, Benjamin, Freeman, deceased in 
his seventy-eighth year, and Mary, mar- 
ried to N. C. Tappen. 

Albert Edgar (father) was born Nov. 
27, 1813, in Woodbridge township. New 
Jersey, moved to New York city when 
seven years old, where he acquired a 
common-school education and learned the 
trade of a mason. He carried on this 
occupation for about ten years, a part of 

45 



the time in the employ of others, and the 
rest of which was on his own account. 
The major portion of his life, however, 
he spent in farming, and a few years prior 
to his death became associated with his 
sons in claj' mining, in which he was very 
successful. In politics he was a republi- 
can, and in his energetic work for his 
party he was actuated by no selfish mo- 
tives of acquiring honor, offices, or gain, 
inasmuch as he steadfastly refused to ac- 
cept any offices whatever. In religion he 
was for many years a presbyterian of the 
old school, but in the later years he em- 
braced the doctrines of the Reformed 
church. He was a very religious and 
conscientious man, a man whose life was 
clean and without reproach, whose word 
was a good and sufficient surety, and 
whose lips never uttered an impure ex- 
pression. He was three times married. 
His first wife, Martha Laforge, bore him 
one child, Louisa, who died at the age of 
thirteen years. By his second wife, Susan 
Tappen, he became the father of four 
children : William T., Charles S., Milton 
A. and Mary Amelia, who died in her 
thirteenth year. His third wife, Emeline 
Drake, is still living. He died in 1877, 
at the age of sixty-four years. 

Milton A. Edgar attended the common 
preparatory schools in Middlesex county, 
and subsequently entered Rutgers College, 
New Brunswick, where he was preparing 
for a collegiate course, when sickness and 
an affection of one of his eyes intervened 
to prevent the further prosecution of his 
studies. He subsequently taught two 
years in Middlesex county. About this 
time clay was discovered on the farm 
owned by his father, with whom and with 
his brothers he became associated in the 
business of mining and marketing that 
commodity. 



862 



Biographical Sketches. 



Later they disposed of this property to 
good advantage, and the business was 
continued on lands subsequently pur- 
chased by them. In 1872 the partnership 
was dissolved and our subject removed to 
Perth Andjoy, New Jersey, where for 
two years he was successfully engaged in 
general merchandising. He associated 
himself with Edward F. Roberts, of South 
Amboy, and resumed the mining of clay 
on lands which they leased for that pur- 
pose. At the expiration of a year lie dis- 
posed of his interest and again formed a 
partnership with his father and brother 
in the same l)usiness, at Perth Amboy. 
In connection therewith he conducted a 
dairy. Ho subsequently bought another 
chi}' property in Raritan township, which 
became extremely valuable, and which he 
worked until 1883, when he sold out. 

In 1883 Mr. Edgar was appointed col- 
lector of the port at Perth Amboy, by 
President Arthur, which position he filled 
in a manner highly creditable to himself 
and beneficial to the government service 
until Sept., 1885, when he was removed 
by President Cleveland for being an 
offensive partisan. He was elected a 
mendjer of the board of aldermen in 
1881, and during his term of three 3'ears 
took an active and intelligent part in 
nuniicipal affairs. He is still engaged in 
the clay business and owns plants at 
South Kiver and one at Perth Amboy, 
which have a daily capacity of from five 
hundred to ^six hundred tons. He is a 
recognized authority throughout the state 
of New Jersey on clay, both as to quality 
and facility of production, as well as the 
best u.ses to which the various grades may 
be put. Mr. Edgar is a republican, and 
for twenty years has been a leader in the ! 
jinlitical affairs of his district. During 
this time he has presided over many 



conventions held by his party, and his 
voice and his influence are potential and 
j far-reaching. He is at present a member 
of the board of chosen freeholders of 
Middlesex count3^ In religious faith he 
is a Baptist, and is known and esteemed 
by his associates and fellow-townsmen as 
an upright, conscientious man in all the 
walks of life. He is a member of the 
Lawrence Lodge, No. 62, I. 0. 0. F., of 
Perth Amboy ; Enterprise Lodge, No. 28, 
Knights of Pythias, and Riverside Coun- 
cil, No. 33, Jr. 0. U. A. M., both of South 
River, New Jersey. Mr. Edgar was united 
in marriage Feb. 20, 1873, to Fannie E. 
Thomas, a daughter of William Thomas, 
of Perth Amboy. To their union were 
born four children : Eva, married to Dr. 
Charles B. Berner, a resident of South 
River, and Albert, Frederick and Charles, 
all deceased. 



ny/riCHAEL RONAN, a representative 
-'-'-'- citizen of South Andaoy, Middle- 
sex county. New Jersey, is a son of 
James and Bridget (Henahan) Ronan, 
and was born Nov. 1, 1861, in county 
Galway, Ireland. 

James Ronan was a representative 
commoner of the island, an enthusiastic 
liberal, through whose principles enforced 
he hoped for its liberation, though never 
a public man in any sense. He was 
engaged in agricultural pursuits and deal- 
ing in cattle in county Galwa3', where he 
resided up to his death in 1886. He was 
a devout member of the Roman Catholic 
church. 

The children were Patrick, Katherine, 
Mary, James, John, Bridget, Ellen, Sarah, 
and Michael. 

Michael Ronan received a limited edu- 
cational training in the national schools 
of his native county, but at the early 



Biographical Sketches. 



863 



age of fourteen years, owing to destitute 
circumstances, he left school to seek em- 
ployment whereby to earn a livelihood. 
He accordingly went to England, and 
for eight years was employed in coal 
mines, and up to Oct., 1882, when chaf- 
ing under the oppression that the laborer 
feels under the close economic conditions 
of that country, he resolved to try the 
fortunes of the United States, where 
every avenue of industry stands open 
alike to the rich and the poor. He ac- 
cordingly, in that year, came to this 
country, settling in South Amboy, where 
for five years he was employed on coal 
docks. He afterwards established him- 
self in the retail liquor business at South 
Amboy, and two years later opened up, 
in conjunction with it, the wholesale 
business in which he has continued ever 
since with eminent success. 

He is a democrat politically, and re- 
ligiously is a member of the Catholic 
church. He is a member of the Catholic 
Benevolent Society, and the Retail Liquor 
Dealers' Association. 



rpHOMAS W. COOPER, a leading real- 
-*- estate and insurance broker, and a 
member of one of the oldest families of 
Long Branch, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, is a son of Samuel and Rachel 
(Wooley) Cooper, and was born Jan. 17, 
1830, in that city. He is of English and 
Dutch extraction, his great-grandfather 
having been a native of England, and 
his grandmother's birth-place was in Hol- 
land. 

Uriah Cooper, grandfather, was born 
at Long Branch, where he was educated 
in the common schools, and acquired his 
subsequent living at the blacksmith forge 
and on a small farm that he owned near 



that city. He was an active, zealous mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church at 
Long Branch. His children were : David, 
Benjamin, John, Hannah, Sarah, Zelpha, 
Elizabeth, and Samuel. 

Samuel Cooper was born at Long 
Branch, where he obtained a common- 
school education, and where, at a later 
period, by judicious speculations in real- 
estate, he became possessed of much 
means. In 1840 he built the National 
Hotel at Long Branch, and continued in 
the successful proprietorship of that well- 
known house of public entertainment for 
several years. He retained considerable 
of the real-estate in which he speculated. 
Politically he was a democrat, and in 
christian faith he was an active member 
and vestryman of the Protestant Episco- 
pal church at Long Branch. The names 
of his children by Rachel Wooley are as 
follows : Joseph, deceased ; Thomas W., 
Martha, and Isaac, deceased. 

Thomas W. Cooper attended the pub- 
lic schools of Long Branch, and in early 
manhood assumed the control and direc- 
tion of his father's farm, and subsequently 
was engaged in the management of 
the Metropolitan Hotel at Long Branch. 
He has been engaged in the real-estate 
and insurance business since 1860, and is 
the possessor of a number of well-ap- 
pointed cottages in Long Branch, two 
farms near Long Branch, and a heavy 
shareholder in the Long Branch Building 
and Loan Association. He was a director 
in the Long Branch Banking Co., and 
one of its organizers. 

Mr. Cooper is active in municipal 
affairs, and served twelve years as a 
member and treasurer of the board of 
education, and in 1890 was elected a 
member of the board of commissioners. 
In spiritual affairs he is a member of the 



864 



Biographical Sketches. 



Methodist Episcopal church at Long 
IJraiich, and in this church, Avhich he 
helped to build, he has occupied the 
various lay oftices. He has been presi- 
dent of the Board of Trustees, and was 
superintendent of the Sunday-school for 
live years, and a conference steward for 
several years. In fraternal matters he 
is a nieml)er of the Royal Arcanum, at 
Long Branch. 

Mr. Cooper, on Oct. 18, 1860, married 
Mary T. Wardel, a daughter of Samuel 
Wardel. 



TpDWARD E. SMALLEY, a prominent 
-^— ' farmer and liver^anan of Ncav 
Brunswick, Middlesex county, New Jer- 
sey, is a son of Isaac and Sarah Ann 
(Dunn) Smalley, and was born Sept. 18, 
1848, at New Market, Middlesex county. 
New Jersey. 

He is of German descent. The pa- 
ternal grandfather, Abram Smalley, was 
a larnier by occupation. In religious af- 
fairs he was a member of the Reformed 
church. In politics he was a republi- 
can, and became recognized as one of the 
local leader-s of that party. His chil- 
dren were : John, Abram, Ambrose, 
Isaac, David, Catharine and Margaret. 

Isaac Smalley (father) was engaged in 
farming and the lumber business all his 
life, in Middlesex county, and, at the 
present tiuie. is living a quiet and retired 
liti-. He is a Baptist in religious faith 
and practice, and in politics a republican. 
His wife, Sarah, is still living. She bore 
him eight children : Mary Jane, decea.si'd; 
Laura, Edward E., Arietta, William. 
Charles, Isaac and Emma. 

Edward E. Smalley received a com- 
mon-school education. He took to farm- 
ing pursuits in early manhood, and is 
still engaged in that business. He owns 



a good farm of one hundred and seventy 
acres near New Brunswick. He runs a 
veiy successful liverj- and sales-stable at 
New Brunswick, and another at Asbur}^ 
Park during the summer. He also con- 
ducts a dair}- near New Brunswick. 

Mr. Smalley is a republican, and a 
member of the Second Reformed church 
of New Brunswick. He was united in 
marriage in 18G8, to Mary Voorhees, a 
daughter of William Voorhees. To their 
union have been born the following chil- 
dren : William Voorhees, Edward, Lulu, 
Bertha, Ai'thur, Harry and Russell. 



TTT I. CORLIES, a prominent dry- 
' ' • goods merchant, and ex-post> 
master of Red Bank, Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, is a son of John P. and 
Adaline Corlies, and was born Feb. 11, 
18.36. 

Samuel Corlies (grandfather) was born 
on Long Island, and there resided all his 
life. He followed a sear-faring life for 
many years, but finally settled down to 
the quiet and tranquil pursuits of hus- 
bandrj'. Politicall}- he was an old-line 
whig, and religiously a friend. He was 
twice married. His first marriage was 
with Katharine Worley, by whom he had 
three children : John P., Edwin, and 
Eliza, all deceased. To his second mar- 
riage was born one son, Asher, deceased. 

John P. Corlies (father) was born 1801, 
and died 1880. His educational advan- 
tages were very meagre, having attended 
the common schools but one month ; but 
by association with business men and 
experience, he attained a good business 
education. His entire life was spent 
upon the water. He was also interested 
in merchandising at Ocean Point, New 
Jersey. His marriage resulted in the 



Biographical Sketches. 



865 



birth of eight children : Samuel, de- 
ceased ; William T., Elizabeth W., John 
A., W. I., Mrs. Katharine Lewis, Jacob 
E., and Benjamin A. 

W. I. Corlies attended the common 
schools until the age of twelve years, and 
then became a clerk in a store. He went 
to Red Bank, and was engaged in the 
dry-goods business on his own account 
for four years, when he removed to 
Eatontown and engaged in business, but 
afterwai'ds returned to Red Bank and 
established his present dry-goods busi- 
ness. Politically he is a republican, loyal 
and active, and served as postmaster of 
Red Bank during the Harrison adminis- 
tration. He is now president of the Red 
Bank Building and Loan Association, and 
was a member of the Union League. 

Mr. Corlies is a methodical and reliable 
business man, and a good citizen. 



"DOBERT HANCE, a leading merchant 
-'-*' of Red Bank, is a descendant of 
one of the oldest families in Monmouth 
county. He is a son of Borden and Re- 
becca B. (Wooley) Hance, and was born, 
Jan. 17, 1843, at Rumsen, Rumsen town- 
ship, Monmouth county, New Jersey. 
His family is of English origin. 

His paternal grandfather, John Hance, 
was also born at Rumsen, and married 
Ann Borden. After receiving a common- 
school education, he turned his attention 
to farming, and followed that occupation 
all his life. He was an old-line whig, 
and a member of the Society of Friends. 
His children were : Asher, George, John, 
Borden, Margai'et, married to William 
Hance, and Susan. 

Borden Hance (father) was also born 
at Rumsen, and was engaged in farming, 
which he successfully followed during his 



entire life. He was an old-line whig, 
and later a republican. He was an ac- 
tive member of the Friends' meeting at 
Rumsen. His children were : Julia, 
Robert, Rachel, Alice, George, and Lydia, 
deceased. 

Robert Hance received his education 
in the public schools of Rumsen, and 
upon the death of his father, assumed 
charge of his farm, which he successfully 
conducted until June, 1887, when he dis- 
posed of it, and lived in retirement until 
1893. In that year he removed to Red 
Bank, and established himself in the 
feed business. In this he has been highly 
successful. He is a republican in poli- 
tics. His children are : Robert C, born 
Oct. 26, 1873 ; Julia D., born May 18, 
1878; Borden L., born Nov. 14, 1879; 
Joseph D., born Oct. 11, 1882 ; Irving, 
born Oct. 14, 1884 ; and Gladys, born 
Oct. 24, 1886. The eldest son, Robert 
C. Hance, first attended private schools 
at Red Bank, and subsequently the public 
schools in that town for two years. He 
then accepted a clerical position in New 
York city for a short time, when he made 
his second trip to the west, remaining 
there one and one-half years, when, in 
April, 1895, he again returned to Red 
Bank, and assumed charge of his father's 
extensive business, and in the manage- 
ment of that business has since continued. 



TTTILLIAM B. BEACH, a successful 
' ' practicing physician, and the 
present postmaster of Eatontown, New 
Jersey, is a son of Charles and Fanny 
(Woodbridge) Beach, and was born at 
Jacksonville, Miss., Sept. 24, 1850. The 
Beach family is of English origin and is 
well known in New Jersey. 

The paternal grandfather, Edwin 



866 



Biographical Sketches. 



Beach, was Ijorii in Newark, New Jer- 
sey, graduated from Princeton College 
and became a banker in New York city. . 
He was an old-line whig and an active j 
and earnest member and elder of the 
Presbyterian church. By his marriage 
he l)ecanR' the ftither of three children : 
Emma, Edward and Charles. 

Charles Beach (father) was a graduate 
of Yale College and the Princeton Theo- 
logical Seminary, and filled the following 
pastorates : Woodville, Mass. ; Charlotte- 
ville, Va., and another in Maryland. He 
was a democrat and a member of the 
Masonic order. His children were : 
Charles, William B., S. Edward, Fanny 
(wife of Judge Little), Annie (Mrs. Dr. 
Sprecher), and John. The Rev. Beach 
died in 1880, and his wife followed him 
Dec. 7, 1894. 

Dr. William B. Beach was educated in i 
the public schools and received the de- 
gree of Doctor of Medicine from the Uni- 
versity of Maryland in 1875. He began 
the practice of his profession at Cumber- 
land, Md., and remained there for seven 
years, when, in 1882, he located in Eaton- 
town, New Jersey. Here he soon won 
the confidence of that community and 
established a large and lucrative prac- 
tice. 

Aside from his professional duties he 
has always taken a manifest interest in 
all the public aflairs of Eatontown, and 
has been a potent factor in the progress 
and development of the town. He is 
])resi(l('nt of the Eatontown Building and 
Loan As.sociation, and is a member of the 
board of education. In the fraternal cir- 
cles of New Jersey Dr. Beach is one of 
the best-known men of the state. He is 
a member of the Masonic Order, the 
Chnptcr, Knights Templars and the 
Mecca Temple, Knights of the Mystic 



Shrine at New Y'^ork. He is an ardent 
democrat and a hard worker for the 
cause, and is the present postmaster of 
Eatontown. 

Dr. Beach sustains the reputation of 
being a first-class, active citizen in every 
respect, and his professional and business 
careers have been a well-merited suc- 
cess. 

"TACOB F. SOFFEL, the genial and suc- 
"^ cessful proprietor of the commercial 
hotel and restaurant of Long Branch, 
New Jersey, is a son of Frederick and 
Mary (O'Connor) Soflel, and was born at 
Shrewsbury, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, Jan. 20, 1860. Frankfort-on-the- 
Rhine, famed in the pages of history, 
and cherished and admired by every 
lover of scenic beauty and ancient gran- 
deur, is the birth-place and home of 
Jacob SofFel, paternal grandfather of our 
subject. Here, amid the vine-clad hills 
and green vales, Jacob SofFel passed his 
boyhood days and received his limited 
education. He began life as a small 
farmer and fruit grower. During the 
Napoleonic wars Mr. SofFel took part in 
the siege of Moscow. Jacob Soffel and 
his estimable wife reared a family of 
thirteen children : Jacob, Frederick, 
Lewis, Charles, John, August, Susan 
Frick, Margai'et Buffer, all of wliom 
came to this country together, while the 
remaining five continued to reside in 
Germany. 

Frederick Sofiel (father) was a native 
of Frankfort, Germany, and received his 
education in the public schools of his 
birth-place. On coming to the United 
States, in 1849, he located at Shrews- 
bury. He was a farmer and blacksmith, 
and resided at the time of his death in 
Red Bank. He was a democrat, and an 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



867 



attendant of the Episcopal church at 
Shrewsbury, New Jersey. His wife's 
maiden name was Miss Mary O'Connor, 
a daughter of James O'Connor, of Ire- 
land, and a family of five children 
blessed this union : Mrs. Amelia Cook, 
Mary, Jacob F., Susan, and Edward. 
The father died in June, 1888. 

Jacob Soffel received a common-school 
training, and then clerked in his father's 
groceiy store. He was a short time en- 
gaged in the grocery business at Red 
Bank, New Jersey, and subsequently 
worked in a hotel at that place. In 1890 
he came to Long Branch and opened a 
restaurant on his own account and was 
successful. His business prospered so 
that he was enabled to establish Soffel' s 
Commercial House. In political views 
he is a democrat, and fraternally a mem- 
ber of Lodge No. 72, Knights of Pythias, 
at Red Bank, New Jersey. On Oct. 14, 
1883, Jacob F. Soffel married Miss 
Louisa M. Fields, a daughter of Jacob 
N. Fields, of Red Bank, and they have 
one son, Clifford, aged eleven years. Mr. 
Soffel came to Long Branch a perfect 
stranger, and deserves great credit for 
the success he has attained. He is a 
master of his business, and his genial 
address gains and retains for him the 
friendship and good will of his patrons. 



"pvAVID P. VAN DEVENTER, chair- 
-^-^ man of the board of education and 
a prosperous farmer and bi'ick manufac- 
turer of Matawan, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, is a son of Jacob and Wessa 
Van Deventer, and was born Sept. 2, 
1833, at that town. 

Great-grandfather Van Deventer was a 
native and fanner of Middlesex county. 
The family records reveal very little con- 



cerning him, except that he was captured 
by the British forces, and imprisoned in 
the " old sugar house," at New York city, 
where he died. 

ChristopherVan Deventer (grandfather) 
was born in Middlesex county, where he 
acquired a common-school education and 
became a farmer. He was a soldier in 
the war of the Revolution, and was en- 
gaged in the battles of Monmouth, Prince- 
ton, Brandy wine, and other historic fields. 
In politics he was a democrat, and in 
religion a member of the Presbyterian 
church. He was twice married ; the first 
time to Rachel Vreeland, and after her 
death he espoused Anna Willit. He died 
in 1840. He was the father of six chil- 
dren, none of whom are now living : 
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, John, Zenus, and 
Peter. 

Jacob Van Deventer (father) was born 
in 1789 at Little Washington, Middlesex 
county. New Jersey. He received a 
good education at the hands of an ac- 
complished tutor, and subsequently be- 
came a civil engineer and tiller of the 
soil. He was a very capable and ener- 
getic man, and was very successful in his 
dual occupations. Politically he was a 
democrat, and in religion an active mem- 
ber of the Baptist church. He died at 
Matawan in 1843, and was survived by 
his wife until 1875. They were the par- 
ents of five children : Zenus, now resid- 
ing in Wilmington, Del. ; Jacob, killed 
during the civil war ; Gustavus, a civil 
engineer; Anna L., married to William 
J. Maggs ; and David Provost. 

David P. Van Deventer attended the 
public schools, and subsequently the 
Glenwood Institute at Matawan, until he 
attained his sixteenth year. He then 
turned his attention to agricultural pur- 
suits, which he still carries on near Mat- 



868 



Biographical Sketches. 



awiui. He is also engaged in mercantile 
Inisine.ss in that town. He owns a fine 
fiirni in that vicinity, on which, several 
years since, he tleveloped a clay mine. 
This lie tnrned to profitable account by 
establishing tluTeoii a plant for the manu- 
lacture ol' brick, and in its direction, as 
well as in his other aflliirs, he is enjoying 
the fruits of success. In political matters 
Mr. Van Deveuter is a republican, and 
is at present the chairman of the board 
of education in his township, and evinces 
a dee|) interest in the welfare of the pub- 
lic schools. In spiritual nuxtters he sub- 
scribes to the doctrines of the Presby- 
terian church, and is an attendant at 
that church in Matawan. 

Mr. Van Deventer married Louise Shea, 
a daughter of James Shea. They are 
the parents of four children: Florence, 
married to Clarence E. Secor; David P., 
a law student ; Josephine and Kaphael. 



gallant soldier in the Union cause during 
the great American conflict from 18G1 to 
1865. Mr. Burns has been successful in 
business, and owns valuable property in- 
terests in New Brunswick. As a citizen 
of the toAvn in which he resides he is 
progressive and enterprising. In politics 
he is an ardent republican, and at one 
time served as a commissioner of New 
Brunswick. 



'yilOMAS BURNS, a prominent retired 
-*- citizen of New Brunswick, New Jer- 
sey, is a son of Thomas Burns, aiid was 
born in Ireland, where he received his 
education. Ilis father was a man of su- 
perior educational attainments, having 
fijl lowed the profession of teaching all 
his life as instructor in schools and as 
private tutor. He came to this country 
in 1866. His children were: Thomas, 
Patrick, deceased ; John, and James. 

Thomas Burns, Jr., left the lyric isle 
of Erin and came to New York city in 
1851, sub.sequently locating at New 
Brunswick, where he became exten- 
sively engaged in the transportation 
business between that city and Philadel- 
phia, Baltimore, Richmond, and other 
ports. He owned his own vessels, and 
continued successfully in this business 
up to 1892, when he retired. He was a 



A LOYS MUELLER, one of the leading 
-^-^ and best-known florists of New 
Brunswick, and a botanist of consider- 
able repute, is a son of Thaddeus and 
Martha (Henger) Mueller, and was born 
in Wurtemburg, Germany. His educa- 
tion was obtained in the public schools 
of his native town. At the age of four- 
teen years he entered the employ of a 
florist in Germany, and served an ap- 
prenticeship, obtaining practical familiar- 
ity with everj^ branch of the business. 
In 1857 he came to the United States, 
and was a dealer in plants and flowers in 
New York city for nine j'ears. He re- 
moved to New Brunswick in 1866, and 
established his present business. His 
operations were on a very small scale 
at first, but the business has proven so 
successful under Mr. Mueller's careful, 
energetic management that his grounds 
now cover twenty-four building-lots. He 
devotes particular attention to bedding 
plants and cut-flowers, and has also at- 
tained a reputation for his orchids, of 
which he grows a great number. He is 
well versed in the science of botany, hav- 
ing taken a special course on that subject 
in the university extension term. He is 
a repu))lican in politics, and a member of 
the Roman Catholic church at New 
Brunswick. In 1871 he was married to 
j Miss Margaret Dilson. 



Biographical Sketches. 



869 



Mr. Mueller's business success has been 
due to his thorough knowledge of plants 
and flowers and his indomitable perse- 
verance and energy. He is well edu- 
cated, of cultivated tastes, and a diligent 
student. 

Mr. Mueller's family has always con- 
tinued to reside in Wurtemburg, Ger- 
many. His father, Thaddeus iNIuellei', 
was a stone-cutter in Wurtemburg, which 
occupation he followed until his death. 
His wife was Miss Mary M. KeilFner, by 
whom he had two children : Agatha and 
Aloys, the subject of this sketch. 



"DOBERT LOWRIE, a well-known re- 
-*-*' tired farmer and miller, and a re- 
spected citizen of Dunellen, Middlesex 
county, is a son of George and Janet 
(MacCuen) Lowrie, and was born in 1815 
in Scotland. He came to the United 
States in 1832, and settled at New 
Market, Middlesex countj^, where he suc- 
cessfully operated a saw and grist mill 
for several years. During that time he 
bought and sold several farms in Pisca- 
taway township, and amassed consider- 
able means. He retired from active life 
in 1873, and purchased a fine homestead 
in Dunellen, where he has resided ever 
since. He is a republican, and is a faith- 
ful member of the Baptist church at 
New Market. 

He has been twice married. In 1846 
he wedded Miss Sarah Coriell, who bore 
him five children : Cornelia, David, Eliza, 
Louisa and Abner. His second wife. 
Miss Susan Louisa Harris, bore one son — 
George Elston. 

Mr. Lowrie is one of the prominent 
men of Piscataway township, and is 
widely known and respected. He is a 
devoted worker in his chui'ch, and a 



practical supporter of worthy charitable 
movements. 

Mr.' Lowrie's immediate ancestors were 
members of a thrifty Scottish family. 
George Lowrie, his paternal grandfathei', 
was a farmer in Scotland, was married 
three times, and died leaving two sons : 
James and George. George Lowrie oper- 
ated a small farm near Bannockburn, 
was a staunch adherent of the Presby- 
terian faith, and died having begotten 
eight children : Margaret, George, John, 
James, William, Robert, the subject, 
Janet, and Jane. 



pi EORGE J. LITTERST, city clerk of 
^-^ New Brunswick, and proprietor of 
a prospei'ous men's furnishing store in 
that city, is a son of George and Magde- 
lene (Staat) Litterst, and was born, March 
28, 1858, at New York city. His ances- 
try is of German oi'igin on the jDaternal 
side, and French on the maternal side. 
His father, George Litterst, was born and 
educated in Germany, and came to the 
United States. He was a well-known 
wholesale milk dealer in New York city 
for many years, a prominent member of 
the German Hussars, and a member of the 
German Lutheran church. He died in 
1862,leaving three children: MaryC.,wife 
of Charles M. McMuUen, of New York 
state ; Elizabeth, wife of John A. Ayres, 
of New Brunswick ; and George J. The 
mother of Mr. Litterst was a native of 
Strasbui'g, and died May 15, 1887. 

George J. Litterst was partly educated 
in the public schools of New York city. 
In 1858 he removed to New Brunswick, 
and spent two years in the schools of 
that city. He then entered the employ 
of the New Brunswick Rubber Co., 
where he remained for ten years. 



870 



Biographical Sketches. 



In 1882 he established his present 
business on Church street, New Bruns- 
wick. Mr. Litter.'^t has been for a num- 
ber of years actively identilied with city 
politics, and is a staunch democrat, al- 
though his ward is strongly republican. 
He was elected a Ireeholder in 1882, and 
served until 1885, during which time he 
was president of the board. He was a 
candiilate for the legislature in 1885 and 

1890, and only defeated by a small ma- 
jority, although the district is republican. 
He was appointed city clerk Sept. 2, 

1891, and has occupied the office contin- 
uously ever since. He is a member of 
the Democratic Club, F. and A. M., Good 
Will Council, No. 32, Jr. 0. U. A. M., of 
which he was treasurer for fifteen years; 
Friendship Lodge, No. 46, K. of P.; 
Lodge No. 1015, Royal Arcanum; New 
Brunswick Lodge, No. 6, I. 0. 0. F. ; 
New Brunswick Boat Club, and New 
Brunswick Y. M. C. A. He is an at- 
tenilant at Christ's Protestant Episcopal 
church. 

On Jan. 16, 1889, Mr. Litterst was 
married to Miss Myrta White, daughter 
of Richard White, of New Brunswick, 
and they have one son, George Henry. 

Mr. Litterst is popular as a citizen and 
as an official, and, during the five years 
that he has held the position, he has 
done much to expedite city business. He 
is energetic and industrious, and com- 
mands the respect of all who know him. 



TpDWARD D. V. STULTZ, the well- 
-*-^ known editor and proprietor oi" the 
Seaside Qiizetie, published at Spring Lake, 
New Jersey, is a son of Rev. Elias D. 
Stultz, and was born in Cranbury, Mid- 
dlesex county, New Jersey, in June, 1854. 
His ancestry is German, his great-great- 



grajidfather on the paternal side, Peter 
Stultz, having emigrated from Germany 
in 1753, and settled near Cranbury. He 
was a prosperous farmer, and a consider- 
able owner of real estate. He was an 
active and zealous churchman, and built 
the first Presbyterian church in Cran- 
bury. 

The paternal great-grandfather, John 
Martin Stultz, was born June 16, 1753, 
on board the vessel ofl' the coast of New- 
foundland during the passage of his 
parents to this countrv'. He passed his 
early life on his father's farm, and while 
3'et a boy was adopted by John Martin, 
a neighboring farmer. He spent the 
most of his life in the occupation of 
farming, but during the Revolutionary 
war served his country in the army. He 
was a member of the Presbj'terian church, 
and active in religious work. He was 
married to Elizabeth Higby. 

Mr. Stultz' s paternal grandfather, 
Frederick Stultz, passed all his life as a 
farmer near Cranbury. He was an ac- 
tive and public-spirited citizen, a member 
of the old-line Whig party, and a mem- 
ber of the board of school trustees. He 
took great interest in educational work, 
and was a pioneer worker for the better- 
ment of the school sj-steni in that section. 
He served in the army during the war of 
1812. To his marriage were born four- 
teen children, three of whom died in 
infancy ; the others were : Jane, Higby, 
J. Dyer, Elias D., John, Harnitt, Nannie, 
Anna, Josiah, Frederick, and Sarah. 

Elias D. Stultz received his education 
in the district schools of Cranburj^ and 
for several years thereafter was employed 
on his father's farm. He learned the 
carpenter trade, and successfully followed 
this business until he was about fifty-two 
years of age. He was formerly a mem- 



Biographical Sketches. 



871 



ber of the Presbyterian church, but in 
1843 he became a member of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal church. 

During his active business career he 
had preached occasionally, and in 1854 
he was called to the pastorate of the 
First Union Valley church in Manasquan. 
Here he remained for four years. The 
fourteen subsequent years, he passed as 
pastor of different churches. He returned 
to Manasquan in 1890, and has since 
resided there, with the exception of one 
and one-half years which he passed as 
pastor of a church at Bridgeton. He 
has now retired from active preaching. 
He was married in 1842 to Ellen D. 
Dyer, a daughter of Louis Dyer, a farmer 
of Cranbury, and their children are : 
Mary M., married to Robert A. Van 
Dusen ; Hetty, mari'ied to J ohn S. Duf- 
field ; Louis, a preacher at Westville, 
New Jersey; Edward D. V., and Wil- 
liam D., who has been a minister at 
Bridgeton, New Jersey, for fourteen years. 

Edward D. V. Stultz was educated in 
the public schools at Cranbury, and sub- 
sequently entered and graduated from 
the Freehold Listitute. Li 1877 he 
obtained journalistic work on the Manas- 
quan Seaside, the name of which was 
changed in 1888 to the Gazette and 
Mirror, and in 1891 to the Seaside Gazette. 
With it he did general newspaper work. 
The politics of the paper is republican, 
although it is always independent in its 
opinion and policy on all questions of 
local intei'est. It is a local factor of 
great importance in the town of Spring 
Lake, containing a population of 1,500. 

Mr. Stultz has proved himself an able 
and conscientious journalist. He is a 
member of the Methodist church, at 
Manasquan, where he resides, and a 
member of the quarterly conference. He 



takes great interest in religious work and 
has been superintendent of the Sunday- 
school of his church for eighteen years. 
He belongs to the masonic order and is 
past master of Wall Lodge, No. 73. He 
is also a member of Excelsior Lodge, 
No. 88, I. 0. 0. F., of Manasquan. He 
married Susan D. Scott, a daughter of 
James Scott, of Red Bank, New Jersey. 



T3HILLIP DANGLER, clothier and mer- 
-L chant tailor of South Amboy, New 
Jersey, is a son of Jacob and Sarah 
Dangler, and was born in Alsace, Ger- 
many, May 4, 1854. His father was a 
respected farmer of the province of Al- 
sace, Germany, and was engaged in that 
occupation all his lifetime. He was a 
pros]Derous and successful man, and in 
his time had visited this country on sev- 
eral occasions. His children were : Phil- 
lip, George and Sarah. 

Mr. Dangler attended the citizens' 
schools of his native town, Alsace, Ger- 
many, until he arrived at the age of 
fourteen, when he was apprenticed to a 
merchant tailor, and learned the trade 
which he has since most persistently and 
successfully followed. After attaining 
liis majority and freedom, he went to 
Bishweiler, Germany, where he worked 
as a journeyman for two years and a half, 
after which he came to America and 
found employment in Brooklyn, N. Y. 
Here he worked for four years. Later 
he removed to Keyport, New Jersey, 
where he was employed as a cutter for 
the ensuing three years. In 1878 he 
came to South Amboy, New Jersey, and 
there engaged in business upon his own 
account. He has continued his business 
here ever since, and has succeeded in 
establishing a most flourishing and profit- 



872 



Biographical Sketches. 



able trade, lie is located at No. 184 
Broadway, where lie has a fine store 
hnildiiig, witli dwelling-house attached. 
He carries a lull line of clothing and 
gents' furnishing goods. 

He is a denunrrat in politics, but not 
actively interested. He is a member of 
the Episcopal church of South Amboy, 
and a steady and consistent Aictor in 
church work. lie is also identified with 
several fraternal societies of South Am- 
boy, being a member of the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, and of the Knights 
of Pythias. 

Mr. Dangler v/as married Feb. 11, 
1879, to Miss Mary A. Layman, and 
they have liad born to them the follow- 
ing children : Edward P., and Elizabeth 
Emma. Edward P., their son, a bright 
young man, is a graduate of the high 
school, and is now assisting his father in 
the store. 



TACOB 15R0GLEY, the senior member 
^ of the well-known firm of Brogley 
Bros., of New Brunswick, New Jersey, is 
a son of Theodore and Christina Brogley, 
and was born Oct. 26, 1865. 

Theodore Brogley was born in Swit- 
zerland, and came to America with his 
parents. The family located in Somerset 
county. New Jersey, where young Theo- 
dore was reared and educated. At an 
early age he was apprenticed to the 
tailoring trade, and upon attaining his 
majority followed said occupation until 
1856, when he took to farming in Somer- 
set count}', New Jersey, and there has 
resided ever since. He is an ardent re- 
publican in politics, and a respected com- 
luunicant of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. He is active in all church work, 
and for several years has been the faithful 
superintendent of the Sunday-school. lie 



married in early life, and is the father of 
the following named children : Theodore, 
George, Jacob, Martha, Christina, and 
Daniel. 

Jacob Brogley is the third son, and he 
received his education in the common 
schools of Somerset county. At an early 
age he went to Plainfield, New Jersey, 
to learn the baking trade, and subse- 
quently followed that occupation as jour- 
neyman, and finally he came to New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, and started into 
business for himself, under the firm name 
of Brogley & Wilt. This firm continued 
the business until 1895, when Mr. Wilt 
sold out his interest, and was succeeded 
by Mr. Brogley's brother. The present 
firm of Brogley Bros, has a finelj'-equipped 
establishment, and do a most prosperous 
business. 

He is an ardent republican in politics, 
and an active member of the Junior 
Order of United American Mechanics. 
He married Miss Vooiiiees, a daughter of 
Stryker Voorhees, Esq., on Jan. 15, 1896. 



O AMUEL GKAVATT, a prosperous far- 
^ mer near Perrineville, Millstone 
township, Monmouth county, is a son of 
Samuel and Nancy (Bowman) Gravatt, 
and was born Aug. 25, 1826, near Clai'ks- 
bui'g. Millstone township, where he was 
educated. In 1857 he located on a small 
farm near Perrineville, and in 1859 re- 
moved to a larger farm at Millstone, 
which he operated successfully until the 
spring of 1894, when he retired. Mr. 
Gravatt is a republican in politics, and 
has been prominently identified for many 
yvar» with public affairs in Millstone 
township. He was successively a mem- 
ber of the township committee, overseer 
of the poor and township collector, and 



Biographical Sketches. 



873 



served as freeholder for Millstone for 
three terms, from 1876 to 1886. He was 
also school trustee in the Ely district, 
Millstone township, and has in other 
ways been active in the conduct of local 
matters. 

Mr. Gravatt is an influential member 
and trustee of the Perrineville Presby- 
terian church. He was married in 1848 
to his first wife, Miss Lydia Johnson, who 
died in May, 1860, after having bonie 
him eight children : Mary Ann, Jane, 
Georgie, Maggie, Linda Mary, Ella, John 
R. and William W. In 1862 he was 
married a second time, to Mrs. Anna Van 
Horn, a daughter of Samuel Forman 
Matthews. 

Mr. Gravatt has been prominent in 
politics for many years. He is progres- 
sive and energetic, is active in his church 
duties, and is identified with all local 
movements for the advance and improve- 
ment of the community. 

William Gravatt (grandfather) was a 
prosperous farmer near Perrineville, and 
a soldier throughout the Ee volution ary 
war. He left four children : Samuel, 
Lydia, Askie and Gertrude. 

Samuel Gravatt (father) was born and 
reared at Perrineville, where he was a 
miller and wheelwright during the early 
part of his life. He conducted a gene"ral 
store at Toms River for some years, and 
subsequently bought a farm in Millstone 
township, where he resided until his 
death in 1885, aged eighty-seven years. 
He was an old-line whig in politics and 
an active party man, having been a mem- 
ber of the township committee, overseer 
of the poor and school trustee in the 
Wickoff district. His children were : 
Janet, wife of John B. Robbins ; George, 
one time sheriff of Ocean county for two 
terms ; Thomas, a farmer and carpenter ; 



Perrine ; Linda Mary, wife of William 
I. Davison ; Sarah Ann, wife of George 
Thompson ; Samuel, the subject ; Wil- 
liam, Gertrude and Paul. 



TTENRY B. MANNING, of the firm of 
-*—*- Messrs. Manning Brothers, heavy 
dealers in all kinds of furniture, is a son 
of Isaac S. and Mary B. Manning, and 
was born at New Brunswick, New Jer- 
sey, Feb. 14, 1861. 

Isaac S. Manning (father) received a 
common-school education, and after learn- 
ing the cabinet-making trade went into 
business for himself. He came to New 
Brunswick, and later associated with him 
his sons, Henrj^ B. and John L., and this 
firm, trading under the caption of I. S. 
Manning & Sons, continued business un- 
til 1894, when the father died, Nov. 21. 

Mr. Manning, in connection with his 
other interests, was a director of the 
New Jersey State Bank and the Mutual 
Fire Insurance Co. of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey. 

He was a natural-born business man, a 
public-spirited citizen, an ardent and en- 
thusiastic member of the Republican 
party, and an attendant of the First Re- 
formed church of New Brunswick. 

Henry B. Manning was born and 
reared in New Brunswick, where lie at- 
tended the public schools, and graduated 
from the high school in 1879. He then 
learned the cabinet-making trade, which 
he followed several years, when he be- 
came a member of the firm of I. S. Man- 
ning & Sons, which, since the senior 
Manning's decease, has been changed to 
Messrs. Manning Bros. 

Mr. Manning is a republican in political 
views, fraternally a member of the Elks, 
and a communicant of the First Reformed 
church. 



874 



Biographical Sketches. 



The firm of Mamiiiig Bros, is one of the 
most enterprising .and suecessful houses 
in eentral New Jersey. 



JOSEPH MARK, a prominent shirt 
manufacturer and leading citizen of 
South River, is a son of Bernard and 
Maria (Schiser) ^^ark. and was born Dec. 
9, 186.3, at Sansville, New Jersey, where 
he received his education. When four- 
teen years old he left school and went to 
work in a carpet factor}^ in New Bruns- 
wick, remaining there for one year. He 
then traveled for a New York shirt house 
for two years, gaining such an insight 
into the business that in 1881 he estab- 
lished liis present shirt factory in South 
River, in connection with Mr. Davidson, 
under the firm name of Mark & Davidson. 
Their business Avas organized upon a 
small scale, but has developed to such 
an extent that it is now one of the most 
important manufacturing establishments 
in the vicinity of New Brunswick, having 
a diiily capacity of one hundred arid 
twenty-five dozen shirts and ibrty dozen 
women's wrappers. Mr. Mark is a derno- 
crat,and is influential in local politics. lie i 
is a member of tlie Methodist Episcopal 
church of South River, and a member 
of the Jr. 0. U. A. M. and Knights of | 
Pythias. On Aug. 7, 1800, he was mar- 1 
ried to Miss Libia Brown, daughter of 
David Brown. 

Mr. Mark is energetic and progressive, 
and has taken a deep interest in the ad- 
vancement and improvement of South 
River, where he has a handsome resi- 
dence. ' 

Mr. Mark's family isof (Jei-man origin. 
His paternal grandfather, Matthias Mark, ' 
was a native of Germany, a prosperous j 
farmer all his life, and an adherent of 



the Roman Catholic church. He died, 
liaving been the progenitor of thirteen 
children, only three of whom are now 
living : Bernard, Pauline, and Susan. 

Bernard Mark (subject's father) is a 
well-known citizen of South River, where 
he owns considerable real-estate. He w^as 
born in Germany, and came to this coun- 
try in 1842. He was a shoemaker by 
trade, and was proprietor of a shoe store 
in South River for some time. He has 
ahvays taken an active part in local poli- 
tics on the Democratic side, and was 
elected a commissioner of South River, 
and served three years. He is a member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church of 
South River. He was married to Miss 
Maria Schiser, by whom he had four chil- 
dren : Joseph, Emma, Avife of R. David- 
son ; Susan, and Ronella, deceased. 



TTON. GEORGE H. TICE, the present 
-*— L member of the New Jersey assem- 
bly, representing the old First district of 
Middlesex county, and residing at Perth 
Amboy, is one of the most active and in- 
fluential political leaders of the state. 
He is a son of Andrew J. and Mar}^ 
(Foster) Tice, and was born at Perth 
Amboy, Nov. 14, 1845. 

Mr. Tice is descended from a sturdy 
Holland-Dutch ancestry, his paternal 
gi'eat-grandfather, Solomon Tice, having 
emigrated from Holland in 1738, and 
settled in Perth Amboy. He was a pros- 
perous ship-carpenter and builder, and a 
member of the Pi'esbyterian church. His 
paternal grandfather, John Tice, was 
born at Perth Amboy, and Avas educated 
in its public schools, from Avhich he was 
graduated. Immediately after his grad- 
uation he embarked in the oyster busi- 
ness at Perth Amboy, and continued 






u^c 



C 



Biographical Sketches. 



877 



therein all his life. Politically he was a 
democrat, and religiously a member of 
the Pi'esbyterian church, in which organ- 
ization he was active and influential. 
His marriage resulted in an issue of six 
children : Sophia, deceased ; Martha, the 
consort of John Walton ; Andrew J., 
father ; John, deceased ; Eichard, of Rah- 
way. New Jersey ; and Betsy, deceased. 

Andrew J. Tice was a native of Perth 
Amboj^, and, after enjoying an active 
and useful career, passed away, near the 
scenes of his birth, in the year 1869. 
After leaving school he was taught the 
trade of a blacksmith, and thoroughly 
mastered every detail of that craft. Re- 
linquishing this trade, he engaged in the 
oyster business for a number of years, 
but finally returned to his trade, which 
he pursued successfully until his death. 
He was a republican in politics, an ac- 
tive member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, and of the Sons of Temperance. 
His marriage was blessed by the birth of 
four children : Margaretta, married to 
John H. Tyrell ; George H., Charles M., 
and Mary, married to George W. Paresin. 

George H. Tice attended the public 
schools at Perth Amboy, and, upon his 
graduation therefrom, entered the em- 
ploy of his father, under whose instruc- 
tion he learned the trade of a blacksmith. 
Having perfected himself in this trade, 
he opened a shop of his own, which he 
successfully conducted until 1883, when 
he disposed of it to engage in the hotel 
business. For four years he was pro- 
prietor of " Tice's Central Hotel," at 
Perth Amboy. In 1890 he disposed of 
his hotel property to accept the postmas- 
tership of Perth Amboy, to which he had 
been appointed by President Harrison, 
acceptably fulfilling the duties of this 
office until 1894, when he resigned to ac- 



cept the very responsible position of 
superintendent of the shipping depart- 
ment of the Staten Island Terra Cotta 
and Lumber Co., which he now holds. 
During his administration of the office of 
postmaster he was largely influential in 
securing the adoption of the free mail 
delivery system for Perth Amboy. Mr. 
Tice is a republican, and an ardent and 
active political worker. Mr. Tice has 
served two terms as a member of the 
board of education of Perth Amboy, hav- 
ing been elected to that office in 1878. 
In 1888 he was elected a member of the 
board of freeholders by a majority of one 
hundred and eighteen votes, and in 1894 
he was elected to the assembly by the 
handsome majority of thirteen hundred. 
He received the largest majority given 
any candidate that year, attesting in 
an eminent degree his popularity. He 
served during this term on the commit- 
tees of education, railroads, canals, and 
corporations. In 1895 he was re-elected 
to the assembly without opposition, and 
was given a place on the committee of 
reformed schools for boys. One of the 
most important measures introduced in 
the assembly by him was for the purpose 
of building a bridge across the Raritan 
river, at Perth Amboy. Public-spirited 
and progressive, Mr. Tice has taken a 
commendable interest in every movement 
which has for its object the advancement 
and improvement of his city and county. 
He has been a director of the Perth Am- 
boy Savings Institution for the past thir- 
teen years, was president of the Atlantic 
Building and Loan Association up to 
1895, and was president of the first local 
branch of the Republic Building and Loan 
Association of New Jersej', and resigned 
in 1895. 

He is a member of Lawrence Lodge, 



878 



Biographical Sketches. 



No. 62, I. 0. 0. F. ; Kiuitan Lotlge, No. 
Gl, F. and A. M. ; Scott Chapter, No. 
51), R. A. M., of New Brunswick ; and 
Temple Coniniandery, No. 18, K. T., of 
Metuchen. Mr. Tice and Miss Mary A. 
Bastead were united in marriage on Jan. 
31, 1866, and to their union have been 
born two children : Elizabeth P., and 
Andrew J. 

CI L. VAN NUIS, a popular and enter- 
''• prising druggist of New Brunswick, 
New Jersey, is a son of John and Eliza- 
beth Van Nuis, and was born at that 
place, December 28, 1869. His grand- 
father, Lyle Van Nuis, was a prominent 
carriage-builder of that city for many 
years, and enjoyed considerable promi- 
nence in the business and political circles 
of that city, lie was an active democrat, 
and served the citj' as mayor for two 
terms. He was a gentleman of the old 
school, a respected and highly-eJ^teemed 
member of the Second Reformed church, 
and actively interested in all chui'ch 
W(jrk. He was the father of five chil- 
dren : John, George, William, Henrj- and 
Jennie. 

John Van Nuis received his education 
in the comnum schools of New Bruns- 
wick. He read law for a short time with 
a view of entering that profession, but 
abandoned it for a position as bookkeeper 
in the Ninth National Bank of New York 
city, which position he filled with credit 
for a period of fifteen years. He then 
returned to New Brunswick, and entraged 
as bookkeeper. His children are C. L. 
and Maie C. 

(J. L. Van Nuis received his education 
in the pultlic scIhhiIs oI' New Brunswick, 
and graduated from its high school. He 
then entered a drug store in New 
Brunswick as a clerk, and subsequently 



! attended the New York College of Phar- 
macy, i'rom which he graduated in 1894. 
He then oj^ened a drug store of his own in 
New Brunswick, locating in Allen's The- 
atre Ijuilding, where he has a finely- 

I linished and well-equipped establishment 
for dispensing drugs. He is a young re- 
publican, and active and zealous in the 
politics of his native city. 



OIDNEY HULSIZER, a hotel and res- 
^-^ taurant-keeper of New Brunswick, 
is a son of Nicholas and Mary Y. (Cook) 
Hulsizer, and was born April 22, 1867, 
at Readington, Hunterdon countj^, New 
Jersey. He received an elementary edu- 
cation in the public schools of Reading- 
ton. After serving in various clerkshiiis, 
he entei'ed the hotel business on his own 
account at East Millstone, and afterwards 
bought the Woodbridge Hotel at AVood- 
bridge, which he operated for nine years. 
Mr. Hulsizer is a thoi'ough republican, 
and a member of Americus Lodge, No. 
182, F. and A. M., of Woodbridge ; Tx-ibe 
No. 182, I. 0. R. M., of New Brumswick; 
Hiawatha Lodge, No. 110, Jr. 0. U. A. 
M., of East Millstone ; and Lodge No. 
324, B. P. O. E., of New Brunswick. 
His children are : Lillie May and Sidney 
Charles. 

His paternal grandfather, Samuel Hul- 
sizer, was a prosperous and respected 
farmer near Clinton, where he resided 
all his life, married, and as the result of 
said marriage became the father of five 
children. He died at a ripe age, and 
at the close of a useful career. 

Nicholas Hulsizer (fathei-) was born in 

1820, and was engaged in the hotel busi- 

I ness all his life. His children were : 

I William, John, Maggie, Lizzie, LeAana, 

Sidney and Mary. 



Biographical Sketches. 



879 



T~\ ANIEL BONHAM, a well-known gar- 
-'-^ dener, is a son of Thomas and 
Mary (Boone) Bonham, and was born at 
Northampton, England, March 20, 1834. 
In Nov., 1851, he came to the United 
States and spent five years at Bergen, 
New Jersey ; three years at Armstrong, 
New Jersey, and three years in New 
York state, conducting the gardening 
business with varying success at those 
places. He removed to New Brunswick 
in 1862, and after five years bought his 
present place of six acres on the road 
from New Brunswick to Bound Brook. 

Mr. Bonham has been twice married. 
In 1859 he wedded Miss Mary Motcheir, 
who died after having borne him four chil- 
dren : William, May Anna, Emma and 
Henry. He afterwards married Miss 
Eliza Black. 



/CHARLES W. SED AM, a justice of the 
^^ peace of New Brunswick, and an 
influential man of affairs of that city, is 
a son of E. and Anna E. (Cheeseman) 
Sedam, and was born Sept. 20, 1855, at 
New Brunswick. He was educated in 
the New Brunswick high school. After 
leaving school he became a telegraph 
operator, and afterwards chief clerk and 
collector for the Delaware and Raritan 
Canal Co. He resigned from this emplo}' 
and established an independent transpor- 
tation business. Mr. Sedam is a staunch 
republican in politics, has always taken 
an active part in local affairs, and was 
elected justice of the peace in the Fifth 
ward. New Brunswick, an office which 
he retains at the present time. He is 
also a notary public and commissioner of 
deeds. He is a charter member of the 
Knights of Honor, and a member of the 
First Presbyterian church, having been 
librarian in the primary department of 

46 



the Sunday-school for five years. On 
Feb. 3, 1880, he was marxied to Miss 
Amelia Hudnut, and they have had five 
children : Amelia M., Charles W., Jr., 
Fanny P., deceased; Walter B., and 
Frank B., deceased. Mr. Sedam is well 
known and respected throughout New 
Brunswick. 

R. Sedam, paternal grandfather, was 
born in New Brunswick, and was a 
farmer throughout his life. He was a 
whig in politics. He died in 1834, having 
been the father of four children : Sarah, 
R., Agnes, and Rachael. 

R. Sedam (father) is still living, and a 
respected citizen of New Brunswick, is a 
native of that city, and has been a car- 
penter all his life. His wife, who was 
Miss Anna E. Cheeseman, bore him 
thirteen children : Anna, deceased ; Jo- 
seph A., Katherine L., Rica, James, John 
S., George, Charles W., Henrj^ E., John 
I., Lillian, wife of Silas Christy; Minnie 
L., and Alice B. 



13 EV. OLE JACOBSEN, pastor of St. 
-'-^ Stephen's Danish Lutheran church, 
at Perth Amboy, Middlesex county, Ncav 
Jersey, is a son of Neils and Maren 
(Chrisen) Jacobseii, and was born June 
15, 1860, at Utland, Denmark. 

The grandfather, Jacob Neilson Jacob- 
sen, and likewise the father of our sub- 
ject, were natives of Denmark. Thej- 
each received a common-school educa- 
tion, and devoted their lives to farming. 

Rev. Jacobsen received his educational 
training in the public schools of Den- 
mark. He subsequently went to work 
on his father's farm, and there remained 
until he arrived at the age of twentj- 
years. He went to Copenhagen with the 
intention of becoming a lawyer, and, with 



880 



Biographical Sketches. 



that end in view, entered an oflfice and 
l)egan to read law. After studious appli- 
cation Ibr al)out eighteen months hi.s mind 
underwent a revulsion of feeling from that 
profession, and he connnenced a course of 
preparation for missionary labor in India, 
which occupied five years and six months. 
Ill health intervened to frustrate his long- 
cherished purpose, and his trip to India 
was abandoned. He came to this coun- 
try in 1887, and settled at Perth Amboy, 
where he at once commenced the labors 
of a missionary. He was ordained a 
minister of the Lutheran church Oct. 30, 

1887, and at once set to work to found a 
church and to erect a place of worship. 
His eiforts were soon blessed with a 
church edifice, which he christened the 
St. Stephen's Danish Lutheran church. 

Rev. Jacobsen was married June 15, 

1888, to Sophia (Chrisen) Henriksen, and 
both are tireless workers in the cause of 
Christ. In personality he is modest and 
unaffected. 



from South Amboy to Troy and Colioes, 
N. Y. In 1882 he embarked in clay and 
sand mining. In connection with this 
occupation, for five years he served the 
Adams Express Co. as its agent at South 
Amboy, and in the same town and for a 
like period of time he conducted a livery 
stable. 

In 1888 he opened a wholesale and re- 
tail feed, flour, grain and coal business at 
South Amboy. He is a stockholder, 
secretary, treasurer and general manager 
of the American Graphite Mining Co. 

He is a republican and in religion a 
Methodist, and a steward and trustee of 
the church. In fraternity he is a mem- 
ber of St. Stephen's Lodge, No. 63, Free 
and Accepted Masons. Mr. La Hue 
was married June 24, 1891, to Mary L. 
Thomas. 



r^ A. L.\ HUE, a wholesale and retail 
^<-^' dealer in coal, flour, grain and feed 
at South Amboy, Middlesex county, New 
Jersey, is a son of John and Celesta (Mar- 
rel) La Hue, and was born Jan. 11, 1839, 
in Dresden, Washington county, N. Y. 

G. A. La Hue, after leaving the com- 
mon schools, learned the milling trade, 
and for three years was manager at Cen- 
tre Ilartinrd, Windsor county, Vt.,ofthe 
Hope Mills. He al.so ran a mill for two 
years at White Hall, N. Y. 

He pin-chased a number of canal-boats 
and for twenty ^ears conducted a suc- 
cessful Ijusiness as a freigiiter to New 
York city, Rome, N. Y., Montreal, Can- 
ada, and New Haven, Conn. He later 
was engaged in the transportation of sand 



T OUGHLEY NUNALLY was born at 
-*-^ New Orleans, La., in 1871, and is 
a son of William A. and Sai'ah A. (Chee- 
oers) Nunallj . The origin of this well- 
known famil}^ is English, and the par 
ternal grandfather was a wealthy planter 
and lived at Huntsville, Ala. He was a 
democrat and a member of the Presby- 
terian church. His famil}^ of children 
consisted of John C, William A., and 
Carrie, who died unmarried. 

AVilliam A. Nunally was born at Hunts- 
ville, Ala., in 1837. He was given a lib- 
eral college education at several different 
colleges. And when he had attained his 
majority was in charge of the California 
branch of the Wells Fargo Express Co. 
He visited South America and accepted 
a position as checker of a Pacific steam- 
boat company, which position he held 
until he contracted the fever, and was 
compelled to resign. He became con- 
nected with the St. Charles Hotel at 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



883 



New Orleans, as assistant steward, for 
twelve years. He then became steward 
of the West End Hotel of Long Branch. 
Politically he was a democrat, and his 
marriage with Sarah A. Cheeoers was 
blessed with seven children : Florence, 
Loughley, Louis, Atwood, Blakeley, Rey- 
mond, and Alma. 

Loughley Nunally spent his early boy- 
hood days in New Orleans. He there 
attended a private school, and later fin- 
ished his education in the high school 
of Long Branch. He then became a 
clerk in the Windsor Hotel, at New York 
city. 

On May 23, 1893, he was appointed 
postmaster by Postmaster-General Bis- 
sell, and at that time was the youngest 
oflGcial of that rank in the state. Mr. 
Nunally is a notary public and a promi- 
nent and energetic young business man. 
He is a democrat in political faith and an 
active supporter of his party. 



GEORGE B. SNYDER, an extensive 
oyster dealer of Fair Haven, mem- 
ber of the New Jersey assembly from 
Monmouth county, and a promin<3nt rep- 
resentative of commercial and political 
interests in Shrewsbui-y township, was 
born in 1842 at Fair Haven. The name 
is of German origin, and has been promi- 
nently identified with the prosperity of 
this section of the coast for three genera- 
tions. 

Jacob Snyder (paternal grandfather) 
settled at Sea Bright in 1783. He was 
an industrious and prosperous farmer in 
Shrewsbury township throughout his life, 
was a staunch democrat in politics, and 
a leading member of the Lutheran church 
at Sea Bright. His children were : An- 
drew, George, deceased ; Robert, William, 



deceased ; Alexander, deceased ; Marga- 
ret, deceased ; Elizabeth, wife of D. M. 
Ream, deceased; and Susan. He died 
March 14, 1869, at the age of ninety-six 
years. 

George B. Snyder received his educa- 
tional training at the public schools of 
Fair Haven. Immediately upon the 
completion of his studies, he engaged in 
the oyster business, and has been en- 
gaged in that business ever since. He is 
in co-partnership with Mr. Allen, the 
firm being known as Snyder & Allen, 
and they are among the largest dealers in 
oysters upon this famous oyster-growing 
section of the Jersey coast. Mr. Snyder 
is a leader in Shrewsbury township poli- 
tics, his affiliations being with the Repub- 
lican party, and he has held nearly all 
the local offices in the town of Fair 
Haven. He has been a member of the 
board of education for twenty-five years, 
and is at present president of that body. 
He was elected a member of the New 
Jersey assembly in 1895, from Mon- 
mouth county, and has shown himself an 
energetic and able representative of his 
constituency. He is also a freeholder of 
Shrewsbury township, a position which 
he has held for eight years, and is promi- 
nently identified with several building 
and loan associations. 

On Jan. 15, 1868, he was married to 
Miss Phoebe Patterson, daughter of J. 
M. Patterson, of Jersey City, and they 
have seven children : Grant P., George 
B., Jr., Robert, Edward, Elmira and 
Helen. 

Mr. Snyder is a thoroughly progres- 
sive, energetic business man, and pos- 
sesses high qualities of both head and 
heart which have given him a wide popu- 
larity and esteem among his fellow-citi- 
zens. He has exerted a beneficent influ- 



884 



BioGRAPHiCAi, Sketches. 



ence upon the popularity of Fair Haven, 
ami lias always taken an especial interest 
in the advance of educational matters. 



ANDREW ANDERSON, an enterpris- 
ing and successful grocer of Perth 
Aniboy, Middlesex county, New Jersey, 
was horn in Dec, 1849. 

Andrew Anderson received a common- 
school education, after which he learned 
the trade of a wheelwright, which he fol- 
lowed for several years. His children 
were : David, Susan, John, Andrew, An- 
nie, Nelson, and Otto. 

Andrew Anderson began life as a cat- 
tle-herder. He then learned the mason 
trade, and subsequently the butcher trade, 
and opened a meat business of his own at 
Perth Amlx)y. He later engaged in the 
same business at Woodbridge and other 
places. In Oct., 1891, he returned to 
Perth Auiboy, where he opened his pres- 
ent grocery store and meat market. 

Mr. Anderson is a republican in politi- 
cal matters, and in religious aflairs he is 
a member of the Lutheran church. His 
children are: Annie, Bertha, Andrew, Jr., 
Patrick, Henry, and Christine. 



13 EV. ALEXANDER H. YOUNG, D.D., 
-*-*' pastor of the Presbyterian church 
of Matawau, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, is a son of Rev. Robert and 
Catharine Young. Rev. Alexander H. 
Young attended the public schools of 
Louisville, Ky., and subsequently tho.se 
of Cincinnati, Oiiio, whither the fiimilv 
had rcniovfcl. His collegiate education 
was obtained in the Miami Universitv, at 
Oxford, Ohio, and Lane Seminary, Wal- 
nut Hills, Ohio. He was ordained to the 
work of the Presb^'terian ministry and 



installed in his first charge at South 
Salem, Ohio, which he held from 1864 to 
1869. 

From 1869 to 1872 he was pastor of 
the Oxford, Ohio, Presbyterian church, 
and during his residence in that town he 
was appointed a trustee of Miami Uni- 
versity. 

In 1872 he received a call to the 
pastorate of the Reformed church of 
Greenville, Jersey City, New Jersey, 
which he served as its first pastor, until 
1881, a term of nine years. In 1883 he 
assumed charge of the Presbyterian 
church at Newton, New Jersey, where 
he remained for nine years. 

On Dec. 17, 189.3, he was iuA'ited to 
preach in the Presbyterian church of 
Matawan, and on the following Sundaj', 
at a congregational meeting, he was 
chosen its pastor. 

Dr. Young was united in marriage to 
Sarah Everett Oliver, youngest daughter 
of Dr. David and Mary Wade Oliver, 
March 16, 1869. The issue of this 
union was three sons : A. Oliver, de- 
ceased ; Harvey W., and Robert S. 



T GUIS A. SCHNAUTZ, a prominent 
-'-^ floiist of Freehold, New Jersej-, is 
of German birth and ancestry. He is a 
son of Ignatz Schnautz, and was born in 
Baden, June 20, 1830. His father was 
educated at Baden, and then embraced 
the trade of gunsmith, which he followed 
in German}^ until 1851, when he emi- 
grated to the United States. Of his 
family of ten children, three of them, 
Edward, Chrisent (deceased), and Louis 
R., came to this country with him. 

Louis R. Schnautz received a public- 
school education in Germany, after which 
he learned the trade of gunsmith, follow- 



Biographical Sketches. 



885 



ing it in Germany, and for one year in 
New York. He then removed to Colt's 
Neck, Monmouth county, New Jersey, 
where he followed farming for a short 
time. In August, 1853, he came to Free- 
hold, and again embraced his trade, in 
which he has had a steady and successful 
career. During the civil war he was em- 
ployed by the United States Government 
in the arsenal at Washington, D. C., as a 
gunsmith, for two years. In 1890, he 
established the florist business at Free- 
hold. He is an enterprising and public- 
spirited citizen ; an independent repub- 
lican in local politics, and on national 
issues invariably votes the prohibition 
ticket. He is a member and steward of 
the Freehold Methodist Episcopal church, 
in which he is an active worker. He is 
a member of the Freehold Lodge of Odd 
Fellows, having joined the society in 
1860, and for a number of years was one 
of its officers. 

Mr. Schnautz has been twice married, 
his first wife having been Catherine 
Mertz, of Baden, Germany. His second 
wife was Mary Bennett, of Freehold. 



"D H. HUGHES, a well-known builder 
-*-*>' and contractor of Long Branch, 
New Jersey, is a son of Richard Hughes 
and was born in Mercer county, New 
Jersey, May 24, 1853. 

Richard Hughes (father) was born in 
Mercer county, New Jersey, Oct. 27, 
1806, and was reared on his father's 
farm, meanwhile attending the common 
schools of his native township. Upon 
arriving at the age of manhood he en- 
gaged in agricultural pursuits, which he 
continued successfully for life. He sup- 
ported the republican party and took an 
active part in the political affairs of his 
district, and also was interested in the 



cause of education, serving as school 
trustee for some years. He was an earn- 
est worker in the cause of religion and a '' 
devoted member of the Presbyterian 

i church. 

His marriage was blessed with the fol- 
lowing children : Theodore, born Jan. 4, 
1831 ; Amanda (Mrs. F. Coverly), Nov. 
11, 1835 ; Marshall, Nov. 11, 1835, de- 
ceased ; Eleanor (Mrs. Selvas Coverly), 

: Nov. 11, 1835; Herom, May 12, 1840; 
Andrew, July 19, 1842 ; Alfred, March 
18, 1844; Anna Mary, May 4, 1846; 
William H., June 6, 1848 ; Theodosia, 

i July 2, 1850 ; Richard H., May 24, 
1863 ; Rebecca Alice, Aug. 27, 1856. 

I Richard Hughes died at Princeton, New 
Jersey, Oct. 11, 1888, but his wife still 
survives. 

Richard H. Hughes (subject) attended 
the common schools, and subsequently 
graduated from the Model School at 
Trenton, New Jersey, with the class of 
1878. He learned the carpenter trade, 
and first worked in Philadelphia, later in 
Trenton, and finally located in Long 
Branch, where he has since been engaged 
in extensive building operations, and has 
become a prominent contractor and 
builder. Politically Mr. Hughes is a re- 
publican, and is an aggressive worker in 
the party. He has for three years been 
commissioner of Long Branch, and has 
become a prominent factor in political 
and public affairs in that city. He is a 
member of the Presbyterian church, and 
has served as trustee of the same. He is 
widely known in fraternal circles, being 
a member of the following orders : Ma- 
sonic Order ; Long Branch Lodge, No. 
78 ; Steward Chapter, No. 35 ; Corson 
Commandery, No. 15, Mecca Temple of 
New York ; and the Knights of Pythias, 
No. 85. 



886 



Biographical Sketches. 



R. H. Hughes married Jennie Van 
Camp, daughter of James and Amanda 
Van Camp, Feb. 11, 1880, and to them 
have been born two children : Mervin, 
born Nov. 12, 1880, and Oliver, Nov. 27, 
1883. =^=__ 

SAMUEL MARRYOTT, for many years 
one of the most successful contractors 
and builders of Jamesburg, was born in 
Milltown, Middlesex county. New Jer- 
sey, Dec. 7, 182.3. He is the son of Ed- 
mund and Maria (Farmer) Marryott. 

Edmund Marryott (father) was among 
those who have turned their attention 
entirely and successfully^ to agricultural 
pursuits. He was liberally educated, and 
for some jears was superintendent of the 
" Poor Farm " of Middlesex county, was 
a presbyterian in religious doctrines, and 
served his church at Ci'anbury in several 
oflficial capacities. Politically Mr. Marry- 
ott was at first a staunch whig, and be- 
came no less a substantial part of the 
Republican party upon its organization. 
Believing that our form of government 
demands that the individual is, in a large 
measure, responsible for the welfare of the 
state, he always took an active part in 
the affairs of the public. His children 
are : Samuel, Frederick, and Edmund, 
who died in 1887. Edmund Marryott, 
St., died in 1878, and his wife in 1864. 

Samuel lilarryott received a common- 
school education, and early in life showed 
a tendency for mechanical work. He 
learned the trade of carpenter and 
builder, and began his successful career 
more than forty 3ears ago in Jamesburg 
and vicinity. When Mr. Marryott first 
came to Jamesburg it contained only 
twelve houses, and was then called West 
Turmont. Thus it may be seen that he 
was identified with the early history of 



his town, and it is clear how materially 
he has contributed to its growth and de- 
velopment. His operations as a builder 
are not confined to his own town. Mr. 
Marryott early in life yielded to the gen- 
tle influences that prompt one to the bet- 
ter life, and at the age of twenty-two 
united with the church, moving from 
Cranbury in 1854, and became one of 
the original eleven members who built 
and founded the Jamesburg Presbyterian 
church, in which he has always been an 
active and devoted member and officer. 
His political thoughts and deductions 
are in line with the purposes of the Repub- 
lican party, of which he has always been 
an active supporter. His fellow-voters 
have honored him with many offices, and 
at present he fills the position of justice 
of the peace. Mr. Marryott's military rec- 
ord began in the dark days of the sixties, 
when he and a brave young son, Peter 
Bergen Marryott, enlisted in the gallant 
Twenty-eighth New Jersey volunteers. 
Company B. Father and son marched 
shoulder to shoulder, taking part in all 
the actions of their regiment, and the 
father fell wounded before the iron sleet 
and hail that rained with such terrible 
slaughter from the heights of Fredericks- 
burg. Having served nine months he re- 
tired with an honorable discharge to his 
home, in Jamesburg. He is an active 
member of the G. A. R. Post of that 
[)lace. Samuel Marryott married Anna 
Maria Griggs, daughter of John W. 
Griggs. This highly-esteemed lady died 
while her husband and son were at the 
front fighting for their home and coun- 
try. The children born to I>Ir. Marrj'ott 
and his estimable wife are : Peter Ber- 
gen, the gallant soldier lad above referred 
to, and who was formerly an architect 
and builder, but who now is the chief of 



BlOGRAPHICAI. SkBTCHES. 



887 



the bureau of building inspectors of the 
city of Brooklyn, N. Y.; Maria Adelia, 
deceased ; Anna Maria, the wife of Cal- 
vin Bell, deceased; Horatio C, now a 
contractor and builder at Asbury Park, 
New Jersey ; John Edmund, who resides 
with his father, and is general agent for 
the Girard Fire, Prudential Life, and 
Hillsborough Fire Insurance companies. 
He is a member of the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, and the Junior 
Order of American Mechanics. He is also 
very active in the work of the Jamesburg 
Presbyterian church, to which he belongs. 
He is assistant superintendent of the 
Sunday-school, township secretary of the 
County Sunday-school Association, and 
has been voted a life member of the 
Christian Endeavor Society. He is a re- 
publican in political opinion, and is ac- 
tively interested in the welfare of his 
party, and the success of its principles. 
Samuel Marryott has been the architect 
of his own fortunes ; not only does he hold 
deeds to property in Jamesburg, New 
Brunswick and Asbury Park ; not only 
has he ever performed his duty as a 
loyal patriot, a useful citizen by service 
on the field of battle, by his wholesome 
advice in the borough councils, or by his 
untiring devotion to the interests of his 
church and the public schools of his town 
and county, but he has also given to his 
state and nation a family of sons and 
daughters who have invariably proved 
themselves men and women of worth 
and influence. 



I 



in Holland, and completed his philo- 
sophical and theological course in the 
English Seminary, at Bruge, Belgium. 
He was duly ordained, Dec. 24, 1871, at 
that place, and for two years was on the 
mission in England, thence in 1873 he 
came to America, and was received by 

I the Most Reverend Bishop Corrigan, then 
bishop of the Newark Diocese, and was 
appointed curate at the church of the 

! Immaculate Conception in Camden, New 
Jersey, where he remained until 1877, 
when he was appointed pastor of St. 
Joseph's church, at Bound Brook, New 
Jersey. In Dec, 1882, he was trans- 
ferred by the Right Reverend Bishop 

j O'Ferrell, of the Trenton Diocese, to 
Somerville, for the purpose of there es- 
tablishing a mission, in which undertak- 
ing he has enjoyed much spiritual and 
temporal blessing. The beautiful church, 
the handsome parochial residence, a large 
cemetery, besides other material results, 
eminently attest the good he has accom- 
plished in this new pai'ish. The twenty- 
fifth anniversary of his pastorate will be 
celebrated on Christmas, 1896. Reverend 
Bogaard deserves special praise for the 
religious influence he has made in the es- 
tablishing of his church at Somerville, the 
blessings of which can only be realized 
as the society continues to grow. 



"p M. ANDREW BOGAARD, the popu- 
-'-*'• lar pastor of the church of the 
Immaculate Conception, at Somerville, 
New Jersey, was born in May, 1839, 
at Vechel, Holland. He was educated 



SAMUEL R. MANNING, a well-known 
farmer of South Plainfield, Piscata- 
way township, Somerset county, is a son 
of David and Rhoda (Runyon) Manning, 
and was born July 3, 1835. 

The ancestry of the Manning family 
traces its source to Scotland, and is inter- 
mingled subsequently with the blood of 
the Emerald Isle. Of this Scotch-Irish 
stock, three brothers emigrated to Amer- 



888 



Biographical Sketches. 



ica, ami located, one in the state of Rhode 
Island, another in Amboy, New Jersey, 
and the third in Piscataway township. 
The latter was Jeremiah Manning, tlie 
great-great-grandfather. David Maiming, 
the son of Jeremiah Manning, and grand- 
father of our subject, was a well-known 
farmer in Piscataway township, where 
he owned and tilled a very large tract of 
land. He enlisted in the war of 1812, 
as captain. His children were : Sarah, 
married to William Drake ; Gertrude, 
Rachel, Lockie, Jane, Elizabeth and 
David. 

David Manning (father) was bom in 
Piscataway township, Middlesex county, 
and attended the common schools in that 
township. He then entered a grocery 
and dry-goods store at New Market, New 
Jersey, where he continued for a short 
time. He then removed to the farm in 
Piscataway township, where he resided, 
and engaged in Airtning for the remainder 
of his life. In politics he was a whig 
and a republican. He was the father of 
the following ciiildren : Elizabeth, Ren- 
nie B., William H., and Samuel R. The 
f^xther died in 1886, in the seventy- 
seventh year of his age. 

Samuel R. Manning- attended the public 
schools of Pis<:atawa3' township, and then 
learned the carriage-maker's trade at 
Newark, New Jersey, and worked at it 
until he was twenty-two years old. He 
then started in business for himself at 
Plainfield, New Jersey, and conducted 
the same until 1865, when he bought the 
farm lie at present occupies. He is an 
active republican in politics, and exer- 
cises considerable influence in the politi- 
cal circles of the township. He has been 
town committeeman, and a member of 
the court of appeals for the past four or 
five years. He was married, in 1860, to 



Miss Rebecca A. Williamson, and to him 
was born by this marriage the following 
children : William D., Franklin B., Mar- 
quis Ward, and Rebecca W., who died in 
infancy. He then married Miss Alice 
Weeks, and to him have been born by 
tiiis marriage the following children : 
Albert W., Charles C, Elmer S., Maria, 
who died in infancy. His second wife 
died, and, in 1889, he married a Mrs. 
Hawkins, the widow of Miller Hawkins. 



TTENRY KINSEY, the fourth son of 
-* — L John and Emeline (Williams) 
Kinsey, was born at Perth Amboy, New 
Jersey, on Oct. -3, 1848. 

His grandfather, Jonathan Kinsey, the 
elder, was one of the eai-ly settlers in this 
section of the state. Among his children 
were : Benjamin, Phoebe, Sarah Ann, 
Susan, Frances, Betsey, and Jonathan. 

John Kinsey (father) was born in 
Woodbridge to^\^lship, near Kinsey's Cor- 
ner, Middlesex countv. He was an old- 
line whig, and later a republican. He 
was also an active member and a class 
leader in the Methodist Episcopal church. 
His children were : Foster, who now re- 
sides in Dakota; Edmund, resided in 
Seattle, deceased ; Benjamin, Henry, Al- 
fred, resides in Missouri ; Phoebe, widow 
of John Harvey, who was killed in the 
battle of Fredericksburg ; Mary, the wife 
of Theodore Larison ; Sarah, wife of 
Samuel Smith, a farmer living in Illinois ; 
and Adeliah, wife of F. A. Munday, who 
also resides in the latter state. His wife, 
the mother of our subject, died in 1883, 
at the age of seventh-four years. He 
died in 1887, aged eightj^-seven j-ears. 

Henry Kinsey received a common- 
school education, then clerked in a store 
a short time, when he engaged in clay 



Biographical Sketches. 



889 



raining for the next six years. At the 
end of this time he started in the wood 
business, under the firm name of Kinsey 
Brothers, but the business has since been 
made to inchide the retaiUng of coal. 
They were burnt out in 1895, suffering 
heavy loss. He is a staunch adherent 
of the Republican party, and was elected 
overseer of the poor in 1894. He is also 
a communicant of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church, and very active in church 
work. He has been married twice : first 
to Catharine Liddle, who died shortly 
after the marriage. He married his 
second wife, Christiana D. Hope, on Nov. 
6, 1878. The following are their chil- 
dren : Howard, Katie, Grace, deceased; 
Fanny, Eddie, and Bertha and Agnes, 
twins, deceased. 



TTOWARD WESSELLS, an active and 
-'—'- prominent politician of New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, is the son of Andrew 
and Katharine Wessells, and was born 
Nov. 19, 1850, in that city. His paternal 
grandfather was a progressive and well- 
to-do farmer, and had thi'ee children : 
John, William and Charles. 

Andrew Wessells (father) after complet- 
ing his education at the public schools, 
learned the carriage-making trade, and 
came to New Brunswick in 1850, to make 
that his permanent home, and establish 
his business on a firmer and broader foun- 
dation. This he was successful in doing, 
and for many years carried on an exten- 
sive business, and accumulated a hand- 
some competency. During the war he 
was a deputy United States marshal. 
He is a member of St. James' church. 
To his wife, who died in 1894, were born 
five children : William (who died at an 
early age), Howard, Sarah (deceased), 
James and George. 



Howard Wessels left the public schools 
at the age of sixteen years, and engaged 
in the book and stationery business, in 
which he remained for twelve j^ears. In 
the meantime he was appointed deputy- 
sherift' of Middlesex county under Sheriff 
Roberts, in which position he remained 
during the incumbency of Mr. Roberts. 
He has also been clerk of the court for 
two years. Mr. Wessells is a member of 
the masonic order, being a past-master 
as well as a Knight Templar. 



yOHN DICKSON, a noted inventor and 
" manufacturer of New Brunswick, 
was born in England in 1853. His pater- 
nal grandfather, likewise named John, 
was an extensive and prosperous manu- 
facturer of soap in England, and reputed 
as a man of substance and character. He 
was a member of the Protestant Episco- 
pal church, and one of its most active 
workers. The fruits of his marriage 
were four sons : John, James, David and 
Henry. 

John Dickson (father), after graduat- 
ing from the public school, joined his 
father in business, and eventually suc- 
ceeded him as a manufacturer. He be- 
came a member of the Episcopal church 
early in life, and was always a zealous 
worker in it. To his marriage were born 
five children : Joseph, Francis, John, 
Martha, and Emma. 

Our subject came to the United States 
in 1872, being then nineteen years of age. 
Previous to this he had received a sound 
education in the English public schools, 
and had been taught the trade of a ma- 
chinist. On his arrival in this country 
he made the city of Philadelphia his 
home, and then entered into the employ 
of the well-known establishment of Wil- 
liam Sellers & Co., with whom he re- 



890 



Biographical Sketches. 



mained for a number of years. Being 
pos.ses.sed of a stiulioiis turn of mind, 
vvliich was allied to a commendable am- 
biti<m to improve his condition, he zeal- 
ously and clo-sel}' applied himself to the 
study of the mechanical sciences. Such 
was his success, added to a natural in- 
ventive talent, that he succeeded in ob- 
taining a United States patent for a me- 
chanical invention before he had reached 
his twenty-first year. 

Mr. Dickson removed from Philadel- 
phia to New Brunswick in 1886, and con- 
nected himself with the New Brunswick 
Consolidated Fruit Jar Co. of that city. 
With this companj' he remained until the 
year 1893, when he entered into his 
present business on his own account as a 
manufacturer of metal goods, making a 
specialty of the manufacture of a bicycle 
pump, of which he is the inventor, and 
for which he has made a reputation of a 
high character. The business was re- 
cently changed from the individual pro- 
prietorship of Mr. Dickson to that of an 
incorporated company, of which he is the 
president and active manager. Mr. Dick- 
son is a member of the American Legion 
of Honor. To his marriage have been 
born two children : Henry and Anna. 



TOIIX D. WATSON, ROBERT W. WAT- 
" SON .\Ni) FRANK E. WATSON, com- 
posing the well-known firm of J. D. 
Watson & Co., manufacturers of paints 
and colors at New Brunswick, are .sons of 
Robert B. and Marie II. (Dean) Watson, 
and were born as follows : John D., Feb. 
2, 1852; Robert W., May 1, 1860; 
Frank E., Feb. 26, 1862. All are natives 
of New York city, where they received 
common-school educations. Their father, 
Robert B. Watson, was born in Glasgow, I 



Scotland, where he was a block-cutter in 
a wall-paper factory. He died Dec. 25, 
18G7. 

John, Robert and Frank, our subjects, 
served apprenticeships in the paint busi- 
ness in earl>^ life. They removed to 
New Brunswick, and formed the present 
co-partnership in 1882. They first es- 
tablished their business in a small build- 
ing at Catherine and Washington streets, 
then removed to the Parsons building on 
Neilson street, and on April 15, 1890, 
purchased the site of their present estab- 
lishment on Water street. The ground 
is 120 feet x 120 feet, upon which they 
erected in 1890 a three-story brick 
building. 

John D. Watson, the senior member of 
the firm, is a republican in politics and 
a member of the Episcopal church at 
New Brunswick. In 1878 he was mar- 
ried to Miss Kate Pendergrast, by whom 
he has three children : John M., Archi- 
bald and Ida. 

Robert W. Watson is a republican in 
politics, and a member of the first Pres- 
byterian church of New Brunswick. In 
1892 he enlisted in the Third regiment, 
N. G. N. J., and is now first lieutenant of 
Company D. He is a member of Good 
Will Council, No. 32, Jr. 0. U. A. M. ; 
Friendship Lodge, K. of P. ; Lodge No. 
324, B. P. 0. E. ; Scottish Rite Masons, 
Knights Templar, and New York Temple, 
Ancient Order Arabic of Mystic Shi-ine, 
and Lodge No. 1015, Royal Arcanum. 
He is actively interested in out-door sports 
and is a member of the New Brunswick 
Boat Club and the Ncav Brunswick Gun 
Club. On Feb. 15, 1888, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Mary D. Whitehead, and 
they have three children : Harold L., 
Florence C, and Robert B. 

Frank E. Watson is a republican in 



Biographical Sketches. 



891 



politics and a member of the First Dutch 
Reformed church of New Brunswick. 
He is a member of ReUef Council, No. 
40, Jr. 0. U. A. M.; Lodge No. 1015, 
Rojal Arcanum, and Adelphia Council. 
He was married Sept. 24, 1884, to Miss 
Elizabeth Painter, bj whom he has had 
four children : Russell, Parker, F. Leon, 
and Dudley. 



/CAPTAIN SAMUEL W. HORNSBY, 
^^ well known in shipping circles, and 
one of the most active citizens of Perth 
Amboy, New Jersey, is a son of John 
and Mary Ann (Horsey) Hornsby, and 
was born at Bristol, England, April 9, 
1849. 

Samuel Hornsby (paternal grandfa- 
ther) lived in England, where he was 
engaged in the manufacture of bricks 
for many years. He became the father 
of the following children : Samuel, Eliza- 
beth and John. 

John Hornsby was born in England. 
He entered the employ of his father and 
learned the brick business, and for ten 
years was a foreman for him. In 1857 
Mr. Hornsby came to America and lo- 
cated in Brooklyn, N. Y., where he se- 
cured employment in the navy yard. 
He then spent six months in the Blayen 
Star Brick Works on Staten Island; 
thence at Sandford, Conn., as a brick 
moulder, engaging in a partnership in 
the same business for only a short time. 
He was later employed at New Haven, 
and then at Crow's Mills, Conn., where 
he took charge of a fire-brick establish- 
ment, and ran the business successfully 
on his own account up to 1889, after 
which he was engaged in contracting for 
clay work until his death, Sept. 13, 1895. 
Politically he was a republican, and in 
religious matters coincided with the be- 



lief of the Latter-Day Saints. He was 
the father of nine children : Samuel, 
Jane, John, dead ; Joseph, dead ; Libby, 
Samantha, James, Thomas, deceased ; 
and Alice. 

Samuel W. Hornsby attended the pub- 
lic schools of Stamford, Conn., and at 
the age of fourteen years learned brick- 
making. He then turned his attention 
to freighting by water, and has continued 
that until the present time. He takes 
an active and lively interest in the po- 
litical affairs of his city, and, as a repub- 
lican, stands high as a reliable party 
worker. He is at present serving his 
second term as a member of the board of 
aldermen. He is a member of the Pro- 
testant Episcopal church, and is well 
known in fraternal circles, being a mem- 
ber of the following orders : Raritan 
Lodge, No. 61, Masonic; Order of Odd 
Fellows for twenty-six years ; and the 
Washington Hose, No. 2, Fire Depart- 
ment, for six years. 

On July 26, 1872, Samuel W. Hornsby 
married Miss Jane Gordon. This union 
has resulted in the birth of seven chil- 
dren : John, Emma, Nettie, Susan, Henry, 
deceased ; Joseph and Willie. 



IV/riCHAEL WELSH, proprietor of the 
-^-*- Railroad Hotel at South Amboy, 
and a prominent man in the public af- 
fairs of that town, is a son of Oliver and 
Marguerite (Bergen) Welsh, and was 
born, Jan. 12, 1851, in Ireland. 

His father, Oliver Welsh, was a native 
of Ireland, and a descendant of a wealthy 
and influential family in that country. 
He came to the United States in 1855, 
and spent ten years at Kingston, New 
Jersey, where he was first employed as a 
repairman on the railroad, and was sub- 



892 



Biographical Sketches. 



sequently promoted to the position of 
foreman. He was an active democrat in 
political affairs, and a devoted member 
of the Roman Catholic cliurch. His wife 
was Marguerite Bergen, by whom he had 
seven children : Lawrence, Katherine. 
John, Ellen, Michael, Patrick, and Mar- 
guerite. He died in 1874, his wife hav- 
ing preceded him in 1854. 

Michael Welsh received a good public- 
school education at Kingston, New Jer- 
sey. At the age of seventeen years he 
drove a mule team on the Delaware and 
Raritan canal for a short time, and then 
spent seven years in the employ of J. B. 
Woodward & Co., general storekeepers at 
Bordentown, New Jersey, where he began 
by driving a delivery team, and was sub- 
sequently promoted to a responsible cler- 
ical position. He then engaged in the 
grocery business near Weston, which 
he conducted successfully for eighteen 
months, and was afterwards engaged in 
the same business at South Amboy for 
three years. He later became proprietor 
of the Railroad Hotel at South Amboy, 
and has remained at the head of that 
well-known hostelry ever since. He is at 
present actively identified with Demo- 
cratic politics. He was a member of the 
borough council of South Amboy for 
three years, a member of the board of 
chosen Freeholders for eight years, and a 
director of that body for three years. 
His religious afliliations are with the 
Roman Catholic church. 

On Feb. 17, 1872, he was married to 
Miss Margaret Coughlin, by whom he 
has had ten children : Margaret, Oliver, 
deceased ; Joseph, deceased ; Mary, de- 
ceased ; John, deceased ; Oliver, George, 
Michael, Francis, Sylvester, and Helen. 



npnOMAS LOVELY, a well-known and 
-^ successful hardware dealer and tin- 
worker at South Amboy, is a son of Luke 
and Ann (Landy) Lovely, and was born 

I Feb. 22, 1869, at Port Jervis, N. Y. His 
paternal grandfather, Thomas Lovely, 
was a laborer at Middletown, N. Y., 

: where he acquired a comfortable home- 
stead. His childi-en Avere : John A., 
Luke, Maria, and Mary. He died in 
1864, and our subject's grandmother died 
in 1877. 

Luke Lovely is at present an expert 
machinist in the Pennsylvania railroad 
shops at South Amboy, and was born at 
Middletown, N. Y. He learned the trade 
of a machine blacksmith in his boyhood, 
at Moni'oe, N. Y., and was subsequently 
in the employ of the New York, Lake 
Erie and Western railway, at their shops 
at Jersey City for two years, and at Port 
Jervis, N. Y., for two vears and a half. 
He then entered the Camden and Amboy 
shops at Bordentown, New Jersey, where 
he remained for five years. He then 

I located at South Amboy, and has been 
employed in the Pennsylvania railroad 
shops there ever since. He is a demo- 

1 crat in politics, and an adherent of the 
Roman Catholic church. He is a promi- 
nent member of the Catholic Benevolent 
League, and of the Father Kelly Bene- 
volent Society of South Amboy. He 
married Miss Ann Landy, by whom he 
has had seven children : Thomas, Mar- 

j guerite, deceased ; Mary, Charles, John, 
Luke, deceased ; and Henry, deceased. 

Thomas Lovelj^ was educated in the 
public schools of South Amboy. At the 
age of fourteen years he learned the tin- 
smith trade with Henry Timmons, at 
South Amboy, and subsequently remained 

j in his employ until 1890. He then 
formed a business co-partnership with 



Biographical Sketches. 



893 



James Carberry, under the firm name of 
Carberry & Lovely, and they conducted 
a successful busmess as hardware dealers 
and tin and sheet-iron workers until 
1893, when the firm was dissolved. Mr. 
Lovely has since continued the business 
under his own name. He is a democrat 
in politics, a Roman Catholic in religion, 
and is a leading member of the St. Mary's 
Temperance Society. On Feb. 24, 1892, 
he married Miss Nellie Rea, and they 
have two children : Luke and Nellie. 



T30BERT J. SMITH, manager of the 
-*-*' Atlantic and Pacific Tea Co.'s ex- 
tensive business in New Brunswick, and 
a pi'ominent member of the board of 
education of that city, is a son of Wil- 
liam and Hannah (MacGill) Smith, and 
was born April 4,1858, in county Tyrone, 
Ireland. His ancestry was Irish on his 
father's side, and Scotch on his mother's 
side. His father, William Smith, was an 
extensive stock-raiser and farmer in Ire- 
land, and an unflinching member of the 
Protestant Episcopal church. His chil- 
dren were : Matthew, Priscilla, Robert 
J., Archibald, Sarah Ann, Thomas B., 
William J., Andrew, and Hannah. Mr. 
Smith died in May, 1894. 

Robert J. Smith was educated in 
private schools in county Tyrone, and 
came to the United States in 1875. He 
entered the employ of the Atlantic and 
Pacific Tea Co., in New York city, in the 
wrapping department, was subsequently 
promoted to the retail department, and, 
in 1877, was sent to New Brunswick to 
act as clerk in the company's store in that 
city, where his brother, Matthew, was 
manager, and later he assumed charge of 
the business, which position he has held 
ever since. Mr. Smith is an active re- 



publican in politics. In 1893 he was 
elected a member of the board of educa- 
tion, and was re-elected in 1895. He 
has served on several committees, and 
has done much to advance the city's 
school interests. He is prominently 
identified with Christ's Protestant Epis- 
copal church, and is a member of Lodge 
No. 320, F. and A. M. ; Knights of 
Pythias, and the Odd Fellows. He is 
also a charter member of the New Bruns- 
wick Boat Club, and the New Brunswick 
Gun Club. In the autumn of 1887 he 
was married to Miss Jennie V. Dey, by 
whom he has had four children : Robert 
Pickett, deceased ; Helen, Raymond 
Dey, and Dorothy. 



TOSEPH M. MILLEE, proprietor of the 
^ Park House, New Brunswick, and 
alderman from the Second ward of that 
city, was born Oct. 27, 1832. He came 
to the United States in the autumn of 
1847, and first located at Delaware City, 
Del., where he spent a year and a 
half learning harness-making. He then 
worked on the Susquehanna Canal for 
some time, and was subsequently em- 
ployed on a steamboat. In 1868 he 
entered the saloon business at the foot of 
Commercial avenue. New Brunswick, 
where he remained for five years, at the 
end of which time he returned to boating, 
and for two years was in charge of one 
of the Lehigh Valley Railroad Co.'s tugs 
plying between Perth Amboy and New 
York. In 1876 he established a saloon 
on Pea street. New Brunswick ; later he 
leased the Commercial Hotel, now known 
as the Park House, which he has con- 
tinued to operate ever since. 

Mr. Miller is a republican in politics, 
and in 1894 was elected on the ticket of 



894 



Biographical Sketches. 



that party as aldonnan from the Second 
ward, New Brunswick, and re-elected in 
1896. He was a nieml)er of Engine 
Company No. 14 of the New Brunswick 
fire department, for about eight years. 
In 1850 he was married to Miss Eliza- 
beth O'Neill, who died in 1873. They 
had five children : Thomas, Elizabeth, 
Carrie, Joseph, Jr., and Margaret. 

Mr. Millers family is of German ori- 
gin, and his immediate ancestors never 
left the fatherland. His father, Joseph 
Miller, was a native of Germany. He 
was the father of two children : August 
and Joseph, Jr. 



TOHN J. QUAID, a business man, resid- 
^ ing at Sayreville, Middlesex count}', 
is a son of Timothy and Catharine 
(Mills) Quaid, and was born at Sayre- 
ville, New Jersey, Oct. 3, 1806. He 
is descended from an old and highly- 
reputable family of Limerick, Ireland, 
whence his grandfather, Timothy Quaid, 
Sr., emigrated to the United States. Tim- 
othy Quaid, Jr., was but five years of age 
when his lather and family- came to this 
country. He received his education in 
the district schools. In 1860 he removed 
to Sayreville and became interested in a 
number of schooners, which were used in 
transporting brick from that place to New 
York, Piiiladelphia, Boston, and other 
points. In his death, which occurred 
June 28, 1889, ere he had passed the 
meridian of life, and while he was in 
the midst of a successful bu-siness career, 
his county lost a u.seful citizen. His mar- 
riage t« Catharine Mills resulted in the 
birth often children : Mary E. C, Cath- 
arine B., John J., Timothy, James R., 
Michael F., Alice, and Elizabeth 0. The 
last two are deceased. 

John J. Quaid was educated in the 



public schools of South River and Sayre- 
ville, and in the Christian Brethren school, 
a denominational school of Ncav York 
city. Leaving school he became asso- 
ciated in business with his father for a 
time, and in 1878 took passage to New 
London, Conn., and there entered the 
United States navy, on board the " Con- 
stitution." He served two years on the 
eastern coast, and then re-enlisted for 
three years on board the "Alliance," 
' coasting along Florida, South America, 
and New Mexico. At the expiration of 
this time he returned to Sayreville, and 
became captain of one of his father's 
schooners. Since then he has become 
the owner of several schooners as well as 
other valuable propertj' in Sayreville. 
He is a public-spirited and progressive 
business man, and is prominently identi- 
fied with the Democratic party. Mr. 
Quaid was appointed commissioner of 
deeds by Governor Werts ; has served as 
a member of the townshijj committee two 
terms, and is at present chairman. He 
is a consistent member of the Roman 
Catholic church. 



IV /TARCUS A. BROWN, a leading drug- 
-'-'-L gist and ex-postmaster of Wood- 
bridge, Middlesex county, New Jersey, is 
a son of Alexander and Jane (Ostrander) 
Brown, and was born, Nov. 19, 1845, in 
New York city. He is of Scotch ances- 
try. His paternal grandfather pursued 
the trade of cabinet-making for many 
years. His wife bore him three children : 
Isabella, Robert, and Alexander. 

Alexander Brown (father) obtained a 
common-school education in New York 
city. His earlier trade was that of a 
butcher, which he followed successfully 
at Washington market. New York, until 



Biographical Sketches. 



895 



1846. He then purchased an interest in 
the business of William H. Berry & Co., 
fire-brick manufacturers at Woodbridge, 
which he retained until 1889, one year 
prior to his death, when he disposed of 
it to his son, Marcus A. He was an old- 
line whig, and later a republican, in pol- 
itics, and was active in municipal affairs. 
He served a term as assessor in New 
York city, and was treasurer and a trus- 
tee of the free-land school fund. He was 
a trustee of the Woodbridge Methodist 
church for several years, and an active 
christian worker. He was an enthusi- 
ast in military matters. He joined the 
masonic fraternity, becoming a member 
of Eastern Star Lodge, F. and. A. M. 
Mr. Brown and his wife both died in 
1890, the former in August, at the age 
of eighty-five ; the latter in December, 
in her seventy-ninth year. They had 
four children : David H., who died in 
Charleston, S. C, during the late war, 
while serving as a volunteer in Company 
H, Fifth New York regiment, under 
Gens. McClellan and Patterson ; Eleanor 
A. (Mrs. J. 0. Campbell, of Plainfield, 
New Jersey), "Wilbur F., a business man 
of New York, and Marcus A. 

Marcus A. Brown spent the first 
twenty-four years of his life in New York 
city. He attended the public schools of 
that city, as well as the Fort Edward 
Collegiate Institute at Fort Edward, New 
York. In 1870 Mr. Brown opened a 
drug store of his own at Woodbridge, 
which he has since conducted with con- 
summate skill and ability. He acquired 
in 1889, as heretofore stated, his deceased 
father's share in the fire-brick manufac- 
tory operated by William H. Berry & 
Co., and owns other important and profit- 
able interests. Politically Mr. Brown is 
a I'epublican, and has held the following 



ofiices in Woodbridge : a member of the 
township committee, treasurer of the 
township, and served three years as school 
trustee. He served as postmaster of 
Woodbridge for seven years. He is an 
elder in the Presbyterian church at Wood- 
bridge, and was its Sunday-school super- 
intendent for several years. In religious 
matters he is active and untiring. Mr. 
Brown was married to Antoinette E. 
Dally, a daughter of Charles M. Dally, 
of Woodbridge, New Jersey. They have 
but one child, Eleanor E. 



/CHARLES P. EOSE, who is extensively 
^^ engaged in operating clay mines 
near South Amboy, and one of the lead- 
ing public-spirited citizens of South Am- 
boy township. New Jersey, is a son of 
Elias R. and Mary (Wood) Rose, and was 
born on the old Rose homestead, in that 
township, Dec. 25, 1842. Ephraim Rose, 
grandfather, lived at Jacksonville, New 
Jersey, and was a farmer and a freighter. 
He was an earnest worker in the Bap- 
tist church and one of its most liberal 
supporters. His children were : Elias R., 
Susan Jane, Elmira, Jackson and Louisa. 
Elias R. Rose (father) was born Feb. 
22, 1818, at Jacksonville, New Jersey, 
and educated in the common schools of 
that locality. He began boating and 
running a packet out of Cheese creek for 
a number of years, and then followed 
farming until his decease, June 29, 1895. 
At the same time he was engaged in min- 
ing and dealing in clay near Perth Am- 
boy, accumulating a large amount of real 
estate and other property. In politics 
he was a democrat and was a member of 
the board of chosen freeholders. He be- 
longed to the Baptist church, and, as a 
result of his marriage to Miss Mary E. 



896 



Biographical Sketches. 



Wood, became the father of three chil- 
dren : Elias, died in 1852 ; Charles, and 
Madera (Mrs. W. F. Fisher). 

Cliarles P. Rose attended the common 
schools until he was eighteen 3ears of age 
and then entered the Franklin Institute, 
where he remained two terms. He then 
became associated with his father in farm- 
ing and operating the clay mines, and 
upon the event of the latter's death, in 
1895, took full charge of all these inter- 
ests, with which he lias been connected 
since 1871. In political affairs he is an 
active party worker, and has been elected 
to many local offices of trust and re- 
sponsibility by his fellow-democrats. He 
has been a freeholder, chairman of the 
finance committee, town committeeman, 
collector and road overseer. He is Epis- 
copalian in religious belief C. P. Ross 
married Cornelia Biirlew, and they have 
one son, Charles R., a graduate of the 
Trenton Model School, and later of Co- 
lumbia College, N. Y. 



TTENRY VAN DOREN, a substantial 
-*— *- farmer and a prominent citizen of 
Franklin township, Somerset county. 
New Jersey, residing near Franklin Park, 
is a son of Garrett T. and JMaria (Covert) 
Van Doren, and was born Nov. 19, 
1827, at Griggstown, the same count^^ 
The name is, as it indicates, of Holland- 
Dutch origin and orthography, the origi- 
nal American pi'ogenitor who first planted 
the famil}^ in this country being the 
great-great-grandfather of Heniy Van 
Doren, a member of an old Dutch family 
that came to this country many years 
prior to the Revolution. He located first 
on Long Island, but subsequently removed 
to New York, and thence came to New 
Jersey, and became a pioneer in the set- 



tlement of Franklin township, Somerset 
county. There he reared a family of 
fifteen children, one of whom was John, 
greatrgrandfather of Henry Van Doren, 
who owned and resided upon a farm 
near Millstone in Hillsboro township. 
The house upon this farm is renowned as 
having been the frequent .stopping-place 
of Washington during his campaigns in 
New Jersey, and, in the same connection, 
and contemporaneous with it, the Hes- 
sians cleared the land and built their 
hospital upon this farm. His wife was 
Marrette Lott, who was taken prisoner 
by the British troops in that campaign, 
and after a rope was fastened around her 
neck, an attempt was made to force her 
to disclose certain valuable information 
concerning the enemy, but, being unsuc- 
cessful, she was released. She died April 
27, 1855, aged seventy-seven years. Their 
children were : Abraham, Christian, John, 
Cornelius, Jacob 1., William, and Mrs. 
Tunis Hoagland. 

Abraham Van Doren (grandfather) 
was born in Franklin township, Somer- 
set county. He was a farmer all his 
life, and a member of the Reformed 
church. He married Catharine Turoon, 
and their children were : Garrett, John, 
Duryee, William, Wilmina, and Ann Van 
Doren. 

Garrett Van Doren (father) was born 
on the old homestead farm in Franklin 
township. He was a life-long farmer, 
and never engaged in any other busi- 
ness to an}' extent. He was a useful 
member of the Franklin Park Reformed 
Dutch church, having served as elder 
and deacon for many years. Politically 
he was a republican. His children were : 
Catharine Ann, wife of Luke Baker; 
Henry, John and Abram D. 

Henry Van Doren's limited educa- 



Biographical Sketches. 



897 



tional training was obtained in the dis- 
trict schools of his native township. 
Leaving school early, he remained with 
his father on the farm until after his 
marriage, when he engaged in the busi- 
ness on his own account in Franklin 
township, and has continued in that 
occupation ever since. Mr. Van Doren 
belongs to that intelligent and enter- 
prising class of farmers who believe in 
keeping abreast with the wonderful ad- 
vance of the age. He has made the 
subject of farming a study upon scien- 
tific principles, with reference to culti- 
vating the soil and the application of 
chemicals for the promotion of plant life 
and vegetable growth. Mr. Van Doren 
holds intelligent views on all subjects 
pertaining to agriculture, and introduces 
advanced ideas and methods in his farm- 
ing. He owns a farm of eighty acres of 
fertile and very productive land, well 
improved with all the apartment build- 
ings necessary for all purposes of success- 
ful farming. While active and indus- 
trious as a farmer, he has been chief!} 
prominent in his church affiliations, hav- 
ing served as elder and deacon of Frank- 
lin Park Association for many years, 
superintendent of the Sunday-school for 
seventeen years, and for thirteen years 
served as secretary of the Franklin Town- 
ship Sunday-school Association. He is a 
republican politically, and has held num- 
erous local township offices. 

He married Miss Sophia Stayer, on 
Sept. 27, 1848, who died March 3, 1896, 
aged sixty-eight years. Their only child, 
a daughter, Catharine Anne, is the wife 
of R. M. Beekman, a grocer, of New 
Brunswick, New Jersey. 



47 



TT> T. SWEET, the enterprising man- 
-*-^' ager of the New Brunswick Hotel, 
at Perth Amboy, Middlesex county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Pearson and Louisa 
Ann (Dunn) Sweet, and was born Sept. 1, 
1856, at Trenton, N. J. 

George P. Sweet (grandfather) resided 
in the suburbs of Trenton, owned a farm 
there, which he cultivated, raising crops 
of grain, fruit and vegetables for the 
markets of that city, and when the busy 
season was over, occupied his time as 
a teamster. His industry and frugality 
enabled him to lay up a snug hoard, long 
before his death. His marriage resulted 
in the birth of four sons and three daugh- 
ters : Charles, William, Truman, Hannah^ 
(Jatharine, Sarah, and Pearson. 

Pearson Sweet, youngest son of George 
P., was born at Trenton, where he re- 
ceived a common-school education, and 
for several years assisted his father in 
farm and team work. He subsequently 
spent five years clerking in a grocery 
store at Trenton, after which, at a place 
called Sandtown, he returned to farming. 
In politics he was a republican, though 
not an active one, as he reserved his sur- 
plus energy for Christian work, and for 
labor in the cause of the Baptist church, 
of which he was a respected member. 
He deceased in 1862, survived by his 
wife and children, who were : George H., 
Stephen D., Sarah (married to Charles 
Groves), Emma and Louise (both de- 
ceased), and E. T. 

E. T. Sweet, after acquiring a com- 
mon-school education at Trenton and at 
Wheatsheaf, Bucks county, Pa., devoted 
himself for four years to training horses. 
He became exceedingly expert in the 
care and management of young thorough- 
breds, and still retains his early-acquired 
prestige as a competent judge and au- 



898 



Biographical Sketches. 



thority in <all equine matters. Before 
settling in Perth Aniboy as a hotel-keeper 
Mr. Sweet was variously employed in 
other places. In 1896 he removed to 
Pertli Amlioy, and took charge of the 
New Brun.swiik Hotel, in connection 
wherewith he is conducting a livery and 
sales-stable. In politics he was a demo- 
crat until 1892, when he became a re- 
publican. In fraternity he is a member 
of Wigwam Tribe, I. 0. R. M. Mr. Sweet 
was twice married, and hy his first wife, 
Abigail Burchell, whom he married March 
25, 1877, and who deceased January 1, 
1890, he had four children : Anna, Han- 
nah, William M., and Meda, deceased. 
He was subsequently, August 20, 1892, 
married to Lillie Burchell, and to this 
union has been born a daughter, Margie. 



/CHARLES Mccormick, a successful 
^-^ plumber at New Brunswick, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, is of Irish 
descent, a son of Matthew and Rose 
McCormick, and was born in that cit} 
in 1845. He attended the public schools 
of New Brunswick until he was nineteen 
years old. He then essayed to fit him- 
self for the afiairs of practical life, and 
entered the employ of Mr. Lewis Stout, 
of New Brunswick, and with that gentle- 
man learned the trade of tinsmithing and 
plumbing. In 1879 he established his 
present business. He is a man of acknowl- 
edged business capacity, is interested in 
public enterprises in his communitj', and 
is vice-president of the New Brunswick 
City Water Company. 

On Jan. 29, 1881," Charles McCormick 
was united in marriage to a young lady 
of Hudson, N. Y. Their children are : 
Charles, Jr., Margaret, Mary, and Kath- 
arine. 



"DOBERT DAVISON, a prosperous busi- 
-*- 1* ness man of South River, Middle- 
sex county, New Jersey, and ex-chair- 
raan of the board of commissioners of 
Washington borough, is a son of Robert, 
Sr., and Mary Eliza (Bennett) Davison, 
and was born July 22, 1858, in New 
York cit3^ His father was a native of 
England, but emigrated to this country 
and settled in New York. He was a sad- 
dler and harness-maker by trade and car- 
ried on a very successful business until 
his death. His children were : Josiah, 
Mary and Robert. At the age of twenty 
months Robert was brought to New Jer- 
sey by his widowed mother, to reside 
with the maternal grandfather, Daniel 
Bennett, on his farm, near Jamesburg, 
Middlesex county. Mr. Bennett was of 
Holland-Dutch extraction and a man 
held in high esteem throughout his sec- 
tion of the state. He owned and oj^e- 
rated a large saw-mill in connection with 
his farming interests. 

Robert attended the common schools 
at Jamesburg and Cranburj^, Middlesex 
county, until the age of fifteen years. He 
worked on a farm four years and was 
emploj^ed at various tinaes in summer- 
resort hotels. He then went to South 
River and learned the business of shirt- 
making with Harr}^ Rosenbaum. He re- 
mained there fifteen months, when he 
went to Spottswood, Middlesex county. 
New Jersey. He returned to South River 
four years later and became foreman of 
the shirt department in the factory of 
Herrmann, Aukam & Co., and afterwards 
entered into partnership with Joseph 
Mark, of South River, in his present 
shirt manufacturing business. He is a 
Methodist, and in politics an active demo- 
crat, and served from 1890 to 1893 as a 
member of the board of commissioners of 





ti^'Z-C^.j^T^-^^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



899 



the borough of Washington and was 
chairman of that body two years. He is 
a member of Riverside Council, No. 33, 
Jr. 0. U. A. M. Mr. Davidson was mar- 
ried December 21, 1882, to Emma Ame- 
lia Marks. They had one child, which 
died in infancy. 



' I 



TOSEPH FISHER, one of the most 
^ highly respected and most substan- 
tial business men of New Brunswick, is 
a son of Joseph and Adaline (Hockman) 
Fisher, and was born in that city, where 
his father, who was a son of James Fisher, 
was also born. Joseph Fisher, Sr., was 
a dealer in live stock by occupation, and 
retired at forty-five years of age and 
resided the remainder of his life at New 
Brunswick. He became one of the most 
prominent citizens of the town, and was 
identified with various business enter- 
prises connected therewith, being a direc- 
tor in the New Brunswick Rubber Co 
the New Brunswick Fire Insurance Co., 
and the old State Bank. Politically he 
was a republican and served as a mem- 
ber of the board of water commissioners 
of New Brunswick ; religiously, a zealous 
member of the First Reformed church, j 

Joseph Fisher received his education 
in the public schools of New Brunswick, 
Rutgers College, and graduated from [ 
Eastman's Business College, Poughkeep- ; 
sie, New York, in 1864. In the meantime 
he spent two years as a clerk in the cloth- 
ing house of 0. B. Gaston at New Bruns- 
wick. After leaving college he became 
a clerk in the county clerk's office, in 
which position he remained for five years 
He subsequently was engaged in the soap 
business in New York for two years, and 
then returned to New Brunswick, and 
became a general bookkeeper and acting 
cashier in the First National Bank of 



New Jersey, for two years. He was for 
the ensuing ten years engaged in the coal 
business in connection with which he 
established his present general business 
agency. He is a director in the People's 
National bank. New Brunswick ; the 
New Brunswick Fire Insurance Co., and 
the National Water Tube Boiler Co. 
He is one of the board of managers of 
the New Brunswick Savings Institution 
and treasurer of the board of educa- 
tion. He is a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church, and president of the 
board of trustees of that church, at 
that city. Socially he is a member and 
treasurer of the New Brunswick Gun 
Club and a member of the New Bruns- 
wick Boat Club. 

Mr. Fisher has been twice married. 
His first wife was Mary Frances Marsh, 
a daughter of Henry Marsh, of New 
Brunswick. He wedded Nov. 18, 1870; 
she died March 17, 1877. On Oct. 9, 
1882, he was again married to Miss Sarah 
Fielder, a daughter of J. W. Fielder, of 
New Brunswick, and they have one 
daughter, Adaline. 



JOSEPH A. THROCKMORTON, the 
^ third son of Edmund Throckmorton, 
was born on the 3d of July, 1827, in the 
dwelling at Red Bank which is his pre- 
sent home. He was educated at Eliza- 
beth, N. J., and early deciding upon a 
mercantile career, in 1842 removed to 
Tennessee, where he engaged in the fur 
business, returning in 1848 for a brief 
period to Red Bank, after which he, in 
1849, joined the numerous throng of emi- 
grants for the gold-fields of California. 
Here he engaged in mining operations, 
remaining until 1856, when, on resuming 
again his residence in Red Bank, he 
embarked in the lumber business, and 



900 



Biographical Sketches. 



now ranks among the leading and suc- 
cessful capitalists of tlie place. He was, 
on tlie organization ol' the First National 
Bank of Red Bank, made one of its direc- 
tors, and now fills the same office in con- 
nection with the Second National Bank. 
He is director of the Red Bank and 
Eatontown Turnpike Compan}^ having 
formerly filled the same office in connec- 
tiun with the Leedsville and Red Bank 
Turnpike Company. He is also a direc- 
tor of the Mutual Fire Insurance Com- 
pany of Shrewsbury. With a loyal 
allection lor the place of his nativity, 
Mr. Throckmorton has entered heartily 
into nearly all the important schemes 
which have promoted its growth and 
affected its moral well-being. True to 
the traditions of his fiimily, he early 
espoused the principles of the old-line 
Whig party, and on the organization of 
the Republican party became a warm 
partisan in its cause. He has frequently 
served as delegate to state and count\ 
conventions, but declines all proffers of 
office, preferring to be a worker in the 
ranks rather than a sharer in the honors 
that follow in the path of success. He 
is often sought for such positions as exe- 
cutor and guardian and for various other 
trusts involving much responsibilit}'. Mr. 
Throckmorton's early religious teachings 
have caused him to adhere to the Pres- 
byterian faith and to contribute gener- 
ously to the support of tliat church. 



TpLLIS W. WAIT, a baker and confec- 
J— ' tioner of IVrtli Amijoy, Middlesex 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Ellis C. 
ami Sarah (Van Brant) Wait, and was 
ijorn March 18, 1852, at Perth Amboy. 
He attended the public schools of his 
native town until he arrived at the age 
of twelve years. During the four years 



ensuing he was variously employ ed : 
first, as clerk in a grocery store at Perth 
Amboy ; then at working in a florist's 
garden, and later in a factory, where he 
was engaged in the manufacture of door- 
knobs. At sixteen jears of age he 
learned the trade of a house carpenter, 
and at twenty engaged in business for 
himself as a builder and contractor. He 
was the youngest contractor in Perth Am- 
boy at that time, but his youth neither 
retarded his business nor hindered his 
success, and he remained profitably en- 
gaged in that occupation until 1895, when 
he adopted the profession of an architect. 
In the latter part of 1S95 he removed to 
Florida and engaged in market garden- 
ing. Mr. Wait was married in 1872 to 
Annie M. Freeman. To their marriage 
have been born six childreji : Ellis F., 
Mary E., Leonard, Clarence, Jennie and 
Lucy. 



A G. BOLTON, a retired coastwise 
-'--*-• aptain,now an extensive dealer in 
building brick at South Amboy, Middle- 
sex county, New Jersey, is a son of An- 
drew and Annie (Campbell) Bolton, and 
was born Dec. 18, 1841, in the town above 
mentioned. He is of mixed extraction, 
his ancestors on the paternal side having 
been natives of Ireland, while those on 
the maternal side, as the name Campbell 
indicates, claimed Scotland as their native 
heath. 

The paternal grandfather, after a resi- 
dence of many years in Ireland, emi- 
grated to this country and settled in 
South Amboy, where he lived a retired 
life on the means which he had acquired 
in the old countr\-. He died at the ad- 
vanced age of one hundred and nine 
years. In religious faith he Avas a pres- 
byterian, and was an earnest and devoted 



Biographical Sketches. 



901 



christian. His children were three in | 
number : Thomas, Hugh, and Andrew. I 

Andrew Bolton left his native Ireland, \ 
and located at South Amboy, in 1832, J 
where he became extensively and sue- i 
cessfully engaged for a number of years 
in the pottery business. He subse- 
quently removed to Sayreville, Middle- 
sex county, where he manufactured fire- 
brick, and conducted that business on 
a large scale. He was also a contrac- 
tor with the Camden and Amboy rail- \ 
road for excavating cuts and grading 
along its line. This proved to be an ex- 
tremely profitable undertaking, and he 
was successful in securing as many con- 
tracts as he could fill. He also turned 
his attention to farming, but he did not 
carry on that occupation for any great 
length of time. In politics he was 
originally a whig, and later became a re- 
publican, and in religion was a member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church. His 
death occurred in 1863, and he was sur- 
vived by his widow until Feb., 1885. 
They were the parents of six children : 
Mary, married to Arthur Robinson, of 
Brooklyn, N. Y. ; John, residing at Nor- 
folk, Va. ; A. G., Thomas, a resident of 
Newark, New Jersey; Emma, married 
to Julius Hutchington, and Andrew, re- 
siding in Brooklyn. 

A. G. Bolton attended the common 
schools at Sayreville until his fifteenth 
year, when he went to work in his father's 
brick-making establishment, and con- 
tinued in that employment for five years. 
His subsequent career up to 1894 was 
that of a freighter on coast-line vessels 
running from Sayreville north to Troy, 
N. Y., and many points east. In this 
capacity he ultimately became owner and 
captain of his own vessel, and he safely 
handled an immense amount of traffic. 



In 1894 he discontinued his long-time 
occupation of a mariner, and became an 
extensive dealer in building brick. His 
market for selling is Staten Island, Perth 
Amboy, South Amboy, and all the sur- 
rounding country ; and under his shrewd 
and careful managementthe business is de- 
veloping into large and stable proportions. 
In politics, which deeply interests Mr. 
Bolton, he is a staunch adherent to the 
principles of the Republican party, and 
religiously is a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church. He is a member of 
the Knights of Pythias and the Knights 
of the Golden Eagle. Mr. Bolton was 
married in March, 1865, to Sarah Voor- 
hees. They have two daughters : Millie, 
wife of Charles Smock, residing at South 
Aiuboy ; and Sarah, wife of Cyrus Davis, 
of the same place. 



nrvE. CHARLES B. BURNETT, a physi- 
-*-^ cian of South River, New Jersey, 
was born in 1871, and is a son of Capt. 
Thomas Burnett. His father was edu- 
cated in the common schools of New 
Brunswick, and after his graduation 
learned the trade of a painter, which he 
followed until the breaking out of the 
civil war, when he enlisted in the Ninth 
regiment, New Jersey volunteers, and 
rose, step by step, till he attained the 
rank of captain of Company B. He served 
bravely with his regiment for four years. 
He was a man of substantial character 
and influence and essentially self-made. 
He was an active christian worker, a zeal- 
ous member of St. Peter's Catholic church 
in New Brunswick, and in politics a mem- 
ber of the Democratic party. To his 
marriage were born eight children, four 
sons and four daughters, as follows : 
Charles B. ; Mary, married to Dr. Thomas 



902 



Biographical Sketches. 



O'Grady; Elizabetli, deceased; Marga^ 
ret, now a school teacher ; Thomas, now 
practicing as a physician; Grace, de- 
ceased; William, deceased, and Joseph. 
Dr. Charles B. Burnett graduated from 
the public schools of New Brunswick, and 
then entered the Hahnemann Homoeo- 
pathic Medical College of Philadelphia, 
from which he graduated in 1893. He 
then removed from New Brunswick to 
South River and began a general medical 
practice. He is a member of and ex- 
amining phj'sician for the Jr. 0. Q. A. 
M., the Imp. 0. R. M., and the Knights 
of Honor. He is an active member and 
one of the trustees of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church. On June 27, 1895, he was 
united in marriage to Miss Eva Edgar. 



JOHN G. SCHENCK was born, Jan. 2, 
1823, at Neshanic, Somerset county. 
New Jensey. His occupation has been 
agriculture, in the main, but he is also in- 
terested in mercantile and manufacturing 
enterprises as well. In politics he is a 
republican, and served one term as jus- 
tice of the peace. He sat in the New 
Jersey state assembly during the years 
1861-2-3, as a representative from the 
Second district of Somerset county, and 
was returned to the house for the years 
1872-3-4. During his first term he was 
a member of "corporations," and other im- 
portant committees. His committees dur- 
ing his subsequent term were : corpora- 
tions, railroads and canals (chairman), 
and " riparian rights," chairman. In 
1874 he was appointed road-master, serv- 
ing until 1892. 

In 1879 Mr. Schenck was elected to the 
state senate, for that and the two suc- 
ceeding years, from the Second district. 
In religious faith and worsliip he is a 



member of the Reformed church. He 
was united in marriage, Jan. 5, 1853, to 
Sarah M. Huff, a daughter of James 
Huff, of Neshanic, N. J., and to their union 
have been born six children : Louis H., 
l)orn Oct. 25, 1853 ; John L., George B., 
James, Robert Lincoln, deceased aged 
four months, and Charles Olden, deceased 
aged nine months. 



r GUIS H. SCHENCK is a son of John 
^ G. Schenck, was born at Neshanic, 
Somerset county. New Jersey, and was 
educated in the public schools of Nes- 
hanic and in Rutgers College, where he 
graduated in 1874. He then entered 
upon the study of law at Elizabeth, New 
Jersey, in the office of McGee & Gross, 
and was admitted to general practice in 
1877, and as counselor in 1880. He re- 
turned to Neshanic for a short time after 
his admission to the bar, but removed 
to Newark, and has been located in that 
city ever since. He is attorney for the 
Hillsborough Mutual Insurance Co., and 
was attorney for the board of freeholders 
of Somerset county during 1892. His pol- 
itical affiliations are with the Republican 
party, and he is actively interested in pub- 
lic affairs. He has for some years been 
a prominent member of the Knights of 
Pythias. He was happily wedded on 
June 18, 1885, to Miss Emma A. Bab- 
cock, a daughter of John J. Babcock, late 
editor of the New Brunswich Fredonian, 
and they have had four children : Ray- 
mond L., born March 19, 1888, who is at 
present attending school at Neshanic; 
Herbert L., born March 28, 1891 ; Har- 
old D., born March 7, 1894 ; and Nellie 
L., who died Nov. 23, 1891. 

Mr. Schenck's practice is extensive 
and lucrative. He is energetic and hard- 



Biographical Sketches. 



903 



working, faithful to the interests of his 
clients, thoroughly versed in every branch 
of legal practice, and possessed of a com- 
manding figure and persuasive eloquence. 
During his connection with the school 
board, as member and president, he has 
done much to advance the cause of edu- 
cation in Newark schools through the 
introduction of modern appliances and 
systems of teaching. 



T G. DENELSBECK, M. D., township 
*J • physician of Spottswood, and a 
leading practitioner of Middlesex county, 
New Jersey, is a son of David and Ruth 
(Gasling) Denelsbeck, and was born in 
Salem county. New Jersey. He de- 
scends from good old Holland-Dutch line- 
age, capable, honest and sturdy. He at- 
tended the public schools and a private 
school ; took a course of two years at St. 
Joseph's College, Vt., and studied medi- 
cine with Dr. Henry Bennett at Jersey 
City. He entered the University of Ver- 
mont in 1888, and graduated with dis- 
tinction in 1890. 

Dr. Denelsbeck, in order to perfect him- 
self in his chosen profession, received spe- 
cial instructions from a trio of eminent 
physicians : Dr. Ashabel P. Grinnell, 
Prof. W. H. Lindsley, and Prof. A. F. A. 
King, of Washington, D. C. He located 
for practice at Monmouth Junction, Mid- 
dlesex county, in 1890, but removed to 
Spottswood in 1892, where he now is en- 
joying a large and lucrative patronage. 
He is a deacon of the Reformed church 
in Spottswood, and was for a time super- 
intendent of its Sunday-school. He is a 
democrat in politics, and holds the offices 
of township physician and member of the 
board of health of Spottswood. He is a 
member of the Jr. 0. U. A. M. of that 



town. In 1885 he was married to Eliza 
M. Nickerson. They have four children : 
Josephine, Julius Otis, Margaret and 
Ruth. 

His paternal grandfather, Frederick 
Denelsbeck, was the original settler of 
Salem county, New Jersey. He was a 
farmer and dealer in horses and accumu- 
lated much property. He was a trustee 
of the Baptist church for many years. 
He died in 1867 at the age of ninety-one 
after presenting each of his children with 
a home. They were : Daniel, Matthias, 
Solomon, John, Jacob, Joseph, David, 
Mary and Catharine, who draws a pen- 
sion from the government as the widow 
of Robert Ayers, who was a soldier in the 
war of 1812. 

David Denelsbeck (father) is the sev- 
enth son of Frederick Denelsbeck. He 
received a common-school education and 
became a farmer ; afterward a carpenter, 
builder and contractor. He is a member 
of the Baptist church, and in politics a 
democrat. His first wife was Jane Hutch- 
inson, who bore him four children : 
Thomas, Mary Ann, Joust and Ellwood. 
By his second wife, Ruth Gasling, he had 
six children : Dr. J. G., Franklin B., 
Charles N., Jennie, Jacob and Ethel. 



SAMUEL E. ENSIGN, a prominent gro- 
cer and citizen of Woodbridge, Mid- 
dlesex county, New Jersey, for nearly 
forty years, is a son of Eriah and Lucre- 
tia (Humphrey) Ensign, and was born 
Aug. 24, 1823, at Simsbury, Conn. 

The family is of English origin, the 
forefathers of the present generation of 
that name coming to this country and 
settling in Hartford, Conn. The pater- 
nal grandfather, Isaac, resided in Sims- 
bury, where he followed the occupations 



904 



Biographical Sketches. 



of fanner and blacksmith the greater 
part of his life. He was a member of 
the Congregational church at Simsbury, 
and in political faith a democrat. Ilis 
children were : Isaac, Isaiah, Zeba, Za- 
pher, Ariel, Bildad, Eriah, Moses and 
Laurana. 

Eriah Ensign received a common- 
school education, and later learned the 
tinsmith trade, which he followed until 
he inherited a farm from his father, 
when he turned his attention to culti- 
vating the soil near Simsbury, which 
avocation he continued during life. He 
was a public-spirited citizen of his native 
town, and an active democrat in poli- 
tics. He attended the Congregational 
church. His children were : Amelia L., 
John N., Erastus H., and Samuel E. 

Samuel E. Ensign, after attending the 
pulilic schools of Simsbury, Conn., sev- 
eral years, completed his education at an | 
academy at Wilbriliam, Mass. He then | 
became a teacher for a number of years ; 
first in Bonhamton, New Jersey, then in 
Simsbury, Conn., and later in Wood- 
bridge, New Jersey'. Mr. Ensign aban- 
doned teaching in 1859 and opened a 
grocery store in Woodbridge, in which ! 
business he is still engaged. In 1865, he j 
associated himself with James Commess, 
wliich connection continued for thirty 
years. He purchased Mr. Commess' in- 
terest in the business in July, 1895, and 
has Ijcen sole owner and proprietor since 
that tinje. Politically, Mr. Ensign is a 
republican. He was formerly a demo- 
crat, but changed his views at the open- 
ing of the war. He has always been 
actively interested in the affairs of his 
party and his township. He served six 
years as justice of the peace in his 
county. He is a trustee of the Metho- 
dist church in Woodbridge, which posi- , 



tion he has held many years, and has 
been a steward of that church and super- 
intendent of its Sunday-school. He is a 
member of the Sons of Temperance. 

Mr. Ensign was married in 1847, to 
Carmenlia Vinning, a daughter of Samuel 
and Lydia Vinning. They have four 
children : Helen Amelia (Mrs. Samuel 
Ewing), Samuel Albert, Everett Clinton 
and Carrie Estelle, all of whom are living. 



JOHN N. PETERSON, an active and en- 
terprising 3'oung business man of 
Perth Amboy, Middlesex county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Peter and Inger (Lar- 
sen) Peterson, and was born, June 27, 
1871, in Denmark. 

His paternal grandfather, Peter Peter- 
son, was a Danish subject. He spent his 
days in cultivating the soil of his native 
country, and died a very prosperous man. 

Peter commenced life as a farmer in 
Denmark. He had natural taste for ma- 
chinery, wliich he fostered until he de- 
veloped into an ingenious and noted me- 
chanic. In all his undertakings he was 
more than successful, and became quite 
wealthy. He has eight children, all of 
whom are living : Maren, Peter, Lars, 
Christine, Annie, Nels, Christian, and 
John N. 

John N. Peterson learned the trade of 
tailoring, and pursued that business until 
1890, when he emigrated to the United 
States, landing in New York city on 
March 25th of that year. He came 
thence to Perth Amboy, and resumed his 
trade, and afterwards followed various 
employments until he opened a tailoring 
establishment for himself in that town, 
where he has enjoyed a most profitable 
trade, as a tailor and gents' furnisher. 
Mr. Peterson is brimful of energy and 



Biographical Sketches. 



905 



enterprise, and is now engaged in the 
erection of an extensive plant in Perth 
Amboy for the brewing of malt liquors. 



"TEA B. TICE, general yardmaster of 
-*- the Lehigh Valley Railroad Co., at 
Perth Amboy, is one of the most promi- 
nent citizens of that city, as he is also a 
good example of the self-made man. His 
present high position with that great 
coal-carrying corporation was earned 
after years of valuable service, and was 
reached by steady stages of promotion. 
Mr. Tice is the son of a patriotic house, 
whose ancestry comes from Austria, but 
whose early representatives in this coun- 
try were firm supporters and defenders 
of the Declaration of Independence, and 
the forms of government established 
by our Colonial Congress. Mr. Tice was 
born at West Groton, Tompkins county, 
N. Y., on Dec. 13, 1849, and is the son 
of Simeon L. and Harriet S. (Webley) 
Tice. His original paternal ancestor was 
one of three brothers who came from 
Austria. 

John Tice, his grandfather, was a far- 
mer in Hectortownship, Schuyler county, 
N. Y., and his farm of three hundred 
and fifty acres was situated near the 
romantic Watkins Glen. Here he resided 
all his life and amassed a considerable 
competency. He was a whig in politics, 
and a vigorous patriot. He served in 
the war of 1812 with distinction, and 
not only bared his breast to the bullets 
of the British, but also assisted the 
cause with his substance. In the matter 
of religious belief, he was a methodist 
and an active church worker. John 
Tice was married twice. His first mar- 
riage was fruitful of two children : Sim- 
eon and Archellis. His second wife bore 
him one child, Beardsley. 



Simeon Tice (father) was born in 
Hector township, Schuyler county, N. 
Y., Aug. 26, 1813. By occupation he 
was a carriage manufacturer, first at 
West Groton, and then at Moravia, N. 
Y., where he continued until retirement 
from business in 1886, after an active 
career of forty years. On retiring from 
business he took up his residence at 
Beardsley' s Corners, Tompkins county, 
N. Y., twelve miles from Ithaca, where 
he is now enjoying a well-earned rest 
from active pursuits. Mr. Tice was at 
first a whig, but afterward a republican. 
He never sought nor held public office. 
He has always been very active in Meth- 
odist church circles, and is a senior war- 
den. He was married twice. Three 
children were the result of the first 
union : Mary Woolsey, deceased ; Ira B., 
and John, who is a carriage decorator at 
Syracuse, N. Y. There were no children 
by the second marriage. The mother of 
our subject died in 1872, at the age of 
fifty-three years. 

Ira B. Tice received his education in 
the schools of Moravia, New York. On 
leaving school he secured employment 
with the Western Union Telegraph Co. 
at Moravia, where he remained two 
years. He then became a telegraph ope- 
rator for the Erie Canal, and at the end 
of three years accepted a similar position 
with the Lehigh Valley Railroad. He 
afterwards became forwarding agent for 
the Delaware and Hudson Canal Co., at 
Wilkesbarre, which position he retained 
one year. In 1875 he removed to Perth 
Amboy, and for four years was train in- 
spector for the Lehigh Valley railroad, 
being afterwards promoted to the posi- 
tion of yardmaster. This last position 
he filled for sixteen years, or until 
Jan. 1, 1896, when he was made gen- 



906 



Biographical Sketches. 



eral yardiiiaster at Perth Araboj, in 
which capacity ho ha,s charge of all 
the yards at. tiiat place, having under 
him three hundred men. Mr. Tice was 
married in November, 1890, to Florence 
E., a daughter of Captain Thomas B. 
Siddell, of Perth Ainbuy. This union 
has been productive of two children : 
Harriett and Ira B., Jr. Mr. Tice has 
always been identified actively with the 
interests of his town. He is vice-presi- 
dent of the Citizens' Building and Loan 
Association and a director of the Perth 
Amboy Home and Mutual Building and 
Loan association. He is also a prominent 
mason, being a member of Raritan Lodge, 
No. 61, and is a trustee of this lodge. He 
is captain-general of Temple Command- 
ery, No. 18, at Metuchen, New Jersey. 
He is also past regent of Middlesex Coun- 
cil, No. 1100, Royal Arcanum, and is 
past councillor of Alpha Council, No. 1, 
Lo^al Additional Benefit fund. He is 
vice-president of the E.x^empt Firemen's 
Association, and president of the board 
of trustees of the Firemen's Relief As- 
sociation. He is likewise one of the 
most active members of the "Old-Time" 
Telegraphers' and Historical Association. 
A staunch repuljlican, Mr. Tice has al- 
ways taken great interest in politics. He 
was elected a member of the board of free- 
holders, and in 1896 was elected mayor 
of Perth Amboy. In 1887, he was a 
candidate for the state senate, but, being 
on the minority ticket, was not elected. 



New Jersey. Mr. Hartman attended the 
public schools of his native town until he 
reached the age of nine years. During 
this time he also grounded himself in the 
mother tongue by a course of instruction 
at a private German School. He then 
removed with his parents to Perth Am- 
boy, and for five years pursued his studies 
in the public schools of that town. He 
then learned the trade of a house-carpen- 
ter. He worked faithfullj' for five years, 
and at the expiration of that time he 
went into that business for himself, and 
enjojed for the next half decade a very 
prosperous ti'ade. He retired from such 
active pursuits, and then succeeded his 
father in the ownership and management 
of that well-known inn on Front street, 
Hartman's hotel, where he still conducts, 
quite successfully, his hotel business. Mr. 
Hartman is a I'epublican in politics. He 
professes the Lutheran faith, and is a 
member of a Lutheran church in Perth 
Ambo3% and he also exhibits a lively in- 
terest in the affairs of the fire department 
of that city, and is at present a member of 
Washington Hose Company, No. 2. He 
is also an exempt from Lincoln Hose Com- 
pany, and has served as chief of the fire 
department of Perth Amboy. 



TDOBERT IIARTMAX, the proprietor 
-*-** of Hartman's hotel, and ex-chief of 
the fire department of Perth Amboy, Mid- 
dlesex Co., New Jersey, is a son of Wil- 
liam and Amelia (Kellerman) Hartman, 
and was born Aug. 27, 1864, in Newark, 



pi EORGE T. COMINGS, a popular 
^-^ and successful liveryman of Perth 
Amboy, and a member of the gallant 
Fourteenth regiment. New Jersey volun- 
teers, during the late war, is a son of Gil- 
man T. and Rhoda (Worthington) Com- 
ings, and was born at Petersburg, 
Morris county, New Jersej^, May 23, 
1841. 

His father, Oilman T. Comings, was 
a native of New Hampshire. His educa- 
tion was acquired in the district schools 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



907 



of that locality, and then learned the 
trade of millwright, and later bought a 
farm and a mill, which he managed con- 
jointly for sixteen years, when he dis- 
posed of this property and removed to 
Middlesex county. New Jersey, where he 
purchased a farm, operating the same 
successfully until his death, in 1876. In 
political faith and practice he was a 
democrat, and afterwards a republican. 
He married Rhoda Worthington, and to 
them were born six children : George, 
deceased ; Elvira (Mrs. Henry Fai'ge) ; 
George T., Jeanette, Martin L., both of 
whom ai-e dead ; and Daniel G. Rhoda 
(Worthington) Comings died in 1882. 

George T. Comings was born and 
reared on his father's farm, and received 
his early intellectual training in the com- 
mon schools of his native township. He 
worked on the homestead farm until the 
outbreak of the war, and then enlisted in 
the famous Fourteenth regiment. New 
Jersey volunteers, which passed through 
the bloody campaigns projected for the 
capture of Richmond, and was engaged 
in many of the deadly conflicts in Vir- 
ginia, as the Wilderness, Spottsylvania 
Court House, Cold Harbor, and many 
others. Mr. Comings served until the 
end of the war, and after his discharge 
spent three years on the farm, and then 
removed to Woodbridge, where he re- 
mained until 1872. He then went to 
Kansas, where for three and a half years 
he was engaged in farming,, returning 
home at the expiration of that time to 
resume farming. In 1885 he located in 
Perth Amboy, where he has established 
a very successful livery business, and 
enjoys all the advantages of a popular 
reputation and a liberal patronage. Po- 
litically, Mr. Comings is a republican, 
and an active member of the G. A. R. 



Post of Perth Amboy. In March, 1867, 
he was united in marriage to Miss Sarah 
Cory, and this union has resulted in the 
birth of two daughters and six sons : 
\^irgie G., Ella C, Worthington G., Rob- 
ert M., Frank, Raymond C, Harry E., 
and Walter W. 



T~\E. H. M. BRACE, who is a success- 
-'-^ ful medical practitioner of Perth 
Amboy, Middlesex county. New Jersey, 
is a son of Harry Brace, and was born at 
Catskill-on-the-Hudson, in 1859. 

Dr. Abel Brace, paternal grandfather, 
was also a native of Catskill, and prac- 
ticed medicine there and in that vicinity 
all his life. He was an active and ener- 
getic man, and ranked among the able 
and skillful physicians and surgeons of 
his time. He was a consistent member 
of the Presbyterian church, and con- 
tributed liberally to the support of the 
church. Politically he was successively 
a whig and republican, but never sought 
political preferment. 

Harry Brace (father) was born at Cats- 
kill. He took a law course in Yale Col- 
lege, from which he was graduated. He 
has since been actively engaged in the 
practice of his chosen profession at New 
York. 

After acquiring a good elementary edu- 
tation, Dr. H. Martyon Brace read the 
required length of time, and then gradu- 
ated from the New York College of 
Physicians and Surgeons. In 1881 he 
became connected with Charity Hospital 
of New York city, and the following 
year opened an ofiice in that city. There 
he practiced two years, and afterwards 
located and practiced six years at Port 
Jervis, New Jersey, and in 1892 came to 
Perth Amboy. He has an extensive 



908 



Biographical Sketches. 



general practice, but makes a specialty 
of gvn.TColog}', in which he has met with 
uiiilbrm success. He is a republican in 
politics, and is now serving as coroner of 
.Middlesex county. Religiously he is a 
nu'uiber of the Presbyterian church, and 
IrateriuiUy is identified with a number oi' 
secret and benevolent organizations, as the 
K. of P., I. 0. 0. F., I. 0. R. M., Jr. 0. U. 
A. M., and the American Protection 
League. Dr. Brace is a careful and con- 
scientious practitioner. Affable, conge- 
nial and attentive to his professional 
duties, he possesses the universal confi- 
dence and esteem of the people of his 
section. 



^/F F. KOHN, the enterprising pro- 
-'-''-^' prietor of the leading meat mar- 
ket in Long Branch, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, was born Sept. 1, 1858, in 
New York city. 

Abraham Kohn (Hither) was born at 
Hesse Darmstadt, Germany, where he 
received a common-school education and 
followed the business of buying and 
selling cattle until his departure from 
the " Fatherland." He resumed the 
cattle trade upon his arrival in New 
York city, where he settled, and during 
the remainder of his life continued to be 
a heavy dealer in live stock. He es- 
poused the democratic cause, and always 
voted with that party. In religious 
matters he was a member of the associa- 
tion called Free Sons of Israel, in New 
York city ; also a member and regular 
attendant of the Ileljrew synagogue in 
that city. He died July 17, 1874, leav- 
ing two children : M. F., and Bertha. 

M. F. Kohn was graduated from the 
grammar school in New York city at the 
age of thirteen years, and went to work 
in a meat market, continuing in that 



occupation several years. In 1879 he 
formed an association with Henry Bar, 
called Bar & Kohn, and opened a busi- 
ness for the slaughter and sale of cattle. 
In 1880 he removed to Long Branch, 
and formed a partnership as Kohn & 
Bennett, engaging in the same business. 
In 1881 this partnership was dissolved, 
and Mr. Kohn established a new part- 
nership with George Corlies, remaining 
associated under the name of Kohn & 
Corlies for two years. In 1884 he opened 
a meat market, which has grown with 
the town, until now he conducts the 
largest and oldest^established business of 
its kind in the city. Mr. Kohn is a 
stockholder in a number of building and 
loan associations at Long Branch, and is 
president of a branch of the Central 
Building and Loan Association of New- 
ark, New Jersey. He is also interested 
in the Long Branch Sewer Co., and is a 
member of the Long Branch Burial Asso- 
ciation. In party matters he is classed 
as an active republican. In fraternal 
affairs he is deeply interested in and is a 
member of several orders : Long Branch 
Lodge, No. 78, F. and A. M.; Standard 
Chapter, No. 35, R. A. M.; Nobles of the 
Mj'stic Shrine at New York city; Ocean 
Lodge, No. 73, K. of P., of Long Branch ; 
Empire Lodge, No. 174, I. 0. 0. F., and 
Long Branch Encampment, No. 49, both 
of Long Branch. 

Mr. Kohn was married Nov. 4, 1883, 
to Rosa H. Lowenstein. They are the 
parents of four children ; Arthur A., 
Morrill C, Montefiore G., and Anna A. 



'yHEODORE SIMMENS, a successful 
-*- potter and baker of Perth Amboy, 
Middlesex count}^ New Jersey, is a son 
of Henry and Fredericka (Doutteil) Sim- 



Biographical Sketches. 



909 



mens, and was born Jan. 20, 1851, in 
Germany. He comes of a mixed ances- 
try, tlie paternal grandfather having de- 
scended from an old English family, and 
the maternal grandsire being a native of 
France and a surgeon in the army. 

Theodore Simmens attended the " vil- 
lage " schools, and then learned the trade 
of a potter. After pursuing this busi- 
ness for four years at home, he spent 
several years abroad working in the pot- 
teries of various European cities. He 
came to the United States in 1881, and 
settled at Hoboken, New Jersey. He 
built a pottery of small dimensions and 
began business for himself in a limited 
way. Success was wavering in the bal- 
ance, but he toiled on with dogged pei'- 
severance, hoped on with undiminished 
faith. He passed the crucial test in 
safety ; his goods became recognized, and 
he found for them a ready market. He 
made but a living at first ; then fortune 
became more beneficent, and he accumu- 
lated sufficient to enable him to build a 
larger establishment, and afterwards to 
erect a bakery. He has been operating 
both concerns since 1885 at Perth Am- 
boy, and has been quite successful. He 
enjoys a large and prosperous business, 
and has acquired a competency, evei-y 
dollar of which is the result of his own 
hard labor. Mr. Simmens is a demo- 
crat, although he has never been espec- 
ially active in politics. He was united 
in marriage, in 1873, to Mary Legart. 
Two children bless this union : Julius 
and Charles. 

Henry Simmens (father) is a native of 
Germany. He became a baker by trade 
after leaving school. He retired from 
business after accumulating a substantial 
fortune, and purchased a home at Hes- 
sans, where he settled, and there resided 



until his death in 1879. He served three 
years in the Prussian army, and spent 
seven years in travel thi'ough Europe. 
He was an active and devoted member 
of church, and enjoyed the respect of all 
men in his community, by whom he was 
quoted as an honest and a genuinely 
good man. His wife passed to the other 
world three years previous to his own 
decease. She died in 1876. They were 
the parents of four children : Conrad, 
Theodore, Julius, and William. 



A UGUST EHODE, a prominent hotel- 
-^-^ keeper and merchant of Sayreville, 
New Jersey, is of German birth and an- 
cestry, his ancestors for generations hav- 
ing been residents of Hanover, Germany, 
in which city he was born June 10, 1861. 
He is a son of Claus and Annie Rhode. 
His father was an extensive contractor 
for the building of roads, streets, and 
sewers for municipalities, and after a 
profitable business career was enabled to 
retire with a considerable fortune. Of 
the issue of Claus Ehode, two sons, 
William and Peter, are deceased ; two 
daughters are residing in Germany, and 
three sons, Henry, Claus, Jr., and Au- 
gust, are living in this country. 

August Rhode was educated at the 
public schools of Cadenburg, Germany, 
and graduated therefrom at the age of 
fourteen. He immediately obtained work 
on a form, but after remaining there for 
seven months he concluded to change his 
occupation, and thereupon indentured 
himself to learn the trade of a baker. At 
the age of twenty he left the old country 
and came to the United States, and set- 
tled in Sayreville. Here he was first 
employed in the brick-yard of James 
Wood, now deceased, with whom he re- 



910 



Biographical Sketches. 



maiiied one year. He then shipped on 
one of tlio vessels engaged in freighting 
bricks for the Sayre & Fisher Co., as a 
saiU)r, and gradually advanced himself to 
captain and half owner of the vessel. He 
followed this occupation for ten years, 
when, at the age of thirty-one, he en- 
gaged in the baking business, which he 
purchased from his employer a year 
thereafter. Six months later he engaged 
in the hotel business, which he now con- 
ducts, purchasing it a few months after- 
wards, and adding to it a livery business. 
In addition he conducts a wholesale 
liquor business. In all his varied business 
aftairs Mr. Rhode has been uniformly 
successful, and is universally regarded as 
a sound, consei-vative and prosperous 
business man. In political matters Mr. 
Rhode is a democrat, and an active and 
enthusiastic worker for his party. It 
lias rewarded him by the election, in 
1894, as a member of the township com- 
mittee of Sayreville township, and as 
chairman of the board of health. Mr. 
Rhode is a member of the Sayreville 
German Presbyterian church, and of St. 
Stephen's Lodge, No. 63, F. and A. M., 
of South Amboy, and of the New Bruns- 
wick Lodge, No. 71, I. 0. 0. F. He was 
united in marriage to Mary Ilaulthusen, 
of New York city, and three children 
have been born to them : John H., Wil- | 
liam B., and Annie Eliza. 



"OUFUS T. CASLER, a prominent re- 
-^-^ tired citizen residing at Eaton- 
town, Monmouth county, New Jersey, is 
a son of Peter and Mary (Paxton) Cas- 
ler, and was born at Monmoutli Park, 
the above county, on Sept. 17, 1841. 
He received a common-school education, 
and was subsequently engaged in farm- 
ing in Monroe township, Middlesex 



county, this state. He afterwards came 
with his father to Monmouth Park, 
where he remained with him in the pur- 
suit of farming until they sold their 
farm, since which time he has been liv- 
ing retired at Eatontown. Politically 
he is a democrat, and as a citizen of the 
community in which he resides, he is 
much respected. Among other real-es- 
tate holdings, Mr. Casler owns a cottage 
at Asbury Park, which he built. On 
July 1, 1892, he was happily married 
to Miss Grace, a daughter of George 
Green. 

The family is of German origin. John 
P. Casler (great-grandfather) settled in 
Monmouth county prior to the Revolu- 
tion. One of his sons was John, a popu- 
lar landlord in Freehold. He married a 
Miss Clayton of that place, and their 
children were : Peter, John, Robert, 
George, Hannah (Mrs. Joseph Parker), 
Rebecca (Mrs. Joseph Van Cleef), and 
Delia (Mrs. Richard Worthly). Peter, of 
this number, was a successful farmer of 
Eatontown township, and died in 1883 
in his eighty-seventh year. To his first 
wife, Mary, a daughter of John Paxton, 
of Allentown, Pa., were born the fol- 
lowing children : Joseph, John P., Theo- 
dosia, William C, Margaret, Robert, 
Henry, Elizabeth, Emily, Edward, Peter, 
Delia, Aaron and Rufus T. Mr. Casler 
was a second time married to Eliza Pax- 
ton, a sister of his first wife, whose chil- 
dren are : Sallie and Harriet. 



T GUIS ROTHENGEN, a prosperous 
-*-^ druggist at Long Branch, Mon- 
mouth county. New Jersey, is a son of 
Moses and Fredericka Rothengen, and 
was born, in 1852, at Siessen, Hessen, 
Germany. 

Moses Rothengen (father), after receiv- 



Biographical Sketches. 



911 



ing an excellent business education, 
learned the trade of a jeweler. He sub- 
sequently engaged in the business for 
himself. His children were : Henrietta, 
Jacob, Louis, Silumenia, Aleck, deceased, 
and Aaron. 

Louis Eothengen came to this country 
at the age of thirteen years, and became 
an assistant to his brother, who was en- 
gaged in the drug business in Brooklyn. 
In 1874 he opened a drug store of his 
own in that city. Li 1876 he started an 
apothecary shop at Long Branch, and in 
1894 was the owner and proprietor of 
four drug stores, two at Long Branch, 
one at West Long Branch, and the orig- 
inal one in Brooklyn. He has since dis- 
posed of his Brooklyn store and one of 
the Long Branch establishments, contin- 
uing in the proprietorship of the other 
two. He owns two buildings in Long 
Branch, and one at the West End, valued 
at $30,000, besides which he has stocks 
in corporations of the par value of f 10,- 
000. Politically he is a republican. 
In fraternity he is a member of the F. 
and A. M., the Encampment, the I. 0. 
0. F., and the Foresters of America. 
Mr. Eothengen was married, in 1874, to 
Julia Mandelbaum, of Brooklyn, N. Y., 
and to their marriage was born a daugh- 
ter. Mr. Eothengen is a careful and 
conscientious druggist, a popular and pro- 
gressive citizen, an enterprising and suc- 
cessful man of business, and a modest, 
unassuming man of broad views and lib- 
eral mind. 



TTTII'LIAM R. JOLINE, township col- 
* ' lector of Ocean township and ex- 
postmaster at Long Branch, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, was born Oct. 26, 
1848, at Portupeck, in the county and 
state above named. 



James Joline, the paternal grandfather, 
acquired a common-school education, and 
at one period of his life he was an officer 
in the French army, with the rank of col- 
onel. By occupation he was a farmer, and 
was likewise engaged in the cultivation 
of oysters. In politics he was a demo- 
crat, and in religion was a member, a 
class-leader and an active and prominent 
official in the Methodist Episcopal church 
at Portupeck, in which town he lived the 
greater part of his life. He was the 
father of eleven children, all of whom, 
with the exception of the youngest daugh- 
ter, Mrs. Hathaway, have died. These 
children were : Bartine, George, James, 
William, Henry, John, Mary, Anna, 
Harriet and Lydia. 

E. Joline (father) received a common- 
school education. His principal occupa- 
tions were those of a fisherman and an 
oysterman, and he also farmed, in a small 
way, in Ocean township. Politically he 
was a democrat, and in matters of re- 
ligion was a member of the Method- 
ist Episcopal church. , He was the father 
of the following children : Borden, John 
W., Mary P., deceased 3 William E., 
Lydia E., Maria F., and George and 
Georgia. 

William E. Joline received his earlier 
education in the public schools, and sub- 
sequently attended Pennington Semi- 
nary for two years. He acquired the 
trade of a mason, which occupation he 
followed for a period of fifteen years. In 
1885 he was appointed postmaster at 
Long Branch by President Cleveland, 
and filled that office until 1889. In 
1891 he was elected to the position of 
township collector of Ocean township, 
Monmouth county, and is still en- 
gaged in the faithful discharge of the 
duties and obligations of that office. He 



912 



Biographical Sketches. 



is also occupied in the cultivation of a 
small farm, which he owns in the town- 
ship above named. Mr. Joline in party af- 
fairs is a strong democrat and has always 
been active in political work. He has 
business interests in the Long Branch 
Building and Loan Association, also in 
the Long Branch Steamboat Co. 



DR. J. ALBERT STULTS, a successful 
dental surgeon at Long Branch, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey, is a son 
of Jacob and Martina Morrison Stults, 
and was born Aug. 24, 1873, in the city 
where he practices his profession. 

David Stults, the paternal grandfather, 
was a tailor by trade, which occupation 
he followed all his life at Hightstown, 
Mercer county, New Jei'se^'. 

Jacob Stults (father) is a native of 
Hightstown, where he was born, and was 
educated in the common schools. After 
several years of subsequent employment 
as clerk in various stores at Trenton he 
returned to Hightstown, and during a 
long series of years was publisher and 
editor of a newspaper called the Village 
Record. In 1872 he removed to Lonsr 
Branch, purchased the Xeirs, and for fif- 
teen years was engaged in the suc- 
cessful management of that paper. In 
1887 he efl'ected an advantageous sale of 
the News, removed to Washington, where 
he took a radical departure from the news- 
paper to the crockery business. After 
the lapse of a 3ear, a desire for his previ- 
ous, long-time avocation returning, he 
went t<^ Columljia, Pa., and published 
the Duily Neir>< for a brief period, thence 
to Spring Lake, where he remained in 
the management and control of the Qa- 
zette until 1894. In that year he re- 
turned to Long Branch and assumed pro- 



prietorship of the Times, the sole re- 
publican newspaper in that city, and 
through that medium he still continues 
to wield a great influence in the aftairs of 
the party of Lincoln, Chase, and Sumner. 
Six children have been the issue of his 
marriage with Martha Morrison, three of 
whom have deceased, the survivors be- 
ing K. M., Dr. J. Albert, and Warren H. 
J. Albert Stults acquired a thorough, 
substantial education in the public 
schools at Long Branch, as well as an 
extensive fund of useful and practical 
knowledge by assistmg his father in 
newspaper work. In 1895 he was grad- 
uated from the Dental College of Balti- 
more, Md., after a course marked by 
most studious application to both the 
theoretical and practical sides of modern 
dental surgeiy. He at once opened 
tastefully appointed parlors in Long 
Branch. His practice, already large, ia 
constantly increasing. Dr. Stults is a 
member of the New Jersey State Dental 
Association, a member of the Monmouth 
Troop, New Jersey- National Guards, and 
in political affairs gives his adherence 
to republican principles. 



JUSTICE ALFRED VAN DOREN, po- 
^ lice justice of Long Branch, Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, is a son of 
Isaac and Eleanor (Hackenson) Van 
Doren, and was born April 9, 1840, at 
Matawan, Monmouth county. 

The Van Doren family is of Dutch 
origin, and was established in this state 
by Peter Van Doren, grandfather of our 
subject, who emigrated from Holland, 
and settled near Holmdel, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey. He received a 
good common-school education, and adop- 
ted the occupation of a farmer. After 



Biographical Sketches. 



913 



he came to this country he resumed 
agricultural pursuits, and engaged quite 
extensively in land speculations. In 
politics he advocated democratic prin- 
ciples, and in religion was a member 
of the Dutch Reformed church at Holm- 
del. His christian zeal inspired the found- 
ing of the old church known as " The 
Brick church," in the erection of which 
he materially assisted. He was married 
to Jane Williams, by whom he had eight 
children : Arthur, William, Jacob, Peter, 
Isaac, Polly, Sarah and Jane. 

Isaac Van Doren was born on a farm 
near Holmdel. He received a thorough 
common-school education, and as he 
developed to manhood his information 
became varied and extensive. His pri- 
mary occupation was farming, but subse- 
quently he learned the trade of a mill- 
wright, in which he became a skilled 
mechanic, and made it the business of 
his life. Politically he was a democrat 
of the Jacksonian type, and served as 
township assessor at Matawan. He 
died at Freehold, New Jersey, his wife, 
Eleanor, surviving until 1894, when she 
deceased at Holmdel. They were the 
pai'ents of nine children : Isaac, William, 
Maria, William, deceased ; Jane, Schenck, 
Emma, Eleanor, deceased; and Alfred. 
Justice Alfred Van Doren, essentiallj^ a 
self-made man, received the education 
afforded half a century ago by the com- 
mon schools of Monmouth county. In- 
heriting the naturally keen intellect and 
fondness for reading of his father and 
grandfather, he readily supplied the ele- 
ments necessary to a cultivated mind, 
and thus became possessed of a high 
order of intelligence. He was engaged 
in agricultural operations near Holmdel 
at the opening of the civil war, but 
yielding to the patriotic spirit abounding 



in New Jersey, he abandoned the plough 
for the musket, and enlisted, in 1862, in 
the Twenty-ninth New Jersey regiment, 
and was sent into active service, where 
he remained about ten months. Dis- 
abilities arising from a fall while jump- 
ing a ditch during a march one day, 
relieving him of further duty in the army, 
he returned to his home. He was sub- 
sequently engaged for a year in the 
shoe business in Brooklyn, N. Y., at the 
expiration of which time he removed to 
Long Branch, taking charge of, and man- 
aging for the seven years succeeding, the 
Mansion House in that city. He gave 
up the hotel business and became a dealer 
in real estate, which enterprise he suc- 
cessfully handled until 1872. In that 
year he was appointed police justice of 
Long Branch, in which ofl&ce he is now 
serving his third term. In politics Jus- 
tice Van Doren is an active member of 
the Republican party, is captain of the 
famed Grant Club of Long Branch, and 
has filled all the official positions in 
Morris Post, No. 46, G. A. R., of which 
he is a worthy and respected member. 
Justice Van Doren was married Dec. 24, 
1867, to Eleanor Williamson. To their 
marriage was born one daughter, Anna 
May. 

T3 L. BUET, a successful business man 
-*-^* and citizen of Long Branch, was 
born at Flushing, Long Island, Dec. 25, 
1864. B. L. Burt attended the common 
schools of Long Branch and Ke3'port, 
New Jersey, until he was eleven years of 
age, when he secured a position as clerk 
in the hat store of H. Curtis, Long Branch, 
and after one and a half years' service 
there, was employed in the same capacity 
for three years in a grocery store. He 
then learned butchering with Mr. George 



914 



Biographical Sketches. 



Colies, of Long Branch, and remained 
\vitli the above establishment for a period 
of seven years. He then established a 
business on his own accomit at Long 
Branch, and by good judgment and strict 
attention to every detail of his business, 
has built up a substantial and growing 
trade. I'olitically he is a democrat, and 
actively' labors for the cause of his party. 
He is an attendant of the Methodist 
Episcopal chui-ch, and a member in good 
standing of the following secret orders : 
Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias, and 
Encampment. He was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Lauretta Wells. This 
happy union has been blessed by the 
birth of three children : B. L., Elizabeth, 
and Sellar (deceased). 



n^ H. VALENTINE, ex-keeper of Life- 
-*- ' Saving Station, No. 4, of the Fourth 
district, Atlanticville, New Jersey, and 
one of the most highlj-respected and 
esteemed citizens of Long Branch, New 
Jer.sey, is another example of that class 
of self-made men whom the American 
people delight to honor. His people are 
of Scotch descent, and his parents were 
George and Kate (Morris) Valentine, and 
he was born at Long Branch, New Jer- 
sey, in June, 1824. 

George Valentine (father) was given a 
common-school education. He married 
Miss Kate Morris, and this union was 
blessed by the birth of one son, T. H. 
Mr. Valentine. Sr., died in 1824. 

T. H. Vak-ntine (subject) procured his 
early education by attending the public 
scjiools of Long Branch a lew short 
winter terms, and then was engaged as 
a cook on a vessel plying between New 
York city and points on the Atlantic 
coast, until he attained the age of twenty- 



two years, when he went into the fishing 
business at Long Branch, and for many 
years handled large quantities of nets, 
twine, and general fishing supplies, and 
carried on an extensive trade with the 
fishermen of that localitv. Mr. Valen- 
tine entered the life-saving department 
of the United States government, and, 
b}^ earnest, fiiithful and able service, at- 
tained the rank of keeper of Station No. 4 
of the Fourth district, at Atlanticville, 
New Jersey. While engaged in this noble 
but hazardous work, our subject per- 
formed many deeds of daring, and rescued 
many who otherwise would have found 
a watery grave, and Mr. Valentine has 
the great honor of having received the 
first medal ever granted by the govern- 
j ment to any one holding the position, 
' which he so ably filled, and this was but 
a fitting recognition of a man always 
noted for his bravery, and ready to risk 
his life for his fellow-man in peril. After 
twenty years in the service, Keeper 
Valentine was retired, and from that 
time on he has devoted himself to the 
various business interests which he has 
accumulated dui-ing a long life of suc- 
cessful activity. He is a heavy owner 
of sailing craft, and is a stockholder in 
both the Long Bi'anch Banking Co. and 
the Seventh National Bank of the same 
place. While not an aspirant for any 
political preferment in the way of any 
office, Mr. Valentine takes a keen in- 
terest in the political aflairs of his 
country, and alwajs casts his ballot ; 
he is a republican. Fraternally, our 
subject is connected with Lodge No. 77, 
I. 0. 0. F., of Long Branch, and has . 
been a member of the same for forty 
years. For forty years Mr. Valentine 
has led an active christian life, and has 
been a leading and influential member of 




aUa^f^CtPilkJ" 




^>^^ q/ ^l/i/ui^ 




Biographical Sketches. 



919 



the Methodist Episcopal church of Long 
Branch. He has been a class leader for 
forty years, and a member and president 
of the board of trustees for many terms, 
and is regarded as one of the most sub- 
stantial and consistent of christians. The 
maiden name of our subject's wife was 
Miss R. Minnie Wooley, daughter of 
Ficker and Mary Ann Wooley, and they 
were married Dec. 3, 1846. T. H. Valen- 
tine is one of the oldest residents of the 
city of Long Branch, and built the second 
house erected in North Long Branch. 



JOHN STILLWELL APPLEGATE num- 
^ hers among his ancestors some of the 
earliest and most prominent settlers of 
America. Among these were : Thomas 
Applegate, of Massachusetts, in 1635; 
Richard Gibbons, Richard Stout and 
James Grover, three of the patentees of 
the famous Monmouth patent; Richard 
Hartshorne, James Bowne, William Law- 
rence, John Throckmorton, Lieut. Nicho- 
las Stillwell and Rev. John Bray. The 
father of John was Joseph Stillwell 
Applegate, a grandson of John Stillwell, 
a commissary in the Revolutionary war, 
of the First regiment, Monmouth militia. 
His mother, Ann Bi'ay, was a descendant 
of John Bray, a Baptist minister from 
England, who settled in Monmouth county 
about the year 1684, and who donated 
the building and land for the first Bap- 
tist church edifice at Holmdel. 

John Stillwell Applegate was born in 
the township of Middletown, Monmouth 
county, where his ancestors had lived 
for five generations. He was graduated 
at Colgate University, New York, in 
1858, and licensed in New Jersey as a 
lawyer in 1861. He began and has con- 
tinued the exercise of his profession at 



Red Bank, New Jersey, practicing in the 
state and federal courts. Among the 
more important reported cases of public 
interest with which he has been con- 
nected are the New York and Long 
Branch railroad against Taylor; the 
Second National Bank against Farr; the 
Western Union Telegraph Co. against 
Rogers ; township of Middletown against 
Hallenbake ; city of Long Branch against 
Sloane ; George W. Childs against col- 
lector of Long Branch ; New York and 
Long Branch Railroad Co. against bor- 
ough of South Amboy ; Holmdel against 
Shrewsbury; the State against the bor- 
ough of Atlantic Highlands; and the 
case of Barbour against Fitzgerald, in 
the United States Court of Appeals. 
Between 1875 and 1879 he was associ- 
ated in the law business with Hon. Henry 
M. Nevius, present judge of the Hudson 
circuit court, and in 1884 he formed a 
co-partnership with Frederick W. Hope, 
which still continues in the name of 
Applegate & Hope. During the civil 
war, he was special deputy for Mon- 
mouth county of the Union League of 
America, and organized a number of 
chapters of that patriotic organization. 
In 1862, he was nominated and elected 
by the Republican party as school super- 
intendent for Shrewsbury township, and 
three times re-elected to the same posi- 
tion. He served as a member of the 
State Republican Committee in the suc- 
cessful gubernatorial campaign of Mar- 
cus L. Ward in 1865, and for a number 
of years was ' a member of his county 
Republican Executive Committee, and 
for a portion <1f the time was its presi- 
dent. He was president of the first 
building and loan association of the shore 
section of his county, and, in 1875, addi- 
tional banking facilities being a plain 



920 



Biographical Sketches. 



necessity of his town, he initiated a 
nioveuient which resulted in the organi- 
zation ol" the Second National Bank oi" 
Red Bank, and was selected as the first 
president of the new institution, holding 
the positioji until his resignation in 1887. 
Upon the incorporation of the town of 
Red Bank in 1871, he was elected as one 
ol" the members of its governing body. 
and was chosen as its chief the following 
year. He was elected state senator in 
1881, being the first republican to re^Dre- 
sent his county in that position. Upon 
the organization, in 1882, of the New J 
York and Atlantic Highlands Railroad 
Co., he was chosen as its president, serv- 
ing in that capacity until its consolida- 
tion with the Central railroad system. 
He is at present counsel for a number of 
large corporations in New Jersey, includ- 
ing the New York and Long Branch 
Railroad Co., and the Western Union 
Telegraph Co. ; also several municipal 
corporations. ! 

While in the New Jersey senate, he 
introduced and advocated a measure re- 
quiring the public printing of the state 
to be put out by contract to the lowest 
acceptable bidder, instead of farming it 
out to favorites as a reward for partisan 
service — a system wliich had been in 
vogue for many years. This bill in- 
curred the hostility of many newspapers 
of the state, which denounced the meas- 
ure and its author in bitter terms, but, 
notwithstanding, its inherent justice com- 
manded tlie support of the mcmljers of 
lioth bouses, and it became a law, ell'ect- 
ing a saving of public funds of ^50,000 
annually. He also drafted and intro- 
duced a bill of great public convenience, 
authorizing the smaller towns and vil- 
lages of this state to construct and main- 
tain water-works. Under this act, many- 



towns have constructed and now operate 
efficient systems, his own among the 
number, which in 1884 appointed him, 
with William S. Sneden, Esq., and the 
late Hon. Anthony Reckless, as its first 
board of water commissioners, who de- 
vised the present water system of the 
town, supplying water from an artesian 
well fifteen feet in diameter, sunk to the 
depth of seventy feet, into which flows, 
by siphonic action, water from a luimber 
of auxiliary artesian wells, aftbrding an 
abundant supply of pure and wholesome 
water. This ofiice of water commissioner 
Mr. Applegate still holds. Among the 
positions of trust which he now fills are : 
director of the Second National Bank of 
Red Bank ; director and treasurer of the 
Gas Light Co. ; president of the board 
of trustees of the First Baptist church 
of Shrewsbury, at Red Bank; and trus- 
tee and vice-president of the Monmouth 
Battle Monument Association. He is a 
member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society ; 
a life member of the Delta Kappa Epsi- 
lon Club of New York city ; a member 
of the American Bar Association, and of 
the Societ}' of the Sons of the American 
Revolution. In 1880 he delivered the 
annual alumni address at Colgate Uni- 
versity-, and lately published a memorial 
volume of his boyhood companion and 
college chum, entitled, " Letters and 
Reminiscences of George Arrowsmith of 
New Jersey, Lieutenant-colonel of the 
157th New York State Volunteers." 

He married, in 1865, Deborah Catha- 
rine Allen, a daughter of Charles Gordon 
Allen, one of the early prominent set- 
tlers of Red Bank. His children sur- 
viving are : Annie, a graduate of Yassar 
College in 1891, and the wife of Charles 
H. A. Wager, professor of languages and 
English literature in Centre College, Ken- 



BlOGRAPHICAI, SkJSTCHES. 



921 



tucky ; John Still well, a graduate of Col- 
gate University, and a student at the 
Harvard law school ; and Catharine 
Trafford, a member of the class of 1897, 



Vassar College. 



nP\R. P. J. ZEGLIO, one of the most 
-*-^ skillful surgeons in the state of 
New Jersey, and a leading general prac- 
titioner at North Plainfield, is also an 
ex-coroner of Somerset county. He is a 
son of John and Josephine (Duchini) 
Zeglio, and was born at Cranford, Union 
county, New Jersey, May 31, 1860. Be- 
fore leaving school, however (was then 
sixteen years old), while receiving treat- 
ment for a fractured wrist, which he had 
received in a fall- from a tree, he con- 
ceived the idea of medicine for a profes- 
sion, and pursued his studies with that 
end in view ; not willing to burden his 
widowed mother with his college ex- 
penses, which she could not well afford, 
he worked and paid his own way. At 
the age of eighteen years he entered the 
college of physicians and surgeons, the 
medical department of Columbia college. 
New York, from which old and time- 
honored seat of medical learning he grad- 
uated a full-fledged physician in 1882. He 
at once entered upon practice at Mount 
Bethel, New Jersey, and where, after en- 
countering the usual difficulties that beset 
a new and young physician, he began his 
ministrations among those who knew 
him most intimately as a school boy, but 
were willing to test his professed medical 
skill. His peculiar adaptability and nat- 
ural talent evinced in study only needed 
an opportunity for the successful demon- 
stration of his ability to apply his knowl- 
edge, and his early skill soon became 
recognized. Here he continued in a 
rapidly increasing practice until 1895, 



when he came to North Plainfield, where 
he has in a single year acquired an ex- 
tensive practice, one of the largest in 
that section of the state. While he is 
devoted to general practice, he enjoys an 
enviable reputation as a surgeon, and the 
difficult and important character of some 
successful operations performed by him 
entitle him to a front rank among the 
leading surgeons of the country. One 
of the more noteworthy operations per- 
formed by him was the following: the 
amputation of both feet, and all the fin- 
gers and thumbs at one operation. He 
was elected coroner of Somerset county 
in 1884, which fact fully attests his pop- 
ularity as a citizen. He is a close 
student of the profession as to more 
modern methods of diagnosis and treat- 
ment, and keeps well abreast with the 
wonderful advance of medical knowledge 
and science. He is a member of the Am- 
erican Medical Association, the Somerset 
County Medical Society, and the Plain- 
field Medical Association. He is an en- 
thusiastic sportsman and spends all his 
spare time afield with dog and gun. Per- 
sonally Dr. Zeglio is of an unimpeacha- 
ble character and spotless reputation, and 
is as highly esteemed for his many personal 
qualities of heart and head as he is highly 
regarded for his superior skill as a phy- 
sician. He resides in the old mansion 
house once the home of Dr. Louis Craig, 
deceased, at No. 48 Somerset street, which 
he owns, and is one of the most desirable 
properties in Plainfield, where as a citi- 
zen of the town he is universally respected 
and stands deservedly high. 

John Zeglio was one of a family of 
seven children, all born at Ambri, Can- 
ton Tessin, Switzerland, the native home 
of the Zeglio family. Hewas born in 1818, 
received a good comprehensive education 



922 



Biographical Sketches. 



and became a tiller of the soil. In.spired 
bv the glowing accounts of the opportu- 
nities that prosperous and free America 
offered, he resolved to try its fortunes, 
and accordingly made atrip to this coun- 
try, returning in a few year.s, and later, 
in 1849, came on a gold pilgrimage ta 
California, where he spent considerable 
time in quest of his vision of golden lore, 
and in working in mines. Here he lost 
his health, whereupon he returned to 
New York, where he resided for several 
years, and subsequently located at Cran- 
ford, Union county. New Jersey, and 
afterwards, in 1862, removed upon a farm 
at Mount Bethel, Somerset count}-, where 
he resided until his death Ajn-il 15, 1856. 
He was an active democrat in local party 
councils and held various offices. Relig- 
iously he was a member of the Roman 
Catholic church. His marriage was 
blessed with the following children : 
David, Pauline, the wife of A. D. Taylor, 
deceased ; Mary, the wife of John D. 
Kirch ; Joseph, and Dr. P. J. The mother 
of these children died Feb. 4, 1894. She 
was a noble woman honored and respected 
by everybody. She was left a widow 
when the suly'ect was five years of age, 
and bore noljly the responsibilit}- and 
care of rearing her family without the 
help of her husband upon whom she 
relied so much, and to her precepts Dr. 
Zeglio chieHy owes his success in life. 



time he came to this country and resumed 
liis occupation of farming. In religion 
he was a member of the Roman Catholic 
church, and in politics a democrat. He 
was the father of three children by his 
marriage with Catharine Kuckley : John, 
James and Maggie. 

John Guire attended the common 
schools at Coltsneck until he was eigh- 
teen 3'ears of age, when he accepted a 
situation in a dry-goods store in New 
York city owned by H. H. Caster. He 
remained in that employment for a time 
and retired therefrom to learn and carry 
on the trade of a ship-builder. Seven 
years later Mr. Guire removed to Long 
Branch, where he opened a grain and 
feed store, and entered upon his hitherto 
successful business career. Politically 
Mr. Guire is an active democrat, and was 
appointed a member of the board of 
chosen freeholders of Ocean township to 
fill an unexpired term. He is a devoted 
member of the Roman Catholic church, 
in which he holds the office of trustee. 
In secret organizations he is a member of 
Takauasse Wigwam, No. 58, I. 0. R. M. 



TOHN GUIRE, an extensive dealer in 
'-' grain and feed at Long Branch, 
Monmouth county. New Jersej , is a son 
of James and Catharine (Kuckle}') Guire, 
and was born May 5, 1859, at Coltsneck, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey. James 
Guire was a native of Ireland, and after 
receiving a common-school education and 
engaging in agricultural pursuits for a 



TpDWIN E. TABER, a successful drug- 
^-^ gist at Long Branch, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Asbury 
and Maria Louise Taber, and was born 
March 23, 1858. 

Elislia Taber (grandfather) was born 
at Long Branch, where he obtained a 
common-school education. He was by 
occupation a farmer and a fisherman, in 
political faith a democrat, and a member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church at 
Long Branch. He was the father of 
four children : William R., Asbur} % Ed- 
win, and Ellen, deceased. 

Asbury Taber learned the mason and 
bricklaying trades, which he afterwards 



Biographical Sketches. 



923 



followed. In politics he is a democrat, 
and in religious matters a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church at Long 
Branch. In secret fraternal societies he 
is a member of Enoch Lodge, No. 78, I. 
0. 0. F., and of Long Branch Council, 
No. -329, Royal Arcanum. He was mar- 
ried to Maria Louise Pitcher, and to their 
marriage were born three children : Ed- 
win E., William P. and Laura, deceased. 
Edwin E. Taber attended the public 
and high schools at Long Branch for a 
rudimentary education. He then entered 
the drug store of John Britton, where he 
remained three years. He then went to 
New York city, where he accepted a posi- 
tion as clerk in the employ of F. H. 
Sayer, a large dealer in drugs, and re- 
mained in that service for five years. Re- 
turning to Long Branch he again entered 
the service of Mr. Britton, and continued 
with that gentleman until 1880, when he 
engaged in the drug business on his own 
account, and for sixteen years he has 
been doing a prosperous business. Mr. 
Taber attends the Methodist Episcopal 
church of Long Branch, and in politics is 
a democrat. He has hitherto held vari- 
ous local offices under the city govern- 
ment, and at present is a member of the 
election board. Fraternally he is a mem- 
ber of the Knights of the Golden Eagle 
and the Royal Arcanum. Mr. Taber was 
married, Nov. 23, 1883, to Minnie B. New- 
ing. They have an only son, Leroy C. 



TTTILLIAM WEST, one of the oldest 
' ^ citizens of North Long Branch, a 
farmer and fisherman by occupation, is a 
son of Elias and Deborah (Sherman) 
West, and was born, in 1826, in the town 
already mentioned. 

The family, of English origin, was es- 
tablished in this country by the paternal 



grandfather, William West. He was the 
father of five children : Ellen, Mary, Wil- 
liam, John, and Elias. 

Elias West, after receiving a common- 
school education, engaged in fishing and 
farming. Li politics he was an old-line 
whig. He married Deborah Sherman, 
and their marriage resulted in the birth 
of eight children : Katharine, Edmund, 
William, Lydia, Alice, John, Owens, and 
Borden. 

William West, after attending the pub- 
lic school a brief period, went to New 
York city, where he worked at the car- 
penter trade, and subsequently returned 
to North Long Branch, and engaged in 
fishing and in farming near that town. 
Since 1891 he has relaxed his activity in 
these pursuits, but occasionally engages 
in small contracts in his old-time trade 
of carpentering. In religious matters he 
is a methodist. Mr. West was married, 
Nov. 17, 1853, to Mary White, and they 
are the parents of four children : Sydney, 
Warren, Benjamin A., and Milton. 



r^ EORGE W. BROWN, ex-sherifi" of 
^-^ Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
ex-mayor, and now a leading real-estate 
dealer of Long Branch, is a son of George 
and Elizabeth (Gardner) Brown, and was 
born, Jan. 31, 1833, at Long Branch. 

John Brown, the paternal grandfather, 
was a native of Middletown, Monmouth 
county. He was a shij)-builder by trade 
and occupation, which he carried on exten- 
sively in New York city for many years. 

George Brown was born at Middletown. 
He acquired a common-school education. 
He was a carpenter and builder, and a 
fisherman. In religion he was a member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church. He 
was noted for his activity as a local dem- 
ocratic politician, and as an ardent ad- 



924 



Biographical Sketches. 



mirer of Andrew Jackson. His energy 
was also displayed, and his faith and en- 
durance tested, every Sabbath day, by 
traversing, on foot, a distance of twelve 
miles to his place of worship. He died 
in 1843. By his union with Elizabeth 
Gardner there was an issue of ten chil- 
dren : Solomon G., Thomas, William, 
Mary Ann, Phoebe, Rebecca, George W., 
deceased ; James, George W., and Sarah. 
George W. Brown, after receiving a 
substantial education in a select school 
at Long Branch, Avent to work on a farm 
at the early age of ten years, and iu that 
occupation was engaged three years. He 
then learned the trade of a blacksmith 
at Lumberton, New Jersey, and subse- 
quently worked for a time in a carriage 
factory. He returned to Long Branch, 
and associated himself with his brother 
in the carpenter trade for four years. 
At the expiration of this time he entered | 
into business for himself, as a carpenter 
and builder, which he pursued on a large 
and profitable scale until 1873. In that 
year he was elected sheriff of Monmouth 
county. At the close of his term he 
served as assessor of Ocean township the 
succeeding seven years. In 1883 he re- I 
ceived an unqualified endorsement of his 
previous administration of the office of 
sheriff by his re-election. Upon retiring 1 
from his second term he entered into the ' 
real-estate business, at which he has been 
profitably engaged ever since. Mr. Brown 
has been equally as prominent in the af- 
fairs of the town of Long Branch as in 
those of Monmouth county. Politically 
he is a democrat, and as such was elected 
president of the board of education, a 
member of common council, and served 
as mayor of Long Branch for twelve 
years. He was one of the organizers, 
and is now a director in the Long Branch 



Banking Co., and Avas president of the 
Monmouth County Agricultural Society 
for a number of years. Mr. Brown was 
united in marriage, June 17, 1855, to 
Mary Pauline Price. To this union have 
been born four children : Dr. George, de- 
ceased ; Elizabeth, Mary P., and Anna B. 
Mr. Brown has been an untiring worker 
all his life in every interest with which 
he has been identified. 



TDROF. W. W. WARNER, of Perth Am- 
-L boy, is a son of George Warner, 
and was born Aug. 3, 1833, at Mt. Pleas- 
ant, Pa. His grandfather, Kellogg War- 
ner, was one of three brothers who came 
from England about 1760, and settled in 
Connecticut and eastern Pennsylvania. 
He was a carriage-builder by trade, and 
was engaged in that business until 1830, 
when he retired from business. He was 
a democrat in politics, and a strict ad- 
herent of the Presbyterian church. He 
died in 1839, leaving four children : 
George, William, Daniel, and Cynthia. 

George Warner, the father of Prof. 
Warner, after having received an excel- 
lent common and high-school education, 
became a mechanical engineer, and pur- 
sued that avocation all his life. He was 
a native of Connecticut, where his father 
had first settled upon arriving in America. 
He was also, like his father before him, 
a supporter of democratic principles and 
measures, and a devoted and consistent 
member of the Presbyterian church. He 
was most active in church work, espec- 
ially the Sunday-school, of which he was 
for years the superintendent. He was 
happily married at an early age, and with 
I'.is wife enjoyed many years of unalloyed 
domestic felicity. After rearing a very 
large family of children they passed 
away, the father in 1871, and the mother 



Biographical Sebtches, 



926 



in 1880. Their descendants were : Pres- 
ton, deceased ; Horatio, Henry, Prof. W. 
W., Norman G., Washington, Daniel, 
Eminence E., Elizabeth, deceased; Wil- 
son, Adelaide, Walter W., deceased ; 
John W., deceased; Jeanie A., deceased, 
and Eleanor P. 

Prof. Warner enjoyed the advantages 
of scholastic training in early life. After 
leaving college he took up the study of 
law. He never followed the profession 
of law, however, preferring that of teach- 
ing as much more congenial to his taste. 
He next taught a school in Philadelphia 
for three years, after which he went to 
Wilmington, Del., where he had charge 
of a school for a similar term of three 
years. He then removed to Boston, Mass., 
where he had charge of a school for one 
year, when he was offered a school at 
Providence, R. I., upon terms more ac- 
ceptable to him. Here he devoted the 
next thirteen years of his life, or until he 
came to Perth Amboy, in 1874, and es- 
tablished the private school of which he 
is the principal. His methods of teach- 
ing are considered by the most intelligent 
people to be at least twenty years in ad- 
vance of the times, and he has been very 
successful as an educator. The students 
that graduate from his institution and 
use his methods meet with eminent suc- 
cess, and this has given the school a very 
excellent reputation, and Prof Warner a 
high rank as an educator. Prof. Warner 
was married in Oct., 1865, to Sarah Eliza- 
beth Davis, a daughter of Benjamin and 
Mary Davis, and they have had. the fol- 
lowing children : George W., Ada, Sarah 
E. and Wynde, all of whom are deceased. 
Prof. Warner is a highly-cultured man, 
of refined tastes, genial and courteous, 
and is a consistent communicant of the 
Baptist church. 



aEORGE W. WOOLLEY, an extensive 
market gardener of Long Branch, 
was born at Deal, Monmouth county. 
New Jersey, in 1835, and is a son of 
Daniel and Adaline (Morris) Woolley.. 
His ancestors are of English origin, and 
were among the early-settled families of 
the state of New Jersey. His paternal 
grandfather followed the trade of a car- 
penter all his life. 

Daniel Woolley (father) was born in 
1812. He had but few advantages, for 
securing an education, so far as schools 
and books were concerned, but obtained 
by attrition with the business world 
what was by far a more practical and 
useful education. His marriage with 
Adaline Morris, who died in 1893, at the 
age of seventy-six years, resulted in the 
birth of seven children : George W., 
John W., Charles H., Catherine, Addi- 
son, Daniel, and Louis. 

George W. Woolley obtained a good 
common-school education, and then still 
further broadened his mental training by 
attending Eatontown University. He 
purchased a farm of his father, and 
lived upon it until he went to Brooklyn, 
and for one year was engaged in mer- 
chandising. But the field of agriculture 
having especial charms for him, he in 
1858 went to the state of Illinois and 
purchased a farm, and remained upon it 
until the illness of his father necessitated 
his return home. He has remained in 
Long Branch ever since, and has been 
engaged in trucking and market garden- 
ing, doing a prosperous wholesale and 
retail business, with Long Branch as the 
principal market. During his residence 
in Illinois he became acquainted with 
U. S. Grant, afterward General Grant, 
the conqueror of the Rebellion, and dur- 
ing the latter's residence in Long Branch, 



926 



Biographical Sketches. 



Mr. Woolley was frequently honored by 
a visit from that distinguished citizen. In 
1863 Mr. Woolley married Jane Pierce, 
a daughter of Amos Pierce, and this mar- 
riage union has resulted in the birth of the 
following children : George W., deceased ; 
Lambert, deceased ; Adaline, Louis A., 
Mamie, Sherman, Sarah, Carrie, Lizzie, 
John W., Katie, and one infant. 



T AWRENCE CARTAN is an enterpris- 
-'-^ ing and successful grain and lum- 
ber merchant of Matawan. He is the 
son of John and Catherine Cartan, and 
was born in Wetford, Ireland, in 1832. 
John Cartan was also born in Wetford, 
and, like the great majority of the in- 
habitants of that section of the Emerald 
Isle, was engaged in agriculture, and 
there died and was buried with his an- 
cestors. In religion the Cartans were 
loyal catholics, John Cartan being very 
active in church work, filling official po- 
sitions of trust in the same. To John 
and Catherine Cartan were born the fol- 
lowing children : Catherine, Mary, wife 
of John Cartan ; Kate (Mrs. J. Donehue); 
John, and Lawrence. 

Lawrence Cartan was a pupil in the 
public schools of Ireland until eighteen 
years of age, when the hope of winning 
a fortune in the new world led him to 
embark for New York. After spending 
some time there he went to Englishtown, 
New Jersey, at which place he became 
in time engaged in tlie milling and lum- 
ber business. Thence he came to Mata- 
wan, New Jersey, and there established 
himself in the grain and lumber business. 
Like his ancestors and fellow-countrymen 
Mr. Cartan has a natural bent for public 
affairs, and takes an active part in the 
politics of his town and county. In re- 



gard to party principles and doctrines he 
is a democrat, and has been entrusted 
with all the local political positions of 
his town and district. He is a member 
of the Knickerbocker Lodge, No. 52, I. 
0. 0. F., of Matawan, and actively identi- 
fied with the organization and work of 
the Presbyterian church. He married 
Ella, a daughter of James and Elsie Cot- 
trell. Mrs. Cartan, who died at Mata- 
wan, in 1887, bore him six children, as 
follows : A. J., a merchant at Matawan ; 
Kate, R., Garrett, Alice, and Bert. 



GARRETT S. LUYSTER is a progres- 
sive and well-to-do farmer and 
well-known citizen of Middletown town- 
ship, near Middletown, New Jersey. 

The original Luysters in America came 
from Holland and settled on Long Island, 
N. Y., in 1656. The great-grandfather, 
John P. Luyster, was born on Long 
Island in 1691, and was engaged in farm- 
ing all his life, and died Jan. 29, 1756. 
His children were : Sarah, wife of Ryck 
Suj'dam ; Peter, Cornelius, Johannes, 
Anna, wife of Daniel Barkalo, and Lu- 
cretia. 

Peter Luyster (grandfather) was a 
native of Newtown, Long Island, N. Y., 
and upon reaching manhood removed to 
Middletown, New Jersey, where he set- 
tled down and pursued the same occupa- 
tion as his father and grandfather before 
him. He was democratic in political 
views and an aggressive member of the 
Dutch Reformed church of Middletown. 
His children were : Sarah, Lucretia, and 
John P. John P. Luyster, Sr., and his 
wife died in the early part of the present 
century, the former in 1810. 

John Peter Luyster (father) was born 
in Middletown township in 1806, and be- 



Biographical Sketches. 



927 



came a farmer in Middletown township. 
He was active in the affairs of the Demo- 
cratic party, and was a member of the 
Dutch Reformed church. He also served 
his state as a member of the militia for 
five years. His children were : Sarah, 
deceased ; Emma, Catherine, John, de- 
ceased, and Garrett S. 

Garrett S. Luyster is a son of J. Peter 
and Miranda (Suydam) Luyster, and 
was born in Middletown township, Sept. 
20, 1843. He was reared on his father's 
farm, and received his early education in 
the public schools of that locality, and 
then attended the Middletown academy. 
He then learned the carpenter trade, and 
upon finishing his apprenticeship fol- 
lowed that occupation for some time. 
Some years later he relinquished the 
above business, and located on the old 
homestead farm in Middletown district, 
and has ever since maintained the high 
reputation of the notable family of farm- 
ers to which he belongs, and of which he 
is of the fifth generation in this country. 
Mr. Luyster is deeply interested in the 
affairs of the Democratic party, and is an 
influential member and an active worker 
and officer in the Dutch Reformed church 
at Middletown. He married Miss Sarah 
Burrows, a daughter of James Burrows, 
and they have three sons: James M., 
John P., and Alfred G. 



seven years. In 1870 he became em- 
ployed on a steamship plying between 
New York city and Savannah and other 
Southern ports, and was subsequently 
promoted to the position of chief engi- 
neer, which he retained until 1881. In 
1 890 he retui'ned to South River, and be- 
came associated with his father under the 
': firm name of Morgan & Son, conducting 
': a general blacksmithing business until 
the following year, since when he has 
i had entire control. Mr. Morgan is a 
I democrat in politics, and is actively iden- 
tified with the conduct of borough af- 
; fairs. He was elected a member of the 
board of town commissioners in 1893, re- 
elected in 1895, and has been chairman 
of the board since the latter year, al- 
though it comj)rises three republican 
and but two democratic members. He 
is also a member and foreman of the 
Washington Fire Co., of South River. 

He married Miss Theresa Gertrude 
Perry, by whom he has had four chil- 
dren : Ethel, Florence, Arline and Ivan. 
Mr. Morgan is widely known as one of 
the most progressive and enterprising 
citizens of South River. During his two 
terms as town commissioner, he has ef- 
fected many measures looking towards 
the welfare of the borough. 



JOHN H. MORGAN, a well-known black- 
^ smith and machinist, and prominent 
in public affairs at South River, East 
Brunswick township, Middlesex county, 
was born July 19, 1844, at South River, 
receiving his education in the public 
schools of that town. When nineteen 
years old, he became a blacksmith's ap- 
prentice, and followed that trade for 



T ITTLETON WHITE, an auditor of 
-'-^ Monmouth county, now residing at 
Eatontown, New Jersey, is a son of 
Elisha and Mary (Lewis) White, and 
was born April 7, 1833, at Red Bank, 
New Jersey. He is of English origin. 

The paternal grandfather, Robert R. 
White, of Quaker stock, was born near 
Red Bank, and after obtaining a common- 
school education, settled down as a farmer 
in Shrewsbury township, where he con- 



928 



Biographical Sketches. 



tinued to reside during his entire life- 
time. In politics he was a whig, and in 
religion a member of the Society of 
Friends. He died in 1815. His chil- 
dren, all deceased, were : Elisha, Little- 
ton, Ashur, and Ann. 

Elisha White (father) was born in 
1791, near Red Bank, New Jersey, and 
after attending the country schools for a 
time, nenr Shrewsbury, learned the trade 
of a carpenter, which he pursued first at 
Eatontown and later at Red Bank. He 
was very successful, and became possessed 
of several properties. In religion he 
was a member of the Protestant Episco- 
pal church, being known as a sincere 
and devout christian, and politically he 
was a whig. He died in March, 1868, 
and his widow in 1892, at the advanced 
age of ninety-four years. They were the 
parents of eleven children : Reding L., 
John P., Foreman, Anna Eliza, Gordon 
D., Katharine, and Mary C, all de- 
ceased; Littleton, Braziba, Jeanne, and 
Caroline. 

Samuel Dennis, the original immi- 
grant, on the maternal side, to this 
country, came to Shrewsbury, New Jer- 
sey, from Great Britain, in 1775. He 
was a prominent personage in his day. 
He was a member of the Provisional 
Assembly, and his sons took an active 
part in the war of the Revolution. He 
married Increase Lippincott. Their son, 
Jacob, was married to Clemence Wood- 
ward, a daughter of Anthony Wood- 
ward, and one of the sons, also named 
Jacob, was married to Margaret, a daugh- 
ter of Joseph Price. Their daughter, 
Clemence, was our subject's grand- 
mother. 

Littleton White attended the com- 
mon schools at Red Bank, and subse- 
quently learned the trade of a tinner. 



' He prosecuted this business for a time in 
his native town, later at Long Branch, 
and eventually settled at Eatontown, 
where he continued in the same vocation 
until 1892. Mr. White has always been 
a republican in politics. He was a school 
trustee for a number of years, and for 
the last nine years has been a free- 
holder of Eatontown township. In 1896 
he was elected county auditor of Mon- 
mouth, which position he is now filling 
in a very acceptable manner. In relig- 
ious matters he is a member of the 
Protestant Episcopal church of Eaton- 
town, in which he also holds a seat in 
the vestry. He is a member of Ocean 
Port Tribe, I. 0. R. M. Mr. White was 
married, Feb. 4, 1853, to Mary Lambert- 
son, a daughter of Joshua Lambertson. 
To their union have been born four chil- 
dren : Anna Eliza, deceased; William 
L., Cornelia, and Harry. 



TpERDINAND BROWN, an enterpris- 
-*- ing plumber, gas and steam-fitter at 
Asbury Park, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, is a son of Bartine and Deborah 
Schibley Brown, and was born July 3, 
1863, at Hamilton, Somerset county, 
New Jei'sey. 

George Cornelius Brown (grandfather) 
resided at Long Branch. In politics he 
was a democrat, and in religion an active 
member and trustee of the Methodist 
church. His children were : Louisa, who 
married Robert Bennett, of Long Bi'anch; 
Alfred, Bartine, Abraham, Jennie, Jack- 
son, of West Long Branch, and Ellen, 
deceased. 

Bartine Brown was boi-n at Cedar 
Creek. He was successively engaged in 
farming at Hamilton, Glendale, Long 
Branch and Greengrove. He afterwards 
made Asbury Park his permanent place 



Biographical Sketches. 



929 



of abode, where he at first conducted a 
stage and express business, and later re- 
sumed agricultural pursuits. His affairs 
thrived and prospered, and as a result he 
is the owner of considerable real estate. 
He married Deborah Schibley. In poli- 
tics he is a democrat, and in religion a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. There were born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Brown eleven children : Elizabeth, 
married to Joseph Van Brunt, of West 
Park, New Jersey ; George C, a resident 
of West Park ; Rachel ; Ferdinand ; Ida, 
deceased 5 Lewis, Charles, Joseph and 
Alfred, all deceased ; Sadie, and Debbie, 
deceased. 

Ferdinand Brown attended the public 
schools of Asbury Park, after which for 
a period of ten years he was variously 
employed before entering into business 
for himself In 1890 Mr. Brown opened 
a plumbing, gas and steam-fitting estab- 
lishment of his own in his native city. 
His several years of practical experience 
in the business enabled him at once to 
successfully compete with the older es- 
tablished houses in that line. In politics 
he is a democrat, and in religious associa- 
tion a zealous member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church at Asbury Park. He 
is a member and the treasurer of A. R. 
Cook Hose Company, No. 3, of that city, 
and is also a member of the Grand Fra- 
ternity. Mr. Brown was joined in mar- 
riage Feb. 10, 1884, to Hettie Applegate. 
To their union have been born six chil- 
dren : Frederick, aged eleven ; Ethel, 
aged nine, and Florence, aged eight; 
Lilian and Helen, deceased, and Hazel. 



TOHN FORMAN, an extensive and pros- 
^ perous coal dealer at Asbury Park, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey, is a son 
of John D. and Ann (West) Forman, 



and was born Oct. 26, 1844, in Freehold, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey. 

John D. Forman was born on the 
farm above mentioned, and after receiving 
an education at the public school, pur- 
chased the farm homestead and entered 
upon agricultural pursuits, which he fol- 
lowed up to his third-score year. He 
then removed to Asbury Park, where he 
engaged in real-estate speculations, which 
netted him very handsome returns. He 
was a democrat, and was at all times 
very active in furthering the interests of 
his party. In religious affairs, he was a 
member of St. Peter's Protestant Episco- 
pal church at Freehold, and for many 
years was one of its leading vestrymen. 
He was one of the largest shareholders 
in the Freehold Banking Co., in which 
he was a director until his death, and by 
his careful and prudent advice, conserved 
its affairs and contributed in no small 
degree to the maintenance of its integrity. 
He died in 1 881, and was survived by his 
wife until 1886. They were the parents 
of five children : Anna, married to Stew- 
art Brown, of Freehold ; John, William 
W., and Charles, both deceased ; and Wil- 
liam H., an attorney-at-law in Freehold. 

John Forman was the recipient of a 
thorough education in the public schools 
of Freehold, the Freehold Institute, and 
the Glenwood Institute at Matawan. He 
subsequently gave seven years of faithful 
service to his father on the farm, at the 
end of which period he married and took 
possession of the homestead, continuing 
in agricultural operations during the en- 
suing ten years. He later leased the 
farm and removed to Asbury Park, 
where he retired. In March, 1893, he 
established himself in the coal business 
in that town, which he has developed 
into large proportions. He still owns. the 



930 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



old homestead near Freehold, and his 
handsome residence at No. 300 Third 
avenue, Asbury Park. In politics Mr. 
Forman is a democrat, and in religion a 
member of the Protestant Episcopal 
church, and a vestryman for twelve j-ears, 
at Asbury Park. 

His marriage, Nov. 10, 1871, to Louisa 
Clayton, who deceased Jan. 17, 1892, re- 
sulted in the birth of two children : Anna 
L., married to J. E. Nickerson, formerly' 
of Boston, now a book-seller at Troy, N. ! 
Y. ; and Laura B., residing at home. Mr. j 
Forman was again married Feb. 10, 1896, i 
his second wife being Mae BuzbeyKogers. 



TTON C. F. MERTON, of Woodbridge, 
-*— '- New Jersey, is a son of Alan son 
and Asenath (Phillips) Merton, of New 
Yoi'k city, where he was born in April^ 
1825. The Mertons were a family of 
note in England, and the ancestral re- 
cords trace the family pedigree to an 
eminent Episcopal clergyman of that 
name, who in his time gained fame and 
repute as an eloquent divine and scholar. 
The great-grandfather, and the immigrant 
ancestor, was a strong patriot, and warmly 
espoused the cause of the colonies against 
tiie mother country. He early enlisted 
in the American army, and was engaged 
in almost ail of the great battles fought 
by General Washington. He was also 
one of those that wintered with Wash- 
ington on the bleak hills of Valley 
Forge. The paternal grandfather was a 
farmer the greater part of his life, and 
owned a fine farm at Washington, Conn. 
He raised a family of five sons, all of 
whom became prominent men. One of 
these five sons was Alanson Merton, 
father of our subject. He was educated 
in the public schools of Connecticut, and 



subsequently took a college course. Leav- 
ing college he taught .school in New Yoi'k 
city for some time, and then was placed 
in charge of what was designated at that 
time as a select school ; of this school he 
had charge for fifteen years. In 1832 he 
bought a farm at Woodbi'idge, Middlesex 
county, New Jersey, and moved his 
family there. He then devoted the 
greater part of his time to the interests 
of his farm and to surveying. He was 
the only one of the five sons who received 
a college education. He was always a 
strong democrat, and took an active in- 
terest in the affairs of the township. He 
served as a justice of the peace of Wood- 
bridge for twenty-five years, and was an 
associate judge of the court of common 
pleas for five years. He also filled every 
one of the township offices, such as com- 
mitteeman, collector, assessor, etc. He 
was aia exemplary and devoted christian, 
a member of the Episcopal church at 
Woodbridge, and for several years a ves- 
tryman. He was an active factor in all 
church work. He was also a member of 
the masonic fraternity, affiliating with 
Lafayette Lodge of New York city. He 
was married to Miss Asenath Phillips, 
and they had born to them the follow- 
ing children : C. F., Henry, George, and 
Mary A. 

Hon. C. F. Merton received a common- 
school education, and this was afterwards 
strongly supplemented by the training he 
received at the hands of his father, who 
was a skillful teacher. After leaving 
school he engaged as a clerk in a store in 
New York city for a time. Subsequently 
he entered the service of the Pencil Case 
Manufacturing Co., and was a ti'aveling 
salesman for that concern for some time. 
Afterwards he was admitted as a partner, 
and ultimately succeeded to the business. 



Biographical Sketches. 



931 



When the war broke out in 1861 he en- 
listed in the Thirty-eighth regiment New 
York volunteers, and served as quarter- 
master until the end of his term of enlist- 
ment, and was mustered out in 1862. 
After returning from the service he re- 
sumed his business as pencil-case manu- 
facturer for some time, but finally dis- 
posed of his entire interest to partners. 
He then purchased the farm formerly 
owned by his father, and conducted the 
same for some time after, again disposing 
of it. He is a staunch democrat. He 
succeeded his father as justice of the 
peace, and has also held the office for the 
like period of twenty-five years. He was 
for ten years an associate judge of the 
court of common pleas of Middlesex 
county, and faithfully duplicated the 
splendid record made by his honored 
and much-respected father in the same 
position. He was appointed in 1893, by 
President Cleveland, postmaster of Wood- 
bridge, New Jersey, and this position he 
now fills. He was chairman of the 
county committee of his party for four 
years, and has always been quite active 
in township affairs. He is a member of 
the Episcopal church of Woodbridge, and 
is alike active in all church work. 

Judge Merton is a member of several 
fraternal orders also, such as the masonic 
fraternity, holding membership in Metro- 
politan Lodge, New York city, of which 
he is a charter member and a past-mas- 
ter. He is a member of the New York 
Chapter of the Royal Arcanum ; of Mar- 
tin Commandery of Knights Templar of 
New York city ; and of New York Con- 
sistory, S. P. R. S., 32° He is also an 
Odd Fellow, and was a past grand of 
Washington Lodge, I. 0. 0. F. 

Judge Merton was married to Miss 
Mayfield, by whom he had one child, 



Charles A. He was married to his 
present wife. Miss Josephine Gorisse, in 

1886. 



pi EORGE M. HEIGHT, a member of 
^-^ the firm of Burnett & Height, meat 
and fish merchants, and one of the most 
prominent and active business men of 
North Spring Lake, New Jersey, is a son 
of E. H. and Mary (Hewett) Height, and 
was born in Howell township, Monmouth 
county. 

Paternal grandfather was a wealthy 
pioneer land-owner of Monmouth county, 
and was the holder of fine farms located 
in Howell township, and also operated a 
stage line between the village and Manas- 
quan and Keyport. 

E. H. Height (father) was reared in 
Howell township, and followed farming 
as a business. 

George M. Height was born and reared 
in Howell township, and received his 
early education in the common schools of 
that district. As a boy he was especially 
apt with a gun, and at the early age of 
eleven years became the champion shot 
of the state of New Jersey, defeating all 
comers at glass-ball shooting. As a busi- 
ness man, he learned the butchering 
trade, and in the spring of 1889 formed 
a partnership and commenced business 
at Como, Monmouth county, under the 
caption of Burnett & Height, dealers in 
meats, fish, etc. In 1891 Messrs. Burnett 
& Height removed to North Spring Lake, 
New Jersey, where they purchased and 
built their present place of business, on 
Third avenue, and have since established 
a large trade. They also handle large 
quantities of western cattle. This young 
firm has had a successful career. He is 
a stockholder in the local water company 
and an active supporter of all public im- 



932 



Biographical Sketches. 



provements aud whatever may tend to 
advance the interests of his town. Geo. 
M. Height was united in marriage to 
Miss Charlotte A. Wliite, of Manasquan. 
This union has resulted in the birth ol' 
one child, a daughter, Lorenda. 



VALENTINE P. BUCK, one of the 
best-known and most prosj^erous 
farmers of Freehold township, Monmouth 
county, is a son of David and Cornelia 
(Thompson) Buck, and was born June 
8, 1840, in Freehold township. 

The family name is of English origin. 
John Buck (grandfather) located at Marl- 
boro, four miles from Freehold, and was 
a prominent farmer and hotel-keeper 
there during the latter pai't of the last 
century. He was an active old-line whig 
in politics, and a leading .spirit in the 
Marlboro Dutch Reformed church. His 
children were : Mollie, wife of John 
Hyers ; Ellen, wife of Cortenas Hjers ; 
Eliza, wife of John M. Conover ; David, 
father of our subject ; John, Henry, and 
Sylvester, well-known farmers in Free- 
hold township, and Louisa, wife of Co- 
vartus Schwenck. 

David Buck, our subject's father, was 
born Jan. 10, 1799, at Marlboro, and 
was educated in the district schools there. 
He was a prosperous farmer throughout 
his lifetime, owning and operating a | 
large and profitable tract of land one | 
mile from Freehold. He was also an ex- 
tensive wholesale dealer in produce and l 
sea products, and occupied a wholesale 
produce and fish stand. in Philadelphia 
for seventeen years, from which he sup- 
plied Philadelphia, Lancaster, Trenton, , 
and many other points in West Jersey 
and eastern Pennsylvania. All his busi- 
ness was done by teaming, and his car- ' 
reer was active and successful. He was ■ 



one of the early members of the Dutch 
Reformed church, and was very active in 
its affairs, holding the offices of deacon 
and elder for a number of years. In 
politics he was a whig and subsequentlj^ 
a republican, was an active part}' man, 
and was at one time a school trustee in 
West Freehold. He was possessed of 
literary tastes to a high degree, and was 
practically self-educated. He died in 
1880, at the age of eighty-one years. By 
his wife, Cornelia Thompson, he had 
ten children : William Thompson, de- 
ceased ; Jacob West, Margaret A., de- 
ceased ; Angeline, C. Louisa, deceased ; 
Valentine P., Melville P., Emily T., de- 
ceased ; John, deceased in infancy, and 
Daniel H. 

Valentine P. Buck was educated in the 
district schools of Freehold township, 
aud Freehold Institute. When seven- 
teen years of age he went to work on his 
father's farm near Freehold, where he 
remained until 1875. He then operated 
the Smock farm, at Holmdel, for one year, 
and a farm near Marlboro for five years. 
During the past twelve years he has 
operated the well-known Butcher farm, 
near Freehold. He is a prominent mem- 
ber of the Monmouth County Agricul- 
tural Society, and the New Jersey State 
Agricultural Society, and has been a 
deacon and an elder in the Freehold 
Dutch Reformed church for a number of 
years. In politics he is a staunch repub- 
lican. He was married in 1869 to Miss 
Sarah Schwenck Smock. Mr. Buck is 
well known as an active, progressive 
farmer, and one who keeps abreast of the 
times, bringing every modern method and 
appliance to his aid in his successful agri- 
cultural w^ork. He is a popular and re- 
spected citizen, a devout church member, 
and a substantial man of his community. 



BioGRAPHiCAi. Sketches. 



933 



YT. VAN FLEET, of the well-known 
• firm of Ballantine & Van Fleet, 
leading carriage and harness dealers of 
the state of New Jersey, located at 
Somerville, is one of the most energetic, 
enterprising and successful business men 
in the state, and was born, March 19, 
1855, in Somerset county, New Jersey. 

His paternal grandparent, Elias Van 
Fleet, was a republican in politics, a 
member of the Reformed church, and an 
active worker in all religious matters, 
and was honored by his fellow-church- 
men with all the offices within their gift. 
He was a farmer during his entire life, 
and a man universally esteemed for the 
probity and uprightness of his character. 

V. T. Van Fleet's father followed the 
example set him by his father, and en- 
gaged in the pursuit of farming. Like 
him also, he was a republican, and a 
member of the Reformed church of South 
Branch, New Jersey, and at various times 
held all the offices within its gift. To 
his marriage were born nine children : 
Peter, Elias, Philip, John, Henry, V. T., 
Abraham, William, and -Mary Jane, mar- 
ried. ', 

V. T. Van Fleet, after graduating from 
the public schools, at the age of sixteen, 
Avas offered and accepted a position as 
clerk in a store at South Branch, New 
Jersey, and remained there three years. 
From there he went to Flemington, New 
Jersey, where he occupied a similar posi- 
tion in a store for one year, at the end of 
which time he entered into the clothing 
business with his present partner at New- 
ark. From thence he came to Somer- 
ville, and continued in the same line of 
business for four years. He then engaged 
in the carriage and harness business under 
the firm name of Ballantine & Van Fleet, 
and so successfully has this business been 

49 



carried on, with so much wisdom, energy 
and sound business judgment, that it is 
to-day the largest business of its kind in 
the state ; the firm constantly carrying a 
stock of between three and four hundred 
wagons. Mr. Van Fleet is a political 
worker on the republican side, and a 
member of the Second Reformed church. 
His marriage has been blessed with three 
children : Bertha T., deceased ; Blanche 
H., and Earl. 

TAMES FAY is a prominent business 
^ man of Elberon, New Jersey, and 
was born at Trenton, this state, June 
14, 1841. James Fay attended the com- 
mon schools of Manchester, New Jersey. 
He learned telegraphy, and was then em- 
ployed in a telegraph office of the New 
Jersey Southern Railroad Co. He subse- 
quently became a correspondent of the 
New York Herald, Philadelphia Inquirer, 
Philadelphia Evening Telegrayli, and the 
New York Evening Express from Long 
Branch, New Jersey. He was after- 
wards baggage-master on the ship " St. 
John." Li 1882 he became a conductor 
on the New Jersey Southern railroad, 
running from Sandy Hook to West End 
and Eatontown. Li 1883 he came to 
Elberon, and for eleven years has been 
express agent for the Adams Express 
Co., in connection with which he is en- 
gaged in the coal business at Elberon. 
Politically he is among the most active of 
his party, and has served as postmaster 
j for thirteen years. He has been several 
I times a delegate to congressional conven- 
! tions, and is deeply interested in the 
county and assembly elections and the 
j cause of the Democratic party, to which 
he belongs. He is a strong supporter of 
the Catholic church and an active worker 
in that religious organiztion. Fraternally 



934 



Biographical Sketches. 



he is a member of the Red Men of Long 
IJraiuh, and has belonged to the Long 
IJiancli Fire department for the past 
twenty years. He has an enviable rec- 
ord as a part of this organization, and is 
regarded as one of the capable men in 
this lino. lie has for many years given 
his best time and thought to the interests 
of this department of public safety, and 
has been one of the board of trustees, 
and at the present time is secretary of 
the association, and in 1895 was elected 
second chief ol" the department. 

On April 28, 1882, James Fay married 
Emma, a daughter of Daniel and Mar- 
garet Ferns, and to them have been boi'ii 
a family of six children : James R., 
Jolni L., Marion 0., Helen, Margaret 
(deceased), and Daniel. Mr. Fay was 
presented with a gold medal from the 
Long Branch Fire department for his 
gallant and valuable services. 



TT7ILLIAM C. BURROUGHS, engaged 
'^ in the general real-estate and in- 
surance business, and also secretary of 
the Darlington Land and Improvement 
Co. of Asbury Park, New Jersey, is a 
son of Robert and Catharine Burroughs, 
and was born near Laurel, Md. His par- 
ents were of English ancestry, and while 
lie was a ^outh, removed to Baltimore, 
Md. In 1875, his father removed to 
Philadelphia. Pa., and the son became a 
student in the high school, graduating 
from it. He then went to Asbury Park, 
New Jersey, in 1882, and clerked for 
three years, until 1885, when he became 
associated with Mr. Milan Ross, and, to- 
gether, they have been since engaged in 
general real-estate and insurance busi- 
ness, having built up a large and success- 
fid patronage. Mr. Burroughs is also 



secretar}^ of the Darlington Land and 
Improvement Co., and is intimately asso- 
ciated with extensive opei'ations in valu- 
able property in this community. He is 
a member of the local Masonic Lodge, 
Mo. 142, and an active and prominent 
charter member of the Monmouth Social 
Club. He is a strong believer in the 
principles of the Republican party, and 
is a hard and earnest worker for this 
cause in his district, and served five years 
as city clerk. 

TOHX CLARK, SR., a very successful 
^ tin-roofing and slating contractor, 
a survivor of the infamous Anderson ville 
prison-pen, and a prominent citizen of 
Long Branch, New Jersey, is a son of 
James and Grace (Blacklock) Clark, and 
was born at Castle Douglas, Scotland, 
June 14, 1838. 

The grandparents of our subject lived 
at Castle Douglas, where James Clark 
(father) was boi'ii in 1788. He was sent 
to the public schools and then learned 
the trade of slate-roofing, and followed 
that as a business at Castle Douglas all 
his life. He married Miss Grace Black- 
lock and their marriage resulted in the 
birth of seven children : James, Marga- 
let, David, Elizabeth, Mary, John, Sr., 
and Andrew. The father and mother 
died — the former in 1854 and the latter 
in 1886. 

John Clark, Sr., attended the common 
schools of Castle Douglas. He learned 
the slate-roofing trade, and in 1858 came 
to New York city, where he engaged at 
his trade until the civil war. Though 
but two years a resident of the United 
States he promptly responded to the call, 
and in 1862 ejilisted in Company B, 
.•^ixty-ninth regiment, New York Volun- 
teers. This gallant regiment took part 



Biographical Sketches. 



935 



in many of the deadly and bloody battles 
of the Virginia campaigns, including Sec- 
ond Bull Run, Piedmont, Harrisonburg, 
Winchester, Harper's Ferry and the 
Shenandoah Valley. He was taken 
prisoner and confined in Andersonville 
prison. Upon his exchange and recov- 
ery from his terrible experience in the 
prison-pen he re-enlisted in Company A, 
Fifth New York regiment, and for a 
wound received in the mouth at Pied- 
mont he receives a pension. At the 
close of the war he returned to his occu- 
pation as a slater in New York, and con- 
tinued there until 1872, when he located 
in Long Branch, and there established 
his present business. Politically he is a 
democrat, and in religious matters an 
active member of the Presbyterian 
church, in which he was at one time a 
director. On Feb. 2, 1861, John Clark, 
Sr., married Miss Susan, a daughter of 
Henry Hartford, and to them have been 
born a family of six children : John C, 
Jr. ; Elizabeth, deceased ; William T., 
deceased ; Frederick ; Charles, deceased, 
and Minnie. 



/CHARLES P. JOHNSON, a prominent 
^-^ business man of Milltown, is of 
Scotch-Irish descent, and a son of John 
D. and Lydia E. (Conover) Johnson, and 
was born, March 16, 1856, in East Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey. 

His paternal grandfather, Ephraim 
Johnson, was an early settler of English- 
town, Long Island, N. Y., and a son of 
William Johnson, a soldier of the Revo- 
lution, and fought in the battle of Long 
Island. Ephraim Johnson was a farmer 
and blacksmith by occupation, and in 
later years of his life kept a hotel. He 
belonged to the Dutch Reformed church. 

John D. Johnson (father) was born. 



March 8, 1823, at Manalapan, Monmouth 
county. He was educated in the public 
schools, and at nineteen years of age re- 
moved to Middletown township, and from 
thence, in 1855, to East Brunswick. He 
was a farmer all his life. He had three 
children : Charles P., Ella, who is un- 
married and living in New Brunswick, 
and Carrie K., deceased. 

Charles P. Johnson was educated in 
the public schools of East Brunswick, 
and then attended a private school, and 
received private tuition under Professor 
Cox. He removed to New Brunswick in 
1877, and became connected with the 
Meyer Rubber Co., for two years, when 
he returned to East Brunswick and 
bought a tract of land, and followed the 
occupation of fruit-growing and garden- 
ing till 1889. In that year he sold his 
property, removed to New Brunswick, 
and entered the employ of L. Miller & 
Son, manufacturers of tobacco and cigars, 
for whom he traveled two years. In 
1891 he removed to Milltown. He now 
owns considerable property, and is re- 
garded as a successful and enterprising 
business man. His first political sympa- 
thies were with the Democratic party, 
but he has been an independent republi- 
can since 1892. In the spring of 1894 he 
was elected a justice of the peace, and 
is a borough justice, as well as notary pub- 
lic, having been appointed by Governor 
Werts. While he resided in East Bruns- 
wick he was a school trustee, and clerk 
of the board of trustees for several years. 
He belongs to Wickatonck Tribe, No. 
135, L 0. R. M.; A. M. Council, No. 
33, South River Lodge ; and Enterprise 
Lodge, No. 28, K. of P. While a resi- 
dent of East Brunswick he was a com- 
missioner of the town for two terms, and 
for one year treasurer of the township. 



936 



Biographical Sketches. 



He maiTied Elizabeth E. Thompson, of 
the family of Van Arsdales, some of the 
early settlers ol" Milltowu. Isaac G. Van 
Arsdale, grandfather of Mr. Johnson's 
wife, was a mason by trade, but culti- 
vated a farm all his life, and retired a 
well-to-do man. He was a republican in 
polities, and a member and trustee of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. John- 
son has six children : William E., who 
is in business with his father ; Edna, Ca- 
mille, Arthur Day, James Hagan, and 
Clarence. I 



JOHN H. DAVIDSON, a prominent 
^ hotel-keeper at Manasquan, New 
Jersey, is a native of Millstone township, 
Monmouth county, where he was born 
Oct. IG, 1840. He is a son of William and 
Linda M. (Gravatt) Davidson, and on his 
paternal side comes from English ances- 
try. His paternal grandfather, John E. 
Davidson, was a successful farmer and 
large land-owner. 

William Davidson (father), after the 
completion of his education at the district 
schools in Millstone township, entered 
upon the life of a farmer; first upon a 
farm belonging to his father, and after- 
wards upon his own. His farming career 
was a successful one. His children were : 
John H., William, Zachary, and Forman. 
John H. Davidson passed his earlj- 
years in Millstone, and there received 
his education in the district schools. He 
afterwards accepted employment on a 
farm in Manalapan township, but subse- 
quently purchased a farm in Millstone 
township, which he conducted success- 
fully I'or several years, eventually dispos- 
ing of it to engage in the hotel business. 
Fur four years, from 1875 to 1879, he 
was the successful proprietor of the "Vil- j 
lage Hot«l" at Fariningdale, and removed ' 



to Manasquan in the latter year, to be- 
come the owner and manager of a hotel. 
Politically he pays allegiance to the 
Democratic party, yet he takes but little 
interest in any political movement which 
does not have a local importance. He is 
a very public-spirited citizen, and always 
willing to devote time and money to any- 
thing which he thinks will advance the 
interests of Manasquan. He is especially 
interested in school matters, and always 
ready to do anything in his power which 
will promote educational interests. He 
is a member of the Wall Township Lodge 
of F. & A. M. Mr. Davidson married 
Esther Claj^ton, a daughter of Henry 
Clayton, Esq., and their union has been 
blessed with one son, George. 



A NTHONY SCHODER, the efficient 
-^-^ librarian of the Barron library at 
Woodljridge, New Jersey, is a son of Bal- 
thasa and Christina (Bergen) Schoder, 
and was born in Bruchsal, in the Grand 
Duch}' of Baden, German}', in 1831. 
His father was educated at the public 
schools, and for many years was in mili- 
tary life, stationed at Baden. After leav- 
ing the army, he conducted a gymnasium. 
He was a member of the Evangelical 
church at Baden. To his married life 
were born three children : Jacob, Joseph 
and Anthony. He died in 1845. His 
wife died in Michigan in 1883. 

Anthony Schoder attended both the 
public and high schools at Baden, and 
then engaged in a mercantile occupation 
there, which he followed until 1849, 
when he emigrated to this country. He 
located at Woodbridge, New Jersey, for 
a short time, when he removed to the 
state of Michigan, and remained there 
about eight years, engaged in the hard- 



Biographical Sketches. 



937 



ware business, and as confidential clerk 
for a prominent New York business man. 
The Barron library at Woodbridge was 
established in 1877, and endowed by 
Thomas BaiTon to the amount of $50,- 
000, and Mr. Schoder was elected its 
librarian, which office he has since con- 
tinued to hold to the complete satisfaction 
of the citizens of Woodbridge. The 
library building is a fine edifice, and the 
careful discrimination with which its con- 
tents have been selected reflects great 
credit upon the good judgment of Mr. 
Schoder. In politics he is a republican, 
and very popular with his party. In 
1884 he was nominated for the assembly, 
and contested against Edward S. Sorage, 
the democratic nominee, but was defeated 
by a majority of fifteen, a most credi- 
table showing for him under the circum- 
stances, as his district is largely demo- 
cratic in sentiment. He is a very public- 
spirited man, and takes an active interest 
in all township and county affairs. Mr. 
Schoder is a member of the Presbyterian 
church in Woodbridge, and for a period 
was the president of its board of trus- 
tees. He is an ardent and active mem- 
ber of the Masonic order, having been 
recently elected to the thirty-third de- 
gree, which he will receive in the near 
future. He is a member of Americus 
Lodge, No. 83, F. and A. M., of Wood- 
bridge. He is district deputy grand- 
master of the Fifth Masonic district of 
the state of New Jersey, and is also past 
high priest and deputy high priest of the 
chapter at Rahway; a member of the 
Scottish Rite at Jersey City, and the 
Mystic Shrine, Mecca Temple, New York 
city. 

Mr. Schoder was married in 1856, to 
Mary Antoinette Jacques, of Woodbridge, 
and to their marriage have been born : 



Barron J., married to Mary Ruhl, now 
residing in New York city; and Fan- 
nie J., married to a Mr. Teed, of Los 
Angeles, Cal. 

r^ EORGE RODER is a typical repre- 
^-^ sentative of that thorough-going 
and prosperous German element which 
has contributed so much to the develop- 
ment and strength of our republic. He 
was born in the German empire — one of 
the five great nations of the world — No- 
vember, 1838. His education was ac- 
quired in the common schools of his 
native country, where he grew to man- 
hood. At the age of twenty he left the 
fatherland to seek a home in the new 
world, which seemed to offer better op- 
portunities for the ambitious youth. He 
landed at the port of New York on Oct. 
25, 1858, and immediately set out to find 
employment. Later he located at Mill- 
town, Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
which has since been his home. Here he 
found employment in the Milltown Rub- 
ber factory until the breaking out of the 
late war. Thoroughly Americanized and 
imbued with patriotic sentiments, he en- 
listed in the defence of " Old Glory." He 
enlisted Sept. 4, 1861, and served to the 
close of the war. After his return from 
the war he worked in the rubber factory 
until 1871, when he engaged in merchan- 
dising at Milltown, in which he has met 
with uniform success. He is a democrat, 
active and influential in the councils of 
his party. He was appointed postmaster 
of Milltown under President Cleveland's 
second administration, and is now satis- 
factorily filling that office. Fraternally 
he is a member of Lodge No. 71, I. 0. 0. 
F., at New Brunswick, this state, and is 
closely and actively identified with two 
benevolent societies, one at Milltown and 



938 



Biographical Sketches. 



the other at South River, New Jersey. 
He is a member of the German Eeforraed 
church at Milltown, and is a regular at- 
tendant and a consistent chrif^tian. 

His marriage with Ehzabeth Kohleft' 
was celebrated April 22, 1866, and they 
are the parents of six children : Katie, 
May, Carrie, Charles, Lizzie, and Philip. 



REV. FRANK C. COLBY, pastor of the 
Baptist church at Atlantic High- 
lands, New Jersey, is a son of Colonel 
N. T. (a distinguished volunteer officer 
in the late war) and Mary E. (Chase) 
Colby, and was born in New York. The i 
paternal ancestry of the Colbys is of 
Puritan stock, from Massachusetts, and ! 
our subject is a lineal descendant of 
Governor Anthony, of the same state. 
Col. N. T. Colby (father) was transporta- 
tion manager for the Erie railroad. He 
was a member of Company B., New York I 
State militia, serving as first lieutenant 
of his company. When the war broke 
out he enlisted in the One Hundred and j 
Seventh New York infantry, and was 
commissioned captain of the company, 
and assigned to the army of the Potomac. 
Capt. Colby won special distinction as a 
volunteer officer, and was brevetted lieu- I 
tenant-colonel. At the close of the war | 
he retired to civil life, and located at 
Philadelphia, where he became paying- 
teller of the Commercial National bank, 
and for some years held the position as 
examiner for the Pension Bureau there. 1 
Politically, he is an ardent republican, 
and an active worker in party affiiirs. 
He at present is inspector of department 
of public works at New York city. Col. 
Colby has always been closely identified 
with the Baptist church, and is a strong 
supporter of its doctrines and material 



interests. He married Miss Mary E. 
Chase, and their children are as follows : 
Fred. L., Frank C, Walter W., and 
Jeanette (now Mrs. Jas. Fronheiser). 

Frank C. Colby spent his early life in 
New York state, and was educated in 
the public schools and an academy. He 
served three years in the United States 
navy as a junior signal officer on the 
man-of-war " Brooklyn," and later was 
employed in a mercantile house at Phila- 
delphia. He afterwards became a ship- 
ping clerk at Lambertville, New Jersey, 
until 1879, when he began his career as 
a local preacher. He served a congrega- 
tion at Point Pleasant, Bucks county, 
Pa., and continued to preach for two 
years, and in 1881 entered the Crozier 
seminary, at Chester, Pa., completing the 
prescribed theological course in 1883, 
when he was called to fill the pulpit of 
the Calvary Baptist church. Fifth and 
Carpenter streets, at Philadelphia. Rev. 
Colby labored here with marked success 
until 1886, when he received and accepted 
a call from the First Baptist church of 
Asbury Park, New Jersey. In October, 
189.3, Rev. Colby was called upon to 
organize the Central Baptist church of 
Atlantic Highlands. During this brief 
period a fine edifice and church property, 
worth $20,000, has become the home of 
this once small congregation, and the 
membership has since grown beyond the 
highest expectations. In political affiiirs 
Rev. Colby is independent, and figures 
locally as a reformer, having stumped 
the district for reform at one time. In 
connection with his ministerial and pas- 
toral duties, he is deeply interested in 
the fishing settlement at Sandy Hook, 
where he officiates as chaplain of the 
mission. He married Miss Eliza R. Smith, 
of Philadelphia, and to them have been 




A/cu^^ Jyz^^^^zi.^^. O^. <9. Jl 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



941 



born a family of five children : Howard 
M., Rena B., Mary, Frank, and Paul. 



TTARVEY IREDEL, D. D. S., a mem- 
-'--L ber of the firm of Hull & Iredel, 
who rank among the leading dentists in 
the state of New Jersey, is one of the 
most popular and successful citizens of 
New Brunswick. He is the son of James 
P. and Sarah (Watson) Iredel, and was 
born in 1850. 

Elisha Iredel, paternal grandfather, 
followed butchering and tailoring, respec- 
tively, until he retired. In politics he was 
a republican, and in church belief a mem- 
ber of the Society of Friends. His chil- 
dren were : Anna (Mrs. Joseph Webster), 
Sarah Ann, Henrietta, Mary Elizabeth, 
and James P. 

James P. Iredel (father) attended the 
common schools, and afterwards fitted him- 
self for teaching, which profession he fol- 
lowed for some time. He then engaged in 
the manufacture of shoes at Trenton, New 
Jersey, where he is still engaged in a 
very profitable business. He married 
Miss Sarah Watson, and this union has 
resulted in the birth of one son, Harvey, 
and one daughter, Ella, now Mrs. Wm. 
T. WykofF. Politically he is a repub- 
lican. 

Harvey Iredel attended the common 
schools of his native town, and entered 
the High School of Philadelphia, where 
he remained until sixteen years of age, 
when he entered the employ of his uncle, 
and learned the trade of cutting uppers 
for shoes. He subsequently entered the 
Philadelphia Dental College, graduating 
in the class of 1880. In July of the 
same year he came to New Brunswick 
and assisted Dr. Palmer, and continued 
with him for the eight ensuing years, 



when he purchased Dr. Palmer's prac- 
tice, and immediately formed a partner- 
ship with Dr. H. H. Hull, under the 
style of Drs. Hull & Iredel. This firm 
has an immense practice, and are in the 
front rank of the profession in this 
country. He has recently been elected 
president of the New Jei'sey State Den- 
tal Association, and is also president of 
the New Jersey Central Dental Society. 
He is widely known in fraternal circles, 
and is a very popular member of the 
Masonic Lodge of New Brunswick, in 
which he has passed the thirty-second de- 
gree ; he is also past master of the Blue 
Lodge (masonic), a brother in the Royal 
Arcanum of New Brunswick, and a 
member of the New Brunswick German 
Club, a social organization. In his politi- 
cal opinions Dr. Iredel is a staunch re- 
publican. In religious doctrine and as- 
sociations he is an episcopalian, and has 
been actively engaged in the work of 
the church and Sunday-school, of which 
he served as superintendent for several 
years. On June 29, 1882, Dr. Iredel 
wedded Mary Anna Williams, and they 
have reared a family of three children : 
Alma H., Russell Walter, and Albert W. 
Dr. Iredel is a public-spirited and useful 
citizen, and has earned an enviable repu- 
tation. 



TDETER C. OSBORN, a noted horseman 
-L and trainer of horses at Ncav Mar- 
ket, New Jersey, is a son of John B. and 
Rachel (Clarkson) Osborn, and was born 
Oct. 4, 1842, in West Dunellen, on the 
road leading to Newtown, and is of Eng- 
lish descent. His paternal grandfather, 
William Osborn, resided at Scotch Plains 
during the greater portion of his life, and 
was a soldier during the Revolutionary 
war, and fought on the side of the Colo- 



942 



Biographical Sketches. 



nies. In politics lie was a democrat. ! 
His cliiUlren were : Mary, Adair, Eliza, 
Lambert and Ilaggart. 

John B. Osljorn, during the greater 
portion of his life, was a somewhat exten- 
sive manufacturer of cider in Piscata- 
way township. He v/as a memljer of 
the Democratic party. His children 
were : Mary, married to Jacob Setou ; 
Peter C, William D., Eliza, Hires and 
John B. 

Peter C. Osborn attended the common 
schools of his native place until he was 
fourteen years of age, when he engaged 
in farming. He passed several years at 
this occupation, and in 1871 entered into 
the business of training horses for the 
track. He has a fai-m property- of about 
seventy -five acres in Piscataway town- 
ship, about one mile from New Market, 
fitted up with the necessary stabling con- 
veniences and a half-mile track for speed- j 
ing purposes. Here he generally has on 
hand about twelve head of horses, sent to 
him from various parts of the country to 
be trained. He enjoys a high reputation 
as a careful, conscientious and successful 
trainer, and his business is a steadily 
profitable one. He is a member of the ' 
Democratic party and has been twice 
married, his first wife having been Etta 
Blair. She died in May, 1885. To 
their marriage was born one daughter, j 
Etta, who died in infanc}'. He married 
Ida Fulton in 1887, and their marriage 
has been blessed with one child, Leo. C. 



~V/riLLARD F. BIRD, a well-known 
-^■^ provision merchant, and a promi- 
nent citizen of Asbury Park, New Jer- 
sey, is a son of James H. and Sarah H. 
(Githens) Bird, and was born in New 
York city, N. Y., June 2, 1858. 



James Bird, paternal grandfather, came 
to New York city from Carlisle, England, 
when quite a young man, where he be- 
came a policeman. In politics he was a 
republican, and, though at first an epis- 
copalian, later became a methodist. His 
children were : Isaac and James H. 

James H. Bird (father) was born in 
New York cit}-, and finally learned the 
trade of stone-cutting. Among the many 
evidences of his mechanical abilit}^ and 
artistic power may be noticed a handsome 
slate frame (now in possession of our 
subject) with the father's picture hi the 
side, and the following are some of his 
work : the jjrown-stone stoop in front of 
the old Havemeyer homestead, and the 
pillars in front of Judge Hilton's house. 
Mr. Bird purchased the Knickerbocker 
market (established 1840) in 1861, and 
shortly after went into the army, enlistr 
ing in the Twelfth New York volunteers. 
After his return from the scenes of war, 
i\Ir. Bird resumed his former business, 
and continued the same with much suc- 
cess until 1882, when he came to Asbury 
Park, New Jersey, and established a 
butchering business until October, 1895, 
when he sold out to his son, Millard. He 
has been president of the Asbury Park 
board of trade for eight 3'ears, is a prom- 
inent member of the C. K. Hall Post, 
No. 41, G. A. R., and is past senior vice- 
commander, department of New Jersey. 
He has also been prominently identified 
with the city fire department, having 
been twice unanimously chosen chief. 
Politically he is a democrat. He is a 
member of the Episcopal church, and is 
among the leading spirits in the Glen- 
wood Lodge, No. 467 (masonic), and the 
Adelphia Chapter, Corson Commandery. 
Mr. Bird also belongs to the Old Guard 
Association of the Twelfth Regiment, 



Biographical Sketches. 



943 



New York. He was united in marriage 
to Miss Sarah H. Githens, and they have 
two sons and one daughter : Millard F., 
John T., a physician in New York, and 
Carrie E. 

Millard F. Bird attended a private 
school, then a grammar school, finally 
Trinity Parochial School. Leaving school 
he entered the employ of his father, with 
whom he remained until 1888, he was 
then with the Monmouth Trust and Safe 
Deposit Co. of Asbury Park for four 
years, and in 1892 Avent to New York to 
work for a retail provision house. Later 
he engaged in the wholesale provision bus- 
iness, and in 1895 purchased his father's 
established trade and stock, and has since 
continued the same. He is a democrat, 
and an active member of the Episcopal 
church. Mr. Bird is a member in good 
standing of the Royal Arcanum, and is 
a past regent, and was formerly an Elk. 
He is a member of Neptune engine com- 
pany. No. 2, of the Asbury Park fire de- 
partment, and for several years was a 
member of Company B, Twenty-second 
regiment, N. G. N. Y. He married Miss 
Emma Lommeir, and their children are : 
Sarah, Elizabeth M., Grace Johnson, 
Frederick James, and Hannah Morford. 



TOHN ERHART, the popular and emi- 
^ nently successful grocer of James- 
burg, is the son of Hezekiah Davidson 
Erhart, and was born near Jamesburg, 
Dec. 20, 1851. The Erhart family are of 
German extraction on the father's side, 
and the sterling qualities of honesty, in- 
dustry, perseverance and thrift have been 
handed down from generation to genera- 
tion, and truly in a large measure to the 
subject of this sketch. 

Grandfather Jonathan Erhart received 



the usual educational privileges accorded 
to the boy of his remote era, and took 
part in the stirring events of his youth 
by serving as a teamster in the war of 
1812. He was a member of the Episco- 
pal church, and married a Miss South, of 
South Amboy. The result of this union 
were the following children : Joseph Fari- 
ner, Elisha I., Hezekiah Davidson, and 
Eliza. 

Hezekiah Davidson Erhart, after re- 
ceiving his secular instruction in the 
common schools, learned the trade of 
carpenter and builder. Some time after 
having served his time of apprenticeship 
he secured employment from the Camden 
and Amboy railroad, but he is at pres- 
ent a trusted employee of the Pennsyl- 
vania railroad, filling the position of fore- 
man of a section of the last-mentioned 
company's tracks. He is an enthusiastic 
member of the Methodist church, and in 
politics a democrat. He is the father of 
four children : John, Mary Elizabeth, 
Sarah Olivia, and Elwood D. 

John Erhart was educated in the com- 
mon schools, and then, by natural instinct 
and the influence of his environments, 
went to railroading on the Camden and 
Amboy railroad. Some years later he 
quit the employ of this company and 
devoted his time to the interests of the 
Pennsylvania. Railroad Co. After twenty- 
two years of service on the above-men- 
tioned lines, he decided to change his 
occupation, and having, by thrift and 
careful management, accumulated some 
capital, took advantage of an opportunity 
and opened a general store at Jamesburg, 
in which is handled dry goods, groceries, 
shoes, medicines, grain and feed. He is also 
connected with the building and loan asso- 
ciations of Camden and Jamesburg. He is 
a member of the Methodist Episcopal 



944 



Biographical Sketches. 



church, and is very prominent and active | 
in the interests of the Repul)lican party, 
and, together with oilier appointments, 
and was borough commissioner of James- 
burg for five years. On Oct. 20, 1875, 
he was united in marriage to Sarah Shin, 
a daughter of Samuel Shin, of Burling- 
ton county, New Jersey. I 



"pvENNIS VANDERBILT, a prosperous 
-*-^ farmer and widely-known citizen of 
North Brunswick township, is a son of 
Cornelius and Rosana (Tunison) Vander- 
bilt, and was born Sept. 16, 1836, on the 
old family homestead, situated on the 
Milltown turnpike, between New Bruns- 
wick and Milltown, New Jersey. He 
was educated at Oak Hill school, near 
Milltown. When sixteen years old he 
went to New York, and served a four- 
years' apprenticeship at the carpenter's 
trade. In 1857 he returned home to 
work on his father's farm, but soon after- 
wards built a store in Milltown, and con- 
ducted a thriving and profitable business 
as a general store-keeper for seventeen 
years. In 1874 he sold out his business 
and resumed his agricultural pursuits, 
having purchased a fine farm of sixty-five 
acres, witliin one-half mile of Milltown, 
where he lias continued to live ever since, 
and which he has operated with profit. 
He also owns tracts of ground and wood- 
land in other parts of Middlesex county. 
Mr. Vanderbilt has been an ardent repub- 
lican in politics all his life, and has taken 
an active part in local public affairs. He 
was elected assessor of North Brunswick 
township in 1859, and served for seven 
years ; was a member of the town com- 
mittee of Milltown for five years; a mem- 
ber of the board of freeholders for thir- 
teen years ; a member of the republican 
executive committee of North Brunswick 



township for fifteen years, and has held 
various minor offices in the township, 
such as member of the board of registers 
and judge of elections. During the civil 
war he was enrolling officer of his town- 
ship. He is a member of the Reformed 
church of New Brunswick, and an hon- 
onary member of the Jr. 0. U. A. M. In 
1862 he was married to Miss Adeline De 
Hart, of New Brunswick, and they have 
had two children : Emeline Rosamond, 
who died in infancy, and Minnie Stuart. 

Mr. Vanderbilt is one of the truly in- 
fluential men of North Brunswick town- 
ship. He is widely known and respected. 

His family is of Holland (Dutch) origin. 
His paternal grandfather, Dennis Vander- 
bilt, was a successful farmer, owning 
three farms at different times. He was 
an old-line whig in politics, and a mem- 
ber of the Reformed church in New 
Brunswick. His children, eight in num- 
ber, were : John, Cornelius, James C, 
Dennis, Catherine, Garrison G., Johanna 
J., and Henry. Cornelius Vanderbilt was 
born on the family farm, was educated at 
Oak Hill school, and was a successful 
carpenter all his life, having erected 
nearly all the buildings in the vicinity of 
^lilltown. During the civil war he was 
a member of the home guards. In \w\i- 
tics he was a whis; and afterwards a re- 
publican, and was a member of the 
" Know-Nothings." He was a member 
of the Reformed church of New Bruns- 
wick, a member of the consistorj-, and 
also deacon and elder. He died, having 
been the father of nine children : John, 
Sarah E., Maiy A., Dennis, Tera A., Cor- 
nelius, "William T., Emma, and Rosa. 



TT^ II. MUNDY, a prominent and success- 



J^. 



ful hardware dealer at ^letuchen. 



and a respected citizen of that town, is a 



Biographical Sketches. 



945 



son of H. Cook and Lydia (Dunham) 
Mundy, and was born in May, 1868, at 
Metuchen, where he received a common- 
school education. When fourteen years 
old he went to work on his father's farm, 
near New Durham, Middlesex county, 
and remained there until 1894, when he 
entered the hardware business at Metu- 
chen, under the firm name of Mundy & 
Bishop. In January, 1896, Mr. Mundy 
bought out his partner's interest, and has 
since conducted the business alone. Mr. 
Mundy is independent in politics, casting 
his vote for the best candidate irrespec- 
tive of party. He is a member of the 
Baptist church at Stelton, and a member 
of the Jr. 0. U. A. M. and the Royal Ar- 
canum at Metuchen. In Dec, 1894, he 
was married to Miss Marie Flammang, 
daughter of Martha Flammang, of the 
Flammang Camera Co., Paris, France. 
They reside in a beautiful home at Metu- 
chen and, as yet, have no children. His 
family is of Irish origin. His paternal 
grandfather, Melancthon Mundy, was a 
large and successful farmer near New 
Durham ; was a democrat in politics 
and a member and elder of the Presby- 
terian church at Metuchen. He died 
having been the father of five children : 
Gabriel, H. Cook, Benajah, Michael and 
Ezra. 

Our subject's father, H. Cook Mundy, 
is a native of Raritan township, and was 
a prosperous farmer at New Durham dur- 
ing the greater part of his life. He was 
also proprietor of a bakery and built up a 
very large trade. He is a democrat in 
politics, and is a member of the Presby- 
terian church at Metuchen, where he 
now resides, having retired from active 
business. His wife was Miss Lydia Dun- 
ham, by whom he had four children : 
William, Teresa, Lucy and F. H. 



TT^ M. CONK, a leading liveryman of 
-'-^* Red Bank, is a son of Jonathan 
Conk, and was born at Red Bank, Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, Nov. 20, 
1853. 

He is of Scotch-Irish extraction, and 
his ancestors were among the early set- 
tlers of the state of New Jersey. His 
father, Jonathan, started in life as a 
farmer, but this vocation not being con- 
genial to him, he soon afterwards took 
up the carpenter trade, which he made 
his life business. He is a careful and 
painstaking mechanic, and has erected a 
vast number of fine residences. He is a 
democrat in political texture, and has 
served as a school director of Red Bank. 
He was the father of the following chil- 
dren : William, George, Jonathan, Ed- 
ward, E. M., and Charles. 

E. M. Conk obtained a good element- 
ary education in the public schools of 
Red Bank, and first found work as a 
stage-coach driver. Subsequently he 
learned the sash and blind business, and 
followed that fourteen years in succes- 
sion. Desiring to engage in a more re- 
munerative business, he formed a part- 
nership with Mr. Atkinson in 1884, and 
embarked in the livery business in Red 
Bank. In this his desire has been more 
than realized, for to-day they possess a 
fine barn, filled with first-class horses, 
and their buggies and carriages do credit 
to the town. Politically Mr. Conk is a 
democrat. He was an active member of 
the fire department of Red Bank for ten 
years, and also served as police justice. 
In fraternal matters he is identified with 
the Knights of Pythias and the Inde- 
pendent Order of Red Men. Mr. Conk 
has been twice married. He first mar- 
ried Miss Mary Coffee, who bore him 
two children : Flossie and Walter. The 



946 



Biographical Sketches. 



mother and both chiklren are deceased. 
His second marriage was with Mrs. Marj 
Stout. 



EDWARD E. DAYTON, the courteous 
and efficient casliier of the xisbury 
Park and Ocean Grove National Bank, 
is a son of Dr. Alfred B. and Elizabeth 
(Vandeveer) Dayton, and was born at 
Matawan, New Jeisey, August 24, 1850. 

The paternal ancestry is English, and 
Jonathan Dayton (grandfather) was a 
prominent resident of Somerset county, 
and the father of three sons : Dr. James 
B., William L., and Dr. Alfred B. 

Alfred B. Dayton, M. D. (father), was 
born at Matawan, and was a man of lib- 
eral education, graduating from Prince- 
ton College, and then studied medicine. 
He located in practice at Matawan, and 
maintained a reputation as a prominent 
and successful physician and surgeon in 
that part of the state. In politics he 
was an active republican, and figured 
prominenth- in the public affairs of his 
community. He was a member of the 
board of trustees of Glen wood Institute 
of Matawan. He was a member of the 
Presbyterian church of Matawan, and 
married Miss Elizabeth Vandeveer, a 
daughter of Jonathan Vandeveer. This 
marital compact resulted in the birth of 
seven children : Ressler W., an attornev; 
.^raria (Mrs. Charles Green), Alfred B., 
Elizal)etli (Mrs. Henry D. Oliphant), Ed- 
ward E., James B., and Arthur F. 

Edward E. Dayton passed his boyhood 
days at Matawan, and was educated at 
the Glenwood institute of that place, 
graduating with the class of 18G8. He 
entered Princeton University in the fall 
of the same year, and received his A. B. 
from that institution in 1872. He then 
entered the law office of his brother, R. 



W. Dayton, Esq., of Jersey City, New 
Jersey, in 1872, and read law until 1876, 
when he was admitted to the Monmouth 
county bar, and opened a law-office the 
same year in Paterson, New Jersey, 
where he remained a successful practi- 
tioner for several ^^ears. In 1888 he 
came to Asbury Park, and became teller 
of the First National Bank of that place. 
In 1880 the Asbury Park and Ocean 
Grove Bank was incorporated, and he 
was elected cashier, which position he 
has ably and most satisfactorily filled 
ever since. He figures prominently in 
the political and public affairs of his com- 
munity, and is an ardent supporter of 
the Republican party. Fraternally he is 
a member of the Masonic Lodge, No. 
142, and socially is a member of the Mon- 
mouth Social Club. 



GELSTON LOWRIE, the enterprising 
• editor and publisher of the Weekly 
Gall, of Dunellen, was born Dec. 13, 
1862, in Green Brook township, Somer- 
set county, about one mile distant fi'om 
Dunellen. Hs is a son of Robert and 
Susan Louisa (Harris) Lowrie, and is of 
Scotch descent. 

His paternal grandfather, George Low- 
rie, followed the occupation of a builder 
in Scotland, and died at the early age of 
thirty. At the time of his death he 
held the rank of captain in the Reserve 
Corps. His wife died at about the same 
age. Their children were : James George, 
who resides in California ; William, Rob- 
ert, and Nathaniel. 

Robert Lowrie came to this country 
from Scotland when between the ages of 
sixteen and seventeen. This was in 
1814, and he located at New Market. 
He had had but little opportunity in his 



Biographical Sketches. 



947 



native country to obtain an education, 
and his circumstances on his arrival in 
the United States were such as to com- 
pel him to seek immediate employment. 
This he secured on a farm near New 
Market, where he remained five years. 
He then secured an engagement with 
Lemke Brothers, at New Market, who 
carried on a meat business. In politics he 
was a republican, and in religion a 
member of the Baptist church at New 
Market. 

G. Elston Lowrie graduated from the 
public schools at Dunellen, and then, in 
1880, secured a position as office-boy in 
New York city, which he retained for 
five years. He later accepted a position 
as assistant general bookkeeper with the 
Central Railroad Co. of New Jersey, 
which position he now holds. He founded 
the Weekly Gall at Dunellen, which, 
under his energetic and intelligent man- 
agement, is rapidly securing a reputation 
as a first-class Aveekly newspaper. Mr. 
Lowrie is a republican in politics, and 
since 1894 has been district clerk of the 
board of public works. He is a member 
of the Baptist church, and for three years 
was one of its trustees. He was married 
to Bertha Rosina Close, in December, 
1885, and. to their marriage have been 
born three children : Robert, Susan, and 
G. Elston, Jr. 



T W. BALLANTINE, an extensive car- 
^ • riage manufacturer, and a promi- 
nent citizen and leading business man of 
Somerville, is a son of John J. and Cath- 
erine (Willett) Ballantine, and was born 
at Mendham, Morris county, New Jersey, 
Jan. 15, 1834. 

He received his education in the Mend- 
ham academy and select school. He 
gave up school when he was fifteen years 



old, and became a clerk in his father's 
store until becoming of age. He then 
clerked in a wholesale dry-goods house 
in New York city ; he subsequently re- 
turned, and for nine years was associated 
with James Anderson in mercantile busi- 
ness at Mendham, Morris county. New 
Jersey. He served as surrogate of Mor- 
ris county from 1862 to 1872, and the 
latter year was elected mayor of Morris- 
town, serving 1872-73. In 1874 he en- 
gaged in the wholesale and retail clothing 
business at Newark, and continued until 
1882, when he became interested in a 
clothing store at Somerville, with which 
he remained actively identified until 
1888, and which he still owns, but has 
since been conducted by his son, John J. 
In the latter year he purchased the inter- 
est of H. G. Prall, of the firm of Prall & 
Van Fleit, carriage dealers and manufac- 
turers at Somerville. In 1892 the pres- 
ent association of Ballantine & Van Fleit, 
carriage manufacturing company, was 
incorporated. Mr. Ballantine is president 
of the company. They manufacture and 
handle all kinds of wagons and carriages. 
Mr. Ballantine is a director in the 
First National Bank of Bound Brook, 
and in 1884 purchased a forty-acre pine- 
apple plantation in Brevard county, Flor- 
ida, where he has since been spending 
his winters in the diversion of fruit-grow- 
ing. Politically he is a democrat, an 
enthusiastic political worker, and promi- 
nent in the local councils of his party. 
Religiously he is a member of the Epis- 
copal church, and for several years served 
as a vestryman at Somerville. Frater- 
nally he is a membfer of Solomon's Lodge, 
F. and A. M., at Somerville. 

On Sept. 3, 1854, he married Adaline P., 
a daughter of Judge Samuel 0. Bryant, 
who for several years was president judge 



948 



Biographical Sketches. 



of Morris Co., New Jersey. Their chil- 
dreu are as follows : Elizabeth, the wife 
of J. B. Betz; Mary, the wife of J. F. 
Lecoq ; Helen, and John J., who mar- 
ried Julia Davenport, and who reside at 
Somerville. The story of the life and 
success of Mr. Ballantine, thus briefl}- 
epitomized in the above, is a revelation 
of possibilities open to industry, ability, 
and proper business methods, which seem 
to stand as the touchstones to his success. 
As a business man he is possessed of rare 
good j udgment and of the utmost relia- 
bility, while as a citizen of the communit}' 
in which he resides he is popular and 
stands deservedlj- high, and is regarded 
as one of Somerset county's most sub- 
stantial men. 

The name is of Scotch origin and or- 
thography^, John Ballantine (grandfather) 
was driven from his natal city of Belfast 
dux'ing the Scotch rebellion, and then 
located at Londonderry, Ireland, where i 
he resided until his death. He was an 
agriculturalist, and a member of the 
Episcopal church. His children were : 
John J. (father) ; William, Samuel, Sa- 
rah, and June. 

John J. Ballantine (father) received 
a superior education in the free schools 
of Ireland. At the age of twenty-two ! 
years he came to this country, locating 
at Philadelphia; thence located atPluck- 
amin, Somerset county. New Jersey, and 
.subsequently removed to Mendham, Mor- 
ris county, where he died. He was one 
of the few early professional teachers. 
He was a proficient teacher, and became 
possessed of superior educational attain- 
ments and intelligence. Latterly, at 
Mendham, he was engaged in the mer- 
cantile business, and served as postmaster 
at Ibat place many year.s, and one term 
as county collector, besides other local 



offices. Pie was a mason, and a member 
and trustee of the Presbyterian church. 
He was the father of the following chil- 
dren: Mary Hilliard, Jane Cramer, Nan- 
cy Pitney, J. W., William and John C. 



^/TICHAEL QUIRK, a prosperous plum- 
-'-'-*- ber and president, and superin- 
tendent, of the Hollywood Hotel, at West 
Long Branch, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Martin and Bridget 
(Nolan) Quirk, and was born Sept. 6, 
I 1857, at West Long Branch. The family 
is of Irish origin. 

Martin Quirk was born in Kings county, 
Ireland, and emigrated to this country 
some j-ears ago. In politics he was a 
democrat, and in religion a member, and 
trustee for three years, of the Catholic 
church. He was married to Bridget 
Nolan, who still survives, residing at 
West Long Branch. He was the father 
of seven children : Mary Ann, William, 
deceased : John, Kate, Ellen, Patrick, 
and Michael. 

Michael Quirk attended the common 
schools until he was thirteen years of 
age, Avhen he was put to work as a com- 
mon laborer. He then learned the trade 
of a plumber, and is at present engaged 
in that business at Long Brgnch, New 
Jersey, which has grown, year hy year, . 
under Mr. Quirk's good management, and 
is prospering in every way. He is an 
active member and trustee of the Roman 
Catholic church. 



q^HEODORE A. WOOD, a highly pros- 
-*- perous farmer of Rai'itan township, a 
justice of the peace of Metuchen, and one 
of the leading citizens of that town, is a 
son of Daniel and Adeline (Rich) Wood, 
and was born July 30, 1832, at New 
York city. He was educated in the 



Biographical Sketches. 



951 



Quaker schools of New York. He was 
among the first to answer Lincoln's call 
for volunteers, enlisting in the First Min- 
nesota regiment, commanded by Col. W. 
A. Gorman, and going into the service in 
the army of the Potomac in May, 1861. 
His first term of service was three years, 
at the end of which time he re-enlisted 
and served a year and seven months 
longer, thus participating in active dutj' 
during the entire war. He was engaged 
at the first battle of Bull Run, at Ball's 
Bluff, Winchester, all through the Penin- 
sular campaign and the Seven Days' 
Fight, at Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chan- 
cellorsville, South Mountain, second Bull 
Run, Gettysburg and Mine Run. He 
was quartermaster sergeant of the regi- 
ment, and served as dispatch-carrier dur- 
ing the battle of Antietam. After the 
war Mr. Wood settled upon his present 
finely-located and fertile farm of one hun- 
dred and sixty-five acres in Raritan town- 
ship. New Jersey, which he has operated 
successfully ever since. He has always 
been a staunch democrat in politics. In 
1870 he was elected by that party as jus- 
tice of the peace of Metuchen, and has 
been continuously re-elected ever since. 
He was township assessor of Raritan 
township for eighteen years, has been a 
member of the township committee for 
the past four years, and township clerk 
for two years. He is a member of St. 
Luke's Protestant Episcopal church of 
Metuchen, has been a warden for a num- 
ber of years, and has always been closely 
identified with church affairs. Mr. Wood 
has been twice married, his first wife hav- 
ing been Miss Anna A. Edgar, a daugh- 
ter of Thomas Edgar, of Raritan town- 
ship, to whom he was wedded in 1864, 
and who died in 188U, after having borne 
him two children : Anne E. and Theo- 



dore E., both of whom reside in New 
York city. His second wife was Miss 
Margaret Josephine Brewster, whom he 
married in June, 1890. For over a quar- 
ter of a century Mr. Wood has been one 
of the best-known and most influential 
men in Raritan township. 

Mr. Wood is of Scotch descent on his 
father's side and French on his mother's. 
His paternal grandfather, John Wood, 
was a wealthy wholesale flour merchant 
in New York city, owned a number of 
ships, and conducted a prosperous busi- 
ness to the time of his death. He was a 
whig in politics, a quaker in religious af- 
filiations. His children were ten in num- 
ber : Daniel, David, Henry, John, Ste- 
phen, Edward, Charles, George, Eliza- 
beth and Mary. 

Daniel Wood (father) was born in New 
York city in 1812, where he was well 
educated in the public schools. He 
studied law and subsequently located ih 
the state of Wisconsin, where he pracr 
ticed for a time and afterwards served as 
judge for six years. He then went to 
Nebraska and established a large lumber 
business. In politics he was a whig 
until 1855, when he became a democrat. 
In early life his religious views were 
with the quakers, but he afterwards be- 
came a methodist, and was instrumental 
in building and supporting five churches 
of that denomination. He was the father 
of nine children : John H., Theodore A.,. 
Stephen, Anna, Emily, Martha, Gertrude, 
Caroline and Frank. 



Tp H. WILCOX, the efficient superin- 
-*-^' tendent and treasurer of the United 
Ice Co. of Asbury Park, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, was born, August 
23, 1844, at Railway, New Jersey. 



952 



Biographical Sketches. 



E. Wilcox (lather) was the owner of a 
good farm of one hundred and ten acres, 
situated between Rahway and Westfield, 
New Jersey, to the cultivation of which 
he devoted a busy life, and was fairly 
prosperous. In politics he was a demo- 
crat, and in religion he was a member of 
the Presb} terian church. His marriage 
to Mary Drunimond, who deceased in 
1845, resulted in the birth of six chil- 
dren : Emily, Matilda, Mary, John, Dan- 
iel, and E. H. 

E. H. Wilcox attended the public 
school for several years, and subsequently 
entered Freehold Institute, where he was 
preparing for a liberal education. At 
this period unforeseen events arose to in- 
terfere with his plans, and it became nec- 
essary that he should earn a livelihood. I 
He left his uncompleted studies, and for I 
several years drifted hither and thither, < 
employed in but contingent laljor. In 
1865, subsequent to his marriage with 
Annie E. Quinby, Mr. Wilcox returned 
to Rahway, and engaged in farming for a ! 
twelvemonth. The succeeding year was 
occupied by him in the tillage of his father- j 
in-law's farm. He then purchased a 
tract of land at Trenton Falls, New Jer- i 
se}-, and for the ensuing ten years was 
engaged in agriculture. Later he formed 
a partnership, and engaged in the ice 
manufacturing business at Asbury Park, 
conducting for eight years a very profit- 
able business. The partnership was dis- 
solved later, Mr. Wilcox assuming the 
ownership and control of the ice busi- 
ness. After successfully maintaining the 
sole management of his constantly in- ! 
creasing trade, during a period of seven j 
years, he projected what is now known ! 
as the United Ice company- of Asbury 
Park, in which he took a large number 
of the shares of its capital stock. He, 



at its organization, was elected treasurer 
and superintendent of the company. 
Under the capable management of Mr. 
Wilcox the company's business has grown 
to large proportions. 



/CHARLES WHITEHEAD, at the head 
^ of the Whitehead Sand and Clay 
Co., of South River, the largest concern 
of its kind in the United States, and who 
is one of the best known and most in- 
fluential men of Middlesex county, is a 
son of Samuel Whitehead, and was born « 
Jul}- 8, 1826, at South River, then called 
Washington. He is descended from an 
English famil}', well known in Lanca- 
shire, England, for three or four genera- 
tions. His father, Samuel Whitehead, 
the founder of the present business of 
this company, spent his early life in Lan- 
cashire, where he received a common- 
school education. He came to America, 
and located at Dunham's Corners, four 
miles from South River, where he pur- 
chased a tract of three hundred acres, 
and engaged in farming and fruit-grow- 
ing, combined with the nursery business. 
About 1860 he began the digging and 
shipping of sand and claj', being one of 
the pioneers in this traffic in Middlesex 
county. He was also the founder of the 
Willits brick-yard, now operated by his 
son-in-law, Theodore Willits. In politics 
he is an old-line whig and rej)ublican, 
and active in party work, although not a 
seeker after office. His children were : 
Charles, our subject ; William, James, de- 
ceased ; John, Anna Maria, Sarah Jane, 
Isabella, deceased ; and Samuel. Mr. 
Whitehead, Sr., was one of the most 
notable men of Middlesex county. He 
was well knowni for his interest in chari- 
table organizations, and for his active 



Biographical Sketches. 



955 



financial support of churches irrespective 
of creed. He died in 1876. 

Charles Whitehead received a limited 
education in the district schools of South 
River, and in private and night schools. 
He worked on his father's farm at Dun- 
hams Corners, and also assisted him 
in the sand and clay business until 1876, 
when, upon his father's death, he assumed 
control of his affairs. In 1892 he asso- 
ciated his brothers, William, John, and 
Samuel, with him, and they formed the 
present stock concern, known as the 
Whitehead Sand and Clay Co., the stock 
of which is entirely held by the family. 
The business has grown to such an extent 
that it now penetrates into every state in 
the country. The company's sand pits 
are at North River, N. Y. ; its clay banks 
are located in various parts of New Jer- 
sey. Mr. Whitehead is a republican in 
politics, and a valuable contributor to 
the success of that party in his congres- 
sional district. He was chairman of the 
republican executive committee of South 
River and East Brunswick township for 
a number of years. He is one of the 
charter members and a past officer of 
Lodge No. 28, Knights of Pythias, of 
South River, of which he was trustee for 
two years. He resides in South River. 
On Feb. 21, 1851, Mr. Whitehead was 
married to Miss Jennie Couzens, and they 
have five children : Samuel R., Charles, 
Jr., Lavinia, wife of Samuel Gordon ; 
George, deceased at the age of eighteen 
years; and Edward. Mr. Whitehead, 
like his father, is one of the most promi- 
nent business men and influential citizens 
of Middlesex county. 



TpRANCIS WHITE, a dealer in real 

-'- estate, and a prominent citizen of 

Red Bank, Monmouth county, Ncav Jer- 
50 " 



sey, is a son of Francisco and Mary 
(Maglies) White, and was born Oct. 19, 
1833. 

The family is of English origin. Nor- 
man White (grandfather) was born in 
Kent county, England, where he obtained 
his education and successfully prosecuted 
his calling as an architect. He was a 
member of the Catholic church. 

His son, Francisco White, father of 
subject, was born in Kent county, and 
acquired a common-school education. He 
was a man of studious habits and a great 
reader of books, and at an early age 
developed a taste for military pursuits, 
which eventuated in his enlisting as a 
soldier in the French army. He emi- 
grated to America, locating temporarily 
in Charleston, removing thence to Hart- 
ford, Conn., where he joined the French 
colony of that city. After a time he 
moved to Stockbridge, Mass., making 
that place his permanent residence, and 
pursued the avocation of architect and 
civil engineer. He was a member of the 
Catholic church, and, politically, was an 
old-line whig. He was the father of 
three children : Francis, Marie Louise 
(Mrs. Charles Piatt), and Theodore, de- 
ceased. He died in 1833,. his widow sur- 
viving until 1887. 

Francis White received a common- 
school education. He was subsequently 
sent to St. Mary's Convent in New York 
for a time, and later attended a public 
school in that city for three years. After 
leaving there he received private tute- 
lage for eighteen months from Professor 
James, formerly of London, England. 
Mr. White opened a book-store on Dock 
street, Philadelphia, in 1854, but con- 
tinued in that business only six months. 
He returned to New York, finding em- 
ployment with William Hadden, a gold- 



956 



Biographical Sketches. 



leaf inamifacturer, whose daughter he 
suhseqiK'ntly married. He then em- 
barked ill the grocery business on his 
own account, on Grand street, New York 
city, for a year, and then resumed the 
making of gokl leaf. He was employed 
during the war on Wall street, New 
York city, as an expert in the gold room, 
retiring thence to resume his old-time 
business of gold-beating. From 1886 to 
1888 he was traveling manager of the 
Fisk Jubilee Club, after which he re- 
.sumed his old trade for several years. 
He entered the real-estate business in 
1895 at Red Bank, which proved a very 
successful undertaking. He owns a beau- 
tiful home in that town on the banks of 
the Shrewsbury river. He has been an 
active christian for many years, being 
a meml)er and trustee of the Bap- 
tist church at Red Bank, and politicallj- 
he is a republican, and served as commis- 
sioner of Red Bank in 1892. He is a 
member of tiie Free and Accepted Ma- 
sons of that town. 

Mr. White was married Oct. 24, 1855, 
to Elizabeth B. Hadden, of New York 
city, by whom he had eight children : 
Walter, deceased; AVilliam H., deceased; 
Gertrude, now Mrs. John Bray ; William 
H., Clarence, Everett, deceased ; Eveline 
and May Louise. 



TTARRY WARDELL, of the United Ice 
-*--^ Co. of Asbury Park, Monmouth 
count}', New Jersey, is a son of Henry 
II. and Elizaljeth Corlies (Borden) War- 
dell, a daughter of Thomas F. Borden, 
formerly of Hathaway Inn, later of 
Eatontown, New Jersey, and was born, 
March 19, 1854, at Darlington, New 
JtMsey. 

The Wardell family for many years 
has been intimatelv identified with east 



central New Jersej', and at one time 
owned the whole of that now thickly 
populated stretch of land from Long 
Branch to Sandy Hook. It was within 
that area, at Monmouth Beach, that Ben- 
jamin Wardell, the gi'eat-grandfather, 
lived and died a successful farmer, and it 
was by a maternal ancestral connection 
of the family of Wardells, one Richard 
Hartshorn, who married a Borden, that 
the United States were presented with a 
deed of gift of the property it possesses 
at Sandy Hook. The original deed, 
dated June 17, 1817, conveying these 
valuable lands to the government, is now 
in the possession of Harry AYardell. 
Benjamin Wardell became the father of 
five children : Sallie, who married Gabriel 
West, of Eatontown, New Jersey ; De- 
borah, who married Jacob Herbert; 
Charles, Robert, and Harry. 

Grandfather Wardell, son of Benjamin, 
was born on the homestead at Monmouth 
Beach, and received a sound education. 
He was an influential man in his com- 
munity, a prominent politician of the 
old whig school, and potential in local af- 
fairs. His chief occupation was farming, 
but he was the originator of wrecking 
ojjerations on the Jersey coast, and in- 
vented, patented and owned the first ma- 
rine life-saving car. In local afi'airs he 
served for thirty -three years as assessor 
of Ocean township. In religion he was 
a member of the Protestant Episcopal 
church, after seceding from the quakers, 
and was an active, charitable christian. 
His children Avere : Sarah A., who mar- 
ried Henry Howland ; Edward, residing 
at Long Branch ; Eliza, deceased ; Henry 
H., deceased in 1885; Herbert, residing 
at Port-au-Peck, Long Branch ; and 
Josephine, who married William T. Cor- 
lies, of Red Bank, New Jersey. 



Biographical Sketches. 



957 



Henry H. Wardell was born on the 
homestead farm, Dec. 5, 1828, and re- 
ceived a liberal education. He became 
a farmer at Long Branch, and for many 
years was a contractor and builder of 
roads. He served most acceptably for 
one year as collector of Ocean township. 
In spiritual matters he was a member of 
the Protestant Episcopal church, and led 
a life of purity and honesty. He was 
married to Elizabeth Corlies Borden, who 
survived him, aged sixty-four years, and 
i^esides with her children. To their mar- 
riage were born: Harry, our subject; 
Susan, married to George A. Smock, of 
Asbury Park ; and Elizabeth, wife of W. 
G. Schenck, of Spring Lake. 

Harry Wardell attended the public 
schools at Long Branch until arriving at 
the age of fourteen years, when he en- 
tered the grocery store of Thomas T. 
Williams, and remained as clerk for a 
year. He was assistant steward at the 
Howland House, Long Branch, during 
one season, and later was engaged for 
a year in the furniture business. He 
was appointed deputy-postmaster at Long 
Branch, serving seven years. He organ- 
ized the Jamesburg Ice Co., with offices 
at Asbury Park, and storage at James- 
burg, New Jersey, with which successful 
enterprise he still remains as superin- 
tendent. In 1892 he, together with E. H. 
Wilcox and G. H. Smock, organized the 
United Ice Co. of Asbury Park, a con- 
cern that has developed into one of the 
most successful enterprises in that town. 
In politics, he is a republican, but not an 
office-seeker ; in church matters he is a 
Baptist, and in society affairs he is a 
member of the Eoyal Arcanum. Mr. 
Wardell was united in marriage. May 22, 
1877, to Maggie W. Green, a daughter of 
Captain George H. Green, i-esiding near 



Long Branch. To their union have been 
born four children : Sadie, George, Ed- 
ward Borden, and Hester De Graw. 



TDHILIP H. SCHLOSSER, the well- 
-*- known general merchant at Mill- 
town, Middlesex county. New Jersey, is 
a son of Philip and Elizabeth Kuhlthan 
Schlosser, and was born August 22, 1863, 
in the town named. His family is of 
Franco-German origin, and down to his 
father's time its members were natives of 
the province of Alsace, a bone of much 
contention between France and Germany 
until June, 1871, when, by the treaty of 
Brussels, ratified after Sedan and the fall 
of Paris before the arms of Bismarck and 
Von Moltke, it was re-annexed to Ger- 
many. His paternal grandfather was a 
farmer and land-owner before coining to 
this country in 1853, and after that event 
he lived in comparative retirement at 
Milltown, New Jersey, until his death. 
He was the father of three children : 
Henry, Philip, deceased, and Jacob, also 
deceased. Philip Schlosser was born 
Sept. 28, 1827. He attended the public 
schools and adopted the trade of a tailor. 
In 1852 he came to the United States, 
settling in New Brunswick. In 1853 he 
removed to Milltown, where he was en- 
gaged at manufacturing gum-boots in a 
rubber factory for fifteen years. In 1868 
he opened a general store in that .town, 
and continued in successful merchandis- 
ing until 1888, when he died. He was a 
republican, but not a politician, and was 
a member of the German Reformed 
church. His relict, whose maiden name 
was Elizabeth Kuhlthan, succeeded to 
his business and still remains in prosper- 
ous proprietorship. She is the mother of 
four children : Philip H., George, Wil- 
liam and Magdalena. 



958 



Biographical Sketches. 



Philip H. Schlosser attended the pub- 
lic school at Milltown until he was fif- 
teen years old, and acquired a good, sub- 
stantial English education. His tastes 
running to barter and trade, he elected to 
quit school and become a clerk, in whicli 
capacity he assisted his father for ten 
years. He thus acquired a thorough 
business training and was fully qualified 
when the elder Schlosser deceased, in 
1888, to enter into a successful manage- 
ment of the affairs of the establishment 
for his mother. During the eight years 
he has been thus dutifully occupied he 
has extended the business considerably, 
and by judicious handling and the volun- 
tary application of accommodating and 
obliging methods, enforced by the spur of 
competition, he has largely augmented 
the earning power of the capital em- 
ployed in his trade. Mr. Schlosser is a 
republican in political sentiment, and in 
religious faith indorses the doctrines 
of the Reformed church, of which he is 
a memljer at Milltown. He is a membei' 
of Wickatunk Tribe, No. 135, I. 0. R. M., 
of which he has been a trustee; a mem- 
ber of Rescue Council, No. 4, Sr. 0. U. A. 
M. and C. L. Walters Council, No. 178, 
Jr. 0. U. A. M. 



JOHN M. LAIGHT, a prosperous manu- 
^ facturer of liuilding materials at 
Asbury Park, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Thomas and Mary E. 
(Haight) Laiglit, and was born Jan. 18, 
183G, in New York city. He descends 
from Holland-Dutch stock, of a family 
remarkable for the longevity of its mem- 
bers, his grandmother living to see her 
one hundred and sixteenth birthda\-, and 
his great-grandsire one hundred and one 
years. His name was Thomas, and he 



1 came to this county from Holland, and 
settled on Manhattan Island, where he 
purchased a farm of thirty-seven acres. 
Here he spent a busy life in successful 
agriculture, and at his death was buried 
in one of the old churchyards of that 
city. He left a daughter named Martha, 
and three sons. Great-grandfather Laight 
was born near Williams Bridge, on the 
I Bronx, near Yonkers, New York. He 
received an education in the common 
schools, and his subsequent life-time occu- 
pation as a farmer was subjected to an 
interruption of eight years, 1775 to 1783, 
during whicli period he was engaged in 
the service of the Revolution. He died, 
leaving two sons ; David, who became a 
farmer at Golden Bridge, New York, and 
John. John Laiglit (grandfather) was 
born in Westchester county. New York. 
He became a prosperous agriculturist. 
In politics he was known as a Clintouian, 
and in religion a methodist. He de- 
ceased, leaving two daughters, named 
Martha and Mary, and one son, named 
Thomas. Thomas Laiglit (father) was 
born on the Westchester farm, and was 
educated in the common schools. After 
pursuing the avocation of a farmer, dur- 
ing several years, he removed to New 
York cit}^ and established himself in a 
commission business until his death, in 
1866. In politics he w^as a democrat; in 
religious affiiirs a methodist, and in fra- 
ternal union a mason. His marriage to 
Mary E. Haight, who survived him three 
years, resulted in the birth of three chil- 
dren : George, John M., and Evelyn. 

John M. Laiglit, after being educated 
in the public schools of New York city, 
acquired the trade of a wood turner. 
After following for several years his 
trade as journeyman, he established his 
present large and prosperous factory at 



Biographical Sketches. 



959 



Asbury Park. He is engaged in wood 
turning, mill-work, and housework of all 
kinds; furnishes building materials of 
every description, and is conducting a 
handsome business. He is also a suc- 
cessful speculator in houses and unim- 
proved real-estate, and is interested be- 
sides in fisheries at Asbury Park. In 
politics he is a democrat of liberal views, 
and in religion a member of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church. He has been a 
fireman since he was fifteen years of age ; 
was a member of the old volunteer fire 
department of New York city ; is now a 
member of the Exempt Fire Association 
of that town, and served two years as fire 
commissioner of Asbury Park. He is a 
■ prominent member of the following orders 
in masonry : Asbury Lodge, No. 142, F. 
and A. M., of Asbury Park ; Standard 
Chapter, No. 35, R. A. M., of Long Branch; 
Corson Commandery, No. 15, of Asbury 
Park ; Mecca Temple, No. 1, Ancient 
Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic 
Shrine ; North Jurisdiction Consistory of 
Jersey City, and Ancient Order of Scot- 
tish Rite Masons of New York city. Mr. 
Laight was united in marriage to Mary 
Hurst, and to their union have been born 
three children : Jennie, F. Bertholde, and 
Julia Hoskins. 



"TOHN A. DONAHUE, a prosperous gro- 
^ cer of New Brunswick, Middlesex 
county. New Jersey, is a son of John 
and Ella (Martin) Donahue, and was 
born April 25, 1865. 

John Donahue acquired a common- 
school education, and subsequently fol- 
lowed the plough for a livelihood. He 
continued farming for several years, and 
later engaged in the grocery busines-'. 
After enjoying a prosperous trade for 



sixteen years, he ceased business and re- 
tired to private life. He is a Roman 
Catholic in religion, and was a trustee of 
the church of that denomination for 
many years. He is the father of five 
children : Mary, Thomas A., Elizabeth 
M., George H., and John A. 

John A. Donahue received a common- 
school education at the Catholic school in 
New Brunswick. He subsequently en- 
gaged in a grocery business of his own in 
that town, which started off successfully, 
and which has so continued to the pres- 
sent time. He and his brother, Thomas 
A., are now in partnership. Their busi- 
ness is flourishing and prosperous, and 
they are enjoying a large and substantial 
trade. Mr. Donahue is a Roman Cath- 
olic in religion, and a member of the 
Sacred Heart parish church. He is en- 
rolled among the membership of the 
Catholic Benevolent Legion. In politics 
he is a liberal democrat in suffrage, and 
in voting for men to transact the public 
afiairs of his town, he votes for the best 
man for the position. He was married 
Sept. 28, 1892, to Mary Josephine Mc- 
Kenna. They have one child — Raphael. 



JOSEPH CLIVEN, coroner of Mon 
^ mouth county, New Jersey, and a 
successful cigar and tobacco merchant of 
Asbury Park, is a son of Joseph K. and 
Hannah (Asay) Cliven, and was born 
July 16, 1853, in Hanover township, 
Burlington county. New Jersey. He is 
of mixed English and Irish extraction. 

Joseph Cliven (grandfather) was the 
owner of two hundred acres of rich farm- 
ing land near Wrightstown, New Jersey, 
which he successfully cultivated for many 
years. He was a democrat politically, 
and in religious matters he was a devoted 



960 



Biographical Sketches. 



member of the Methodist church. He 
deceased in 1890, leaving the legacy of 
a g(jod name to his three sons : Joseph 
K., lather of our subject, Anthony, and 
Ricliard. Joseph K. Cliven was born on 
his lather's farm. After acquiring a 
common-school education, he was occu- 
pied in trade as a butcher for several 
years. He subsequently relinquished this 
avocation for that of a farmer, and fol- 
lowed agriculture until retirement. He 
served in ^he Union army from 1864 un- 
til the close of the war as a member of 
Company C, Twenty-third regiment, New 
Jersey infantry, and was mainly engaged 
in provost duty, under General Torbst. 
He is a democrat, and in religious matters 
is a member of the Methodist Episco- 
j)al church. His marriage to Hannah 
Asay, who is also still living at Wrights- 
ville, resulted in the birth of eight chil- 
dren : Samuel, a dealer in fancy goods at 
Ocean Grove, New Jersey ; David, a 
bookkeeper in Camden, New Jersey ; 
Joseph, our subject ; John, deceased ; 
Amariah, a blacksmith at Williamstown, 
New Jersey ; George, a telegraph opera- 
tor at South Amboy ; Clifford and Charles, 
both deceased. Samuel Asay, the mater- 
nal grandfather, is a successful farmer, 
residing in Hanover township, a republi- 
can in politics, a devoted member of the 
Methodist church, and a highly respected 
and useful member of society. 

Joseph Cliven attended the public 
school at Pointville, New Jersey. He 
subseqiientl}' took a thorough course at 
Eastman's Business College at Pough- 
keepsie, N. Y., and during the four suc- 
ceeding years was employed in a store at 
Yardville, New Jersey. In 1889 he es- 
tablished his present successful tobacco 
and cigar business at Asbury Park. He 
enjoys a large patronage. He is a very 



I 



enthusiastic democratic politician, and, 
withal, is so popular as to come within 
twenty-five votes of being elected to the 
assembly of New Jersey in his district, 
which is a republican stronghold. He is 
the pi'e sent coroner of Monmouth county, 
having been elected to that office in 1893. 
Fraternally he is a member of Asbury 
Lodge, No. 142, F. and A. M., of Asbury 
Park ; Standard Chapter, R. A. M., of Long 
Branch ; Corson Commandery, No. 15, K. 
T., of Asbury Park ; Scottish Rite, of 
Camden ; Lulu Temple, of Philadelphia ; 
Monmouth Lodge, No. 107, K- of P., at 
Asbury Pai'k; Asbury Council, No. 23, 
Jr. 0. U. A. M. ; Neptune Lodge, No. 
84, L 0. 0. F. ; the Royal Arcanum, and 
Asbury Park Lodge, No. 128, B. P. 0. 
E., all of Asbury Park. He is also a 
charter member of the Monmouth Club 
of Asbury Park. Mr. Cliven was mar- 
ried May 27, 1879, to Carrie E. Cole, 
and to their marriage have been born 
three children : Howard, born May 18, 
1880, attending Trenton Business Col- 
lege; Alvin, born Dec. 7, 1882, a pupil 
of the public schools at Asbui-y Park, 
and Sarah Elma, born Aug. 17, 1885. 



TTTILLIAM H. POSTEN, Jr., a leading 
' ' hardware dealer at Atlantic High- 
lands, Monmouth county, New Jersey, is 
a son of William H., Sr., and Sarah 
(Davis) Posten, and was born, in 1864, 
at Navesink, in that county. His ances- 
tors up to the time of his father were 
natives of Scotland. 

The paternal grandfather, Samuel Pos- 
ten, was a sergeant in the American 
army during the war of 1812. His trade 
was that of a carpenter, which he pur- 
sued successfully for many years in Holm- 
del township, Monmouth county. He 



Biographical Sketches. 



961 



died at the ripe old age of four-score 
years and ten. 

William H. Posten, Sr. (father), was 
born, reared and received his education 
in Holmdel township, Monmouth county. 
In 1856 he located at Navesink, as one 
of its pioneers, and pursued the dual 
avocations of a farmer and blacksmith. 
He is a democrat, and served for twelve 
years as township collector at Navesink. 
He was also clerk of the district schools 
for a number of years. In religion he is 
a baptist, and was an incorporator of the 
church of that denomination at Nave- 
sink, and is one of its trustees. He lives 
a retired life in that town, where he is 
the owner of considerable I'eal estate. 
Mr. Posten was married to Sarah Davis, 
a daughter of Joseph Davis, one of Nav- j 
esink's earliest settlers. They are the 
parents of six children : Mary, Sarah, 
Blanche, Nellie, Amzi, and William 
H., Jr. 

William H. Posten, Jr., was educated 
in the district schools at the town of his 
birth, and spent his early life, up to the 
age of seventeen years, on his father's 
farm. He then entered a hardware and 
house-furnishing store at Red Bank, 
owned by J. N. Peters, in which he rose 
from the position of a clerk to that of 
manager. In the summer of 1889 he 
removed to Atlantic Highlands, where 
he purchased a small hardware business 
from Leonard Brothers. His trade soon 
outgrew the dimensions of his store-room, ; 
and he built a larger place. In 1896 he 
was compelled, owing to his constantly 
increasing business, to build again. He is \ 
now the possessor of a commodious store- 
building, and the proprietor of an ex- 
tensive and prosperous business, which | 
embraces hardware of every description. 
He is also a large contractor for the | 



supply of material used in finishing and 
furnishing houses, and he furnishes em- 
ployment to a corps of five assistants. 
Mr. Posten is a democrat in politics, and 
served four years on the board of bor- 
ough commissioners. At present he is 
chairman of the finance committee of 
his township. He is a trustee and 
one of the original members of the Cen- 
tral Baptist church at Atlantic High- 
lands, and is a member of the Royal Ar- 
canum, the treasurer and one of the or- 
oranizers of Lod^e No. 1378. Mr. Posten 
was married to Sophia Swan, a daughter 
of Charles Swan. They are the parents 
of two daughters and one son : Cornelia, 
William H., the third living member of 
the family of that name ; and Dorothy. 



nV/TAJOE ADON LIPPINCOTT, a suc- 
-'-'-*- cessful builder and contractor at 
Asbury Park, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, and a veteran of 1861, is a son 
of Chackling and Phoebe Duell Lippin- 
cott, and was born May 25, 1839, at Har- 
risonville, New Jersey. The immigrant 
ancestor to this country, from whom de- 
scends the Lippincott family, was a na- 
tive of England, and settled at Shrews- 
bury, Monmouth county. New Jersey, in 
1638. 

John Lippincott, the paternal grand- 
father, was born at Harrisonville, New 
Jersey, and there lived the life of an ex- 
tensive and successful farmer. During 
his life-time he was in religious faith a 
member of the Society of Friends. His 
wife bore him seven children : Chack- 
ling, John, Tacey, Rachel, Rebecca, Han- 
nah and Sarah. 

Chackling Lippincott, father of our 
subject, was born at Harrisonville on the 
old farm. He attended the district school, 



962 



Biographical Sketches. 



iiiul after acquiring all tlie knowledge it 
had to bestow he settled down to agri- 
cultural pursuits, which he thencefor- 
ward followed until his death in 18S1. 
In religion he clung to the faith in which 
he had been reared, remaining in the 
Quaker fold, and in politics was a whig 
and a republican. His marriage to 
Phoebe Duell resulted in the birth of 
eight children : Ann, Beulah, Hope, Asa, 
Adon, Charles, Henrj- and Amos. 

Adon Lippincott attended the district 
school at Harrisouville until he was 
twenty-two years of age. By this time 
there was war in the land ; the Union 
was in danger and disruption shook a 
menacing finger. New Jersey's sons 
were arming to cross the Long Bridge 
into Virginia, and Adon Lippincott was 
one of these. He enlisted in Aug., 1861, 
with Company D, Forty-eighth regiment, 
New Jersey Volunteers, for three years' 
service, but i-emained longer, and did not 
leave the army until April 16, 1865, 
after Richmond had fallen, and two days 
subsequent to the assassination of a man 
Avhose tragic fate sent a nation into 
mourning. He was four times wounded, 
and was repeatedly promoted until he 
reached the rank of major, was present at 
the siege of Fort Pulaski, Morris Island, 
Charleston harbor and at Hilton Head 
Island. He was twice Avounded during 
the siege of Fort Wagner, remaining in 
a hospital four months, and again Avas 
wounded at Cold Harbor ; sent at first 
to the hospital, thence to his home for 
three months. He subsequently rejoined 
the army at Petersburg, Va., and was 
engaged in all the battles from the 
Wilderness to Richmond. He was 
wounded for the fourth time during the 
attack on Fort Fisher, N. C, and did not 
recover in time for further active service. 



I Major Lippincott, in Virginia, served in 
the commands of Generals Sherman, 
Mitchell, Hunter and Strong at various 
times ; and in the regulars, which he 
joined June 1, 1864, he was with Gen- 
eral Grant. After the war Major Lip- 
pincott returned home, and for some time 
was engaged as a jobber in fruit at Phila- 
delphia. In 1880 he became a house- 
building contractor, and has continued up 
to the present time at Asbury Park in 
successful business. In religion Major 
Lippincott is an active member of the 
Presbyterian church at Asbury Park, of 
which he has been an elder for many 
years, and in politics a republican. He 

j was married, April 16, 1868, to Anna 
Clark. Mrs. Lippincott deceased April 
8, 1894, leaving one s(m, Walter C, an 
expert mechanic and foreman of his 

! father's establishment at Asbury Park. 
Major Lippincott, the old-time brave and 
gallant soldier, now the practical, pros- 
perous man of business, is especially en- 
dowed with all the qualities that consti- 
tute a successful builder. 



TTTILLIAM KNIGHT, M.D., a success- 
'^ ' ful practitioner of medicine, now 
located at South River, Middlesex county, 
New Jersey, and a man prominent in 
masonic and other secret societ}' circles, 
is a son of Joseph and Rachel (Davis) 
Knight, and was born at Montgomery- 
ville, Montgomerjr county, Pa., on Nov. 
3, 1847. The fixmily is of English origin, 
its ancestors first settling in New York 
and Philadelphia. Dr. Knight acquired 
his earlier education in the district schools 
of Montgomery county, and then found 
employment as a teacher in a school in 
Richland township, Bucks county. Pa., 
I for one year, when he entered the phar- 



Biographical Sketches. 



963 



macy of Drs. Thomas & Linderman, at 
Quakertown, that county, as drug clerk, 
for two years. He then opened a drug 
store in North Wales in his native county, 
but sold out, at the end of a year, to Dr. 
B. K. Johnson, with whom he remained 
for a time, however, for the study of 
medicine. He next graduated from the 
University of Pennsylvania, in the class 
of 1871, and located at Lebanon, Hunter- 
don county. New Jersey. In November 
of the same year he went to Annandale, 
where he remained for seven years. In 
the spring of 1895 he came to South 
River. In politics he is a staunch re- 
publican, and a presbyterian in religious 
faith, being a member of the presbyterian 
church at Clinton. He has always been 
an ardent and enthusiastic supporter of 
secret and beneficial societies, being a 
member of Stewart Lodge, No. 34, Free 
and Accepted Masons, at Clinton, New 
Jersey, and past officer of that lodge ; 
past grand of Capoolong Lodge, No. 185, 
1,0. 0. F., at Clinton; past chancellor 
of Star Lodge, No. 113, K. of P., at Clin- 
ton ; and is past district deputy of the 
two latter orders. He is a charter 
member of Crescent Lodge, K. of P., at 
Flemington, New Jersey, as well as of 
Star Lodge, K. of P., at Clinton. In 
1872 he was mariied to Matilda Krymer, 
a daughter of D. G. Krymer, residing at 
Annandale, their union being blessed 
with five children : Lizzie (now Mrs. Mil- 
ton Bonsell), William D., Florence, Ollie, 
and Preston. 

Dr. Knight's paternal grandfather was 
Grael Knight, a prosperous farmer of 
Montgomery county, Pa., and a member 
of the Society of Friends. He was an 
old-line whig and an active and aggres- 
sive abolitionist, but did not see his pol- 
itical dream realized, as he died just prior 



to our civil war. His children were: 
Townsend, Grael, Joseph (father of Dr. 
Knight), Rachel, Abyiah, and Jane. 

Dr. Knight's father received his edu- 
cation in Philadelphia. He purchased a 
farm in Montgomery county, Pa., living 
thereon his entire lifetime. He was a 
man of literary tastes, noted for grasp 
and force of intellect; prosperous and 
highly respected in his community, and 
enjoyed a considerable local reputation 
as a surveyor, In politics he was an 
ardent republican, and held the office of 
justice of the peace and township super- 
visor for a number of years. Religiously 
he was a Friend, and a zealous member 
of Quaker meeting. He died in March, 
1883, in the sixtieth year of his age. To 
him and his wife Rachel, who still sur- 
vives him, and who lives at Montgomery- 
ville, on the old homestead, there were 
born eight children : Charles and Watson 
(both deceased). Dr. Moses D., Abner, 
John, Dr. William, Silas, and Nelson. 



/^APT. CHARLES H. BROWN, a popu- 
^-^ lar hotel man at Long Branch, is 
one of the best known men in shipping 
circles on the New Jersey coast. He is 
a son of Hutchins and Elizabeth (Mac- 
Gregor) Brown, and was born at Long 
Branch, New Jersey, March 24, 1846. 
His ancestors originally came from Scot- 
land, and Joseph Brown, paternal grand- 
father, took part in the war of 1812, and 
helped to clinch the nail that secured 
American Independence. He married 
Miss Hanna Crumb, and they had four 
children : Joseph, Hutchins, Elizabeth, 
and Catherine (now Mrs. Daniel Lewis). 
Hutchins Brown (father) was born at 
Long Branch, and received his elemen- 
tary instruction in the public schools of 



964 



Biographical Sketches. 



his town. He then learned carpentering 
and building, and was engaged in that 
occupation at Long Branch all his life. 
He was a democrat, but not a politician, 
and attended the Methodist Episcopal 
church. When Abraham Lincoln issued 
his call for ninet}' day volunteers in 1861, 
Mr. Brown responded, and enlisted at 
Trenton in the First regiment. New Jer- 
sey cavalry, and, at the expiration of 
his time of service, re-enlisted as a private, 
for three years, in company G, infantry, 
and was pi'omoted to corporal. He fol- 
lowed the old flag through the shot and 
shell of ninety-seven fights, including An- 
tietam and Fredericksburg, and was mus- 
tered out of service in 1864. He was a 
member of the J. B. Morris Post, G. A. 
R., of Long Branch, where he died in 
1891. By his marriage with Miss Eliza- 
beth MacGregor, who still survives, he 
had two sons : Charles H., and Frank. 

Charles H. Brown early in life worked 
on a sea pilot's boat for three years, and 
later was engaged in fishing at Sea Bright 
up to the outbreak of the civil war, 
when he enlisted, Sept. 1, 1862, in the 
Twenty-ninth regiment, New Jersey in- 
fantry, company A, for ten months. His 
regiment was assigned to the army of the 
Potomac, and took part in the bloody 
battles of Chancellorsville and Fredericks- 
burg. He was mustered out of service 
June 30, 1863, and on Sept. 26, 1863, re- 
enlisted in the United States navy for 
fourteen months. After the war Capt. 
Brown engaged in general coasting, and 
continued until 1887. His experiences 
on shipboard were filled with dangers, 
and three times were his vessels wrecked, 
once in the navy, and twice while en- 
gaged in the coasting trade. During 
1889 and 1890 he was commander of a 
steamboat, plying between Sea Bright 



and New York city. He is now retired, 
and, as above stated, is engaged in the 
hotel business at Long Branch, where he 
is a popular host and a well-known resi- 
dent. He is active politically, and a 
strict party democrat; is a member of 
Masonic Lodge, No. 78, and the J. B. 
Morris Post, G. A. R., both of Long 
Branch. He married Miss Elizabeth 
Gaskill, a daughter of Jacob and Julia 
Ann Gaskill, and to this compact have 
been born two children : Hutchins and 
Alexandria. 



TT^DWARD WHITEHEAD belongs to 
-*— ^ that class of business men who are 
rapidly coming to the forefront. To 
such men, the progress and prosperit}- of 
any community is due. Born Dec. 15, 
1865, he is a son of Charles Whitehead, 
whose sketch will be found elsewhere in 
this volume, and Jemima Whitehead, 
nee Couzens, whose ancestors wei'e of 
sturdy German stock. Mr. Whitehead 
obtained a good English education in the 
public schools of his native town, and 
subsequently, in order to prepare himself 
more thoroughly for a business career, 
took a commercial course at a business 
college. He is general manager of the 
Whitehead Sand and Clay Co. for the 
state of New Jersey. In addition to his 
business, he owns a fine stock farm of 
one hundred acres, situated in East 
Brunswick township, Middlesex county, 
this state. His property is near the 
Middlesex Driving Club track, and not a 
few of the premiums awarded upon this 
track are carried off by his horses. He 
is a staunch I'cpublican, and is the leader 
of his party in his vicinity. He has 
never aspired to political preferment, but 
has always been an earnest worker and 



Biographical Sketches. 



966 



liberal contributor to the party's success. 
He is a member of Lodge No. 28, K. of 
P., of which he is treasurer; Passyunk 
Tribe, No. 39, I. 0. R. M. ; Riverside 
Council, No. 33, Jr. 0. U. A. M. ; and 
New Brunswick Lodge, No. 324, B. P. 0. 
E. On Nov. 25, 1890, Mr. Whitehead | 
and Miss Theresa Levenson were united ! 
in marriage, and to their union have 
been born two sons : Russell and Milton. 



Tp F. FARROW, M. D., a practicing 
-'— ^* physician at Peapack, Somerset 
county, New Jersey, is fast coming to I 
the front of his profession in the state. 
He is a son of Moses and Rebecca (Smith) 
Farrow, and was born, Nov. 2, 1861, at 
Valley, Hunterdon county. New Jersey. 
He received his education in the public 
schools at Valley, Hackettstown Insti- 
tute, and then read medicine one year 
under his brother, Dr. Levi Farrow, and 
graduated from the College of Physicians 
and Surgeons, New York city. May 13, 
1886. He located in practice at Potters- 
ville. New Jersey, where he remained 
one year, when he came to Peapack, 
where he has since built up one of the 
largest and most profitable clienteles in 
the state. As a physician Dr. Farrow is 
skillful, and a diligent student of his pro- 
fession, keeping well abreast with the 
wonderful strides of medical science, as 
to more modern methods of diagnosis and 
treatment. Personally he is popular and 
much respected. Politically he is a dem- 
ocrat, and fraternally a member of Pros- 
pect Lodge, No. 24, Free and Accepted 
Masons; the Mecca Temple, Mystic 
Shrine, of New York city ; and the Chap- 
ter and Commandery at Morristown, New 
Jersey. On March 19, 1887, Dr. Far- 
row was happily married to Grace Ham- 



mond, a daughter of H. Howard Ham- 
mond, of New York city, and they have 
been blessed with the following children: 
Claude F., Alva H., Eunice, and Marion, 
deceased. 

Moses Farrow was born at Valley, in 
Hunterdon county. New Jersey. He was 
self-educated, and, after spending a short 
time as a clerk in a drug store at New 
York, he returned to Valley, and for the 
ensuing few years followed school-teach- 
ing. He later engaged in the manufac- 
ture of drugs at Valley, New Jersey, in 
connection with which he owned and 
operated a farm, and continued in the 
pursuit of this occupation until his death, 
August 1, 1891, at the age of eighty-three 
years. He was twice married. To his 
first wife, Ann Smith, were born the fol- 
lowing children : Ann, deceased ; Wil- 
liam B., Clarkson, Levi, Joseph, deceased; 
Barney, and Catharine. By his second 
wife, Rebecca Smith, were born : Annie, 
Frank P., deceased ; Mary, wife of C. W. 
Vanatta; Dr. E. F., and Ella (twins), 
the wife of F. L. McCrea; and Emma, 
the wife of C. W. Gano. 



JAMES CAMPBELL, a retired manufac- 
turer, and a prominent citizen of 
Long Branch, traces his ancestry back to 
the heather of the Scottish Highlands, 
that centuries since rang with the slogans 
of the Campbell clans. Representatives 
of this historic family emigrated from 
Scotland and settled in New Jersey, and 
family records show that John Campbell, 
the great-grandfather of our subject, was 
born in Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
Nov. 6, 1719. He was a farmer by occu- 
pation, and a member of the Dutch Re- 
formed church. His wife's maiden name 
was Rachael W., a daughter of George 



966 



Biographical Sketches. 



and Sarah Walker. Their family of] 
children were as follows : George, born 
Jan. 7, 1778, died Sept. 22, 1798; John, 
born Feb. 5, 1750, died March 28, 1783; 
Duncan, born April 10, 1763, died Jan. 
12, 1813; Ellen, born Dec. 11, 1755, 
died 1774; Elizabeth, born Jan., 1758, 
died Sept., 1760. John Campbell died I 
May 10, 1761, while his wife survived 
hini until May 7, 1805. 

William Campbell (grandfather) was ■ 
born near Freehold, New Jersey, Jan. 
20, 1765. He was educated in the com- 
mon schools, and began life as a farmer, 
continuing until his decease. He served 
in the Revolutionary war, was wounded, 
and received a pension. He was a whig 
politically. His children were : John, 
born June 1, 1788; George, born May 
17, 1791 ; Rachael, born Aug. 20, 1793 ; 
Thomas, born Jan. 14, 1795; Nancy, 
born Nov. 4, 1798; William, born Aug. 
30,1800; Henry, born May 20, 1805; 
Caroline, born April 19, 1808; and Rue, 
born April 2, 1813. 

Rue Campbell (father) was born at 
Freehold, New Jersey. He became a 
farmer. He adopted the principles of 
the Republican party, and was an active 
wf)rker in the Dutch Reformed church. 
His children consisted of seven sons and 
two daughters : Thomas, James, Han- 
nah, deceased ; Tennis, deceased ; Mar- 
garet, deceased ; John, Peter, Rue and 
William, all of whom are deceased. 

James Campbell is a son of Rue and 
Deborah Campl)ell, and was born in 
Shrewsbury township, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, Sept. 14, 1843. Upon leav- 
ing the common schools, he worked in a 
country store at Phalan.x, New Jersey, 
until fourteen years of .age. He then 
learned the blacksmith's trade. He 
served in the late Rebellion, enlisting for 



nine months in the Twenty-ninth New 
Jersej^ volunteers, and was mustered out 
July 5, 1862. He then went to Wash- 
ington and re-enlisted, and remained in 
the service one year and seven months 
longer. He took part in the blood}^ and 
hard-fought battles of Chancellorsville 
and Fredericksburg. Receiving an hon- 
orable discharge, he went to New York 
city, and later to Brooklyn, where he 
worked at blacksmithing for one year, 
and then established a business on his 
own account in the same citj, where he 
afterwards became engaged in the manu- 
facture of trucks. This venture proved 
vei'y successful, and he continued for 
twenty-two years, retiring and removing 
to Long Branch in 1890. In political 
opinion and practice he is an active re- 
publican, and for two years was commis- 
sioner of Long Bi'anch. He belongs to 
the following fraternal societies : the Ma- 
sonic Order, in which he has held vari- 
ous offices ; I. 0. 0. F., Sr. 0. U. A. M., 
and G. A. R. Post of Long Branch, of 
which he has been commander for the 
past three years. Mr. Campbell is a 
hard worker in Grand Array circles, and 
one of the pillars of his post. 

On Dec. 30, 1868, James Campbell 
married Eliza Ann King, and to them 
have been born the following children : 
Ezekiel, deceased ; Ann. James, deceased; 
Ada, William and James. 



TT P. RUNYON, president of the Dry 
^^' Dock Co. and one of the most 
prominent and influential citizens of 
Perth Amboy, was born at New Bruns- 
wick, New Jersey, Dec. 3, 1861, and is a 
son of John and Anna (Beck) Runyon. 
Our subject's fiimily is of Frencli origin, 
the original American ancestors coming 
from France and settling in New Jersey. 



Biographical Sketches. 



967 



Vincent Runyon, paternal grandfather, 
was born in New Brunswick, New Jer- 
sey, and for the major part of his life fol- 
lowed the ship-building business. He 
was a democrat and a leading local poli- 
tician, and also a member of the Baptist 
church of New Brunswick. He had a 
family of seven children: Elizabeth, Mary, 
Lucy, Katharine, Amanda, Reuben and 
John. Grandfather and grandmother 
Runyon are both dead. 

John Runyon was born at New Bruns- 
wick, Middlesex county. New Jersey, 
and after attending the common schools 
of that city learned the trade of ship- 
building with his father and followed 
that many years. He was an active 
worker in the democratic lines. 

Mr. Runyon, Sr., up to the time of his 
death, which occurred July 13, 1891, 
was a member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church. His children are : F. P., 
George D., J. B., Theodore V., Amanda 
(Mrs. George Outcalt), Mary F., and our 
subject, who, as will be seen above, is the 
" seventh son of the seventh son." 

H. P. Runyon first passed through the 
common schools of his native place, then 
attended the college preparatory school, 
and in 1881 graduated" from a business 
college at Newark, New Jersey. He 
then went to New York city, where he 
remained five years, attaining marked 
and substantial success. Mr. Runyon 
then became interested as a stockholder 
and secretary of the Perth Amboy Dry 
Docks at Perth Amboy, New Jersey, and 
later he and his present partner pur- 
chased the entire property and organized 
the company now doing business under 
the caption of the Perth Amboy Dry 
Dock Co., of which he is president. Mr. 
Runyon and his colleague do a large and 
successful business. He is an ardent 



democrat and takes a keen interest in 
the political situation and the adminis- 
tration of public affairs. He served as a 
member and secretary of the board of 
water commissioners. Fraternally Mr. 
Runyon is a mason, being a member of 
the lodge at New Brunswick. He was 
married in June, 1895, to Miss Katha- 
rine E. Hancock. 



H. 



G. ROOT, the attentive and capable 
manager of the telephone office at 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, is a son of 
Marcus and Loretta (Kennedy) Root, and 
was born in Philadelphia, Pa., on Dec. 
19, 1856. Moses Root, his grandfather, 
was an estimable and highly-respected 
farmer. He was a republican in politics, 
and in religious convictions a presby- 
terian, having been a member of the 
Presbyterian church for many years. He 
died in 1874. He had a family of seven 
children : Samuel, Lewis, Marcus, Martha, 
and Mary ; two died in infancy. Marcus 
Root, the father of our subject, after ob- 
taining his primary training in the com- 
mon schools of his native town, entered 
college, in Ohio, and graduated therefrom. 
He then devoted himself to teaching, and 
for a time taught school in various sec- 
tions of the country. In 1856 he re- 
moved to the city of Philadelphia, and 
permanently located there. He was a re- 
publican in politics, and was a devout 
and earnest member of the Presbyterian 
church. He died April 14, 1895, leaving 
the following children : William, Mar- 
cus, Charles, Albert, Laura, Hannah, 
and H. G. 

H. G. Root received a common-school 
education, and is a well-informed man. 
He removed to New Brunswick, New 
Jersey, in 1894, and took charge of the 



968 



Biographical Sketches. 



telephone office, where he has been en- 
gaged ever snice. He is a capable official, 
and one with whom it is a pleasure to 
come in contact, either socially or m 
a business way. He is a republican 
in politics, and ever manifests a lively 
interest in whatever most deeply aflfects 
the public welfare. He married Miss 
Mary Ba.s.sett, March .31, 1886, and has 
three children : Esther, Junie, and Harr^^ 



GEORGE KRAUSE, a highly represen- 
tative type of the younger and 
more successful business men of New 
Brunswick, is a son of Daniel Krause, 
and was born in 1872. 

His father, Daniel Krause, was born in 
German}', and came to this country, lo 
eating at Jersey City. He received a 
good common-school education in his 
native land, and then learned the trade 
of a baker, in which he continued durina- 
his residence in Germany, establishing 
himself in a shop of his own in Jersey 
City upon his arrival in the United 
States. He attached himself to no par- 
ticular political party, but always re- 
mained independent in politics, and cast 
his vote for whoever in his judgment was 
the best man. His marriage was blessed 
with two sons : George and Frank. 

George Krause was first educated in 
the public schools, and then attended the 
high school, after which he took a course 
of study at a business college. Having 
completed his education, he entered his 
father's shop, and tliere learned the trade 
of a baker. He followed that trade for 
years, and then embarked in the grocery 
business, in which he continued for one 
year, and on Oct. 1, 1890, bought out the 
New Brunswick Coal and Ice Co., in 
which business he has continued ever 



since. He is an energetic, pushing busi- 
ness man, well liked by his patrons, and 
esteemed by his fellow-citizens, and has 
had what may be termed a thoroughly 
successful business career. In politics he 
is independent, and always votes for the 
best man. He is a member of Jr. 0. U. 
A. M. of New Brunswick, and of the I. 
0. 0. F., and Royal Arcanum. 



T30BERT M. PURDY, junior member 
-L^ of the firm of Conover & Purdy, 
extensive merchants at Manasquan, New 
Jersey, is a son of Robert and Ellen 
(Compton) Purdy, and was born at 
Hightstown, Mercer county, where his 
family have been well-known residents 
for many years. The name is of Eng- 
lish origin. His grandfather, Robert 
Purdy, was a distiller near Hightstown, 
and followed a successful business career 
until his death. 

Our subject's father, Robert Purdy, 
was born and educated at Hightstown, 
and was engaged in the manufacture of 
cider and vinegar there for many years, 
ultimately becoming quite wealthy and 
owning considerable land in the vicinity. 
He was an active democrat in politics, 
and was school trustee in East Windsor 
township for a number of years. His 
wife was Ellen Compton, a daughter of 
John Compton, by whom he had ten 
children : Robert M., our subject ; Marj', 
wife of William Aldrige, of Burlington, 
New Jersey ; and eight deceased in in- 
fancy. 

Robert M. Purdy was educated in the 
public schools of Hightstown. When 
thirteen years of age he went to Phila- 
delphia as clerk in the dry-goods store 
of Sheppard, Arrison & Sheppard, 1008 
Chestnut street, where he remained for a 



Biographical Sketches. 



969 



year and a half, subsequently spending 
two years as clerk in the office of the 
Philadelphia Herald. He removed to 
Ocean Gi'ove, New Jersey, and estab- 
lished himself in the furniture business, 
which he conducted successfully until he 
entered into co-partnership with Mr. 
Conover, at Manasquan. Mr. Purdy is 
trustee and steward in the Methodist 
Episcopal church at Manasquan, and is 
a member of Asbury Park lodges of 
Masons and Odd Fellows. He resides 
on Marcellus avenue, Manasquan, and is 
popular and respected among his fellow- 
citizens. He is actively interested in the 
progress of the town, and is a staunch 
supporter of all religious movements. 
Mr. Purdy married Miss Josephine Con- 
over, daughter of his partner, and they 
have had one child, Adella, deceased in 
infancy. 

r^HAELES ASA FRANCIS, a member 
^-^ of the New Jersey Assembly, and 
senator-elect from Monmouth county, is 
a prominent business man of North 
Long Branch, and a son of John and 
Amelia (Stillwell) Francis. He was born 
at Keyport, New Jersey, Oct. 28, 1851, 
and is of German and Scotch ancestry. 

Nehemiah Francis (paternal grand- 
father) was a native of Monmouth 
county, and was born in 1787. He was 
a farmer, and in politics a democrat. 
He and his wife died at Turkey, New 
Jersey, the former in 1864, and the 
latter in 1869. Their children were : 
Asa, John, Jonathan, and Susan, both 
the latter deceased. 

John Francis (father) was a native of 
Turkey, New Jersey, and was born June 
6, 1820. His education was obtained in 
the common schools, and he engaged in 
carpentering and building up to his de- 



cease, June 20, 1886. He was a very 
enthusiastic observer of political affairs, 
and a staunch republican, but never 
aspired for or sought after an office. 
Fraternally he was a member of the 
Knights of Pythias. During the civil 
war he responded to the call for troops, 
and enlisted at Freehold in the Thirty- 
ninth New Jersey volunteers. He was 
united in marriage to Miss Amelia Still- 
well, and their seven children are : Mary 
and William, deceased ; Sarah, Anna 
(Mrs. John Hennessy), Charles Asa, Wil- 
liam, and David, deceased. 

Charles Asa Francis attended the 
common schools of Turkey, New Jersey, 
and later a private school at Freehold. 
He began life as a bookkeejjer in a whole- 
sale butchering establishment, and two 
years later clerked in a general store at 
Marlboro for the same length of time, 
when he came to North Long Branch, 
where he was employed as night clerk 
on the New Jersey Southern Railroad at 
Sandy Hook. Three years later he em- 
barked in the butchering business at 
North Long Branch, and then was em- 
ployed as clerk in a general store, which 
he and his present partner purchased in 
1889, and have run with eminent success 
ever since. In addition to this large 
interest, Mr. Francis is also vice-presi- 
dent of the Atlantic Fish Association. 
He early took an active part in political 
affairs, and has been an earnest worker 
in the cause of the Republican party 
since he attained his majority. He has 
been postmaster of North Long Branch 
for eight years, a member of common 
council from 1884 to 1889, and was again 
elected to the same office in 1892. He 
has been a member of the board of edu- 
cation since 1886, and at present is secre- 
tary of that body. He was elected to 



970 



Biographical Sketches. 



the General Assembly of New Jersey in 
1894. Here he has shown the same 
ability and tireless energy that have 
marked his previous career, and his voice 
and vote have cham2)ioned the cause of 
the schools of New Jersey and many 
otlier measures of vital importance to 
the general welfare and best interests of 
the state. He is an attendant of the 
Metliodist Episcopal church and a trustee 
in tlie same, but not a member. He is 
also a member of the following secret 
societies: the Odd Fellows, the Royal 
Arcanum, the Masons, and a commander 
in the Knights of the Mystic Shrine. 
On March 28, 1877, Charles Asa Francis 
married Mary Elizabeth Hoyt, daughter 
of George and Cynthia Hoyt, of North 
Long Branch, and they have one daugh- 
ter and two sons : Lulu Elsie, Seymour 
H., and Earl M., deceased. 



WILLIAM F. FISHER, one of the 
most extensive brick manufacturers 
in New Jersey, with yards located at South 
River, Sayreville township, Middlesex 
county, and a respected and influential 
citizen of New Brunswick, is a son of 
David Fi.slier, and was born at Fishkill, 
N. Y. He is of English descent, and 
his ancestors for three generations back 
have been well-known residents of Fish- 
kill. He was educated in the puljlic 
schools of Fishkill, and at the Schooley's 
Mountain Seminar^r, Warren county, 
New Jerse}'. Upon leaving school he 
was manager for Sayre & Fisher in a 
general store for seven years, and subse- 
quently carried on a grocery business at 
Metuclien until he was twenty-four 3'ears 
old. He engaged in the brick-making 
business at Sayreville, which he con- 
ducted independently for one year, and 



in co-partnership with Edwin Furman 
for two years, and at the end of which 
time he sold his interests to Mr. Furman. 
In the spring of 1880 he laid the founda- 
tions of his present business at South 
River, establishing a new yard at that 
place and purchasing the yard of the late 
Casper T. Waite, of Metuchen. The busi- 
ness has increased steadily and healthily 
ever since, and Mr. Fisher at present 
also owns and operates an independent 
yard at Cheesewick, near South Amboy, 
formei'ly the property of the Ross-Hill- 
ward Co., of which firm he was a mem- 
ber for five 3'ears. Mr. Fisher manufac- 
tures all kinds of building, sewer and 
general hard brick, besides adamantine 
brick, and other special kinds. His 
3'ards cover an area of 80 acres, employ 
275 men, and have a combined capacity 
of 32,000,000 bricks annually. All the 
machinery and plant are new and im- 
proved, and only continuous kilns are 
used. The shipping points are Newark, 
Jersey City, Brooklyn and New York 
city. The bulk of the shipments are 
made by water, and he also owns and 
operates two schooners and six brick 
barges. He is a member of the New 
York Brick Exchange, and is well known 
in the metropolis as one of New Jer- 
sey's most successful and enterprising 
business men. His products go into all 
the large cities in the Middle States, and 
have a widespread reputation among 
builders and architects. He owns a hand- 
some residence on Livingston avenue. 
New Brunswick, whither he moved in 
1892. He is a democrat in politics, 
usually takes an active part in local 
matters, and was a freeholder from 1877 
to 1880. On Nov. 15, 1876, he was 
married to Miss Medora Rose, a daughter 
of Elias Rose, of Middlesex county, by 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



971 



whom he has had seven children : Leon 
and Rufns, who died in infancy ; Wil- 
liam J., Jr., Anita, Adrian, Maud and 
Elberon. 



A DAM ECKERT, a well-known manu- 
-^--*- facturer, and a leading citizen of 
Perth Amboy, New Jersey, is a member 
of the firm of Schantz & Eckert, ma- 
chine and engine builders at that place. 
He is the son of Jacob and Mary (Ott) 
Eckert, and was born at Bremhoflf, Ger- 
many, Sept. 13, 1849. He came to this 
country with his parents when one year 
of age (1850), and attended the public 
schools of Albany, N. Y., and Freehold, 
New Jersey. He then proceeded to 
learn the trade of jeweler, and served an 
apprenticeship of six years at the same. 
For some years he assisted his father in 
the management of his hotel in Perth 
Amboy until 1884, when he turned his 
attention to the construction of machiner}' 
and engines, and formed a partnership 
with Andrew Schantz, under the caption 
of Messrs. Schantz & Eckert, who have a 
very extensive and successful trade. Mr. 
Eckert is a staunch supporter of the 
Democratic party, and takes a deep inter- 
est in the public affairs of his town and 
county. He has been a member of the 
town council, and in 1892 was appointed 
superintendent of the Perth Amboy 
water-works, and ably filled the position 
to the evident satisfaction of his friends 
and fellow-citizens. Fraternally he is a 
member of the Knights of Pythias, of 
Perth Amboy. 

The Eckert family emigrated from 
Germany within the present century. 
Joseph Eckert (paternal grandfather) was 
a native of Wertsburg, Germany, and 
was a forester all his life on the Liv- 
ingston estate. In religious faith, he 

51 



and his family were Roman Catholics, to 
which church they were strong adher- 
ents. His family of children was com- 
posed of six sons and one daughter : 
Adam, John, George, Jacob, Joseph, 
Henry and Mary. Grandfather Eckert 
departed this life in 1884. 

Jacob Eckert (father) was born on the 
great Livingston estate in Germany, and 
i-eceived his education in the German 
schools. He learned the trade of shoe- 
maker, which he continued to follow for 
many years. In 1850 he embarked with 
his family for America, and first located 
at Middletown, N. Y., where he carried 
on his trade for three years, when he re- 
moved to Albany, N. Y., and plied the 
same trade for two years. In 1861 he 
came to Perth Amboy and established 
himself in the shoe business, but in 1862 
answered the call of President Lincoln, 
and enlisted in Battery K, Third New 
York light artillerj^, and fought for the 
land of his adoption until the close of the 
war, when he received his discharge at 
Richmond. After his return, he went to 
New York city. Some time afterward 
he came to Perth Amboy, where he con- 
ducted a hotel business until 1890, when 
he retired. In politics he was a firm be- 
liever in the principles of the great 
Democratic party, in behalf of which he 
cast his vote and influence. He was also 
an active member of the G. A. R. Post 
of Perth Amboy. Jacob Eckert was 
united in marriage to Miss Mary Ott, 
of Germany, and to this union were bora 
two sons and one daughter : Adam, 
George, and Marguerite. 



Y) LANE CONOVER, postmaster of 
-*-^* Atlantic Highlands, proprietor of 
an extensive livery business in that town, 
and a leader in local politics, is a son of 



972 



Biographical Sketches. 



Cornelius and Edith (Vanderveer) Con- 
over, and was born in Holmdel townshii), 
July 3, 184G. The name is of Holland- 
Dutch origin, and the familj- has had 
many prominent representatives in this 
section of New Jersey. Cornelius Con- 
over was a successful house carpenter at 
Marlboro, a democrat in politics, and 
a member of the famous old "Brick 
Church." He was of quiet, domestic 
habits, and never participated actively in 
public affairs. His children were : John, 
of New Brunswick ; James, of Perrine- 
ville ; Sarah, of Keyport ; and D. Lane. 
D. Lane Conover spent his early life 
at Holmdel, and received a rudimentarj- 
education in the district schools there. 
He was engaged in farming at Middle- 
town and Holmdel township until thirty 
years of age, and also conducted a suc- 
cessful business in contract grading and 
hauling. In 1880 he removed to Atlan- 
tic Highlands, and in connection with 
Mr. Stout, under the firm name of Stout 
& Conover, built the first liverj' stable in 
that town. Later Mr. Stout retired, and 
Mr. Conover has since conducted the busi- 
ness on his independent account. Mr. 
Conover is a democrat in politics, and has 
invariably been an active party man. In 
1892 he was elected freeholder, and has 
since been re-elected for a second term. 
He was one of the first members of the 
borough commissioners, and has served 
three terms in that bod}. In Dec, 1895, 
he was appointed postmaster of Atlantic 
Highlands, to succeed James H. Leonard. 
decea.sed, his term of appointment being 
four years. Mr. Conover is chairman of 
the township democratic executive com- 
mittee, and attends all the district, county 
and state conventions. He is one of the 
charter members of the fire department, 
and a member of the hook and ladder 



company. He is also a charter member 
of the local lodge. Knights of Pythias. 
He married Miss Kate Frances, and they 
have five children : Charles M., William 
L., Frances, Ellen H., and George W. 



JAMES CARBERRY, a prominent and 
enterprising hardware merchant and 
tinsmith of South Amboy, is a son of 
John and Mary (Bannon) Carberry, and 
was born Oct. 5, 1855, at South Amboy. 
The name is of Irish origin. Our sub- 
ject's father, John Carberry, was a well- 
known citizen of South Amboy during 
the greater part of his life. For a num- 
ber of years he worked upon the farm of 
Reuben Morgan, near South Amboy, and 
was subsequently employed for four years 
on the freight docks at that town, and 
afterwards in the shops of the Camden 
and Amboy Railroad at South Ambo}', 
where he remained for nearly twenty-two 
years. He was an expert workman, 
thrifty in his habits, and ultimately ac- 
quired a comfortable home in South Am- 
bo3^ He was a staunch democrat in 
politics, a devout Roman Catholic in re- 
ligion, and a member of St. Patrick's So- 
ciety. His wife was Miss Mary Bannon, 
by whom he had four children : James, 
Rose, Maggie and Mar3^ He died in 
1893, his wife having preceded him in 
1890. 

James Cai'berry attended a private 
school and subsequently public schools in 
South Amboy, receiving a well-grounded 
education. At the age of fourteen years 
he became errand-boy for Reuben Mor- 
gan, a farmer near South Amboy. In 
1870 he entered the Pennsylvania Rail- 
road shops and learned the trade of tin- 
smith, remaining for twent}- years. In 
1890 he formed a co-partnership with 



Biographical Sketches. 



973 



Thomas Lovely, under the firm name of 
Carberry & Lovely, hardware dealers and 
tinsmiths, which partnership lasted until 
1893. The firm was then dissolved, and 
Mr. Carberry has since conducted a 
highly successful business on his own ac- 
count at No. 38 First street. He has an 
extensive and flourishing trade and a 
completely-stocked establishment. In pol- 
itics he is independent, casting his suf- 
frages for the ablest candidates. He is a 
Eoman Catholic by faith and is a mem- 
ber of the Ancient Order of Hibernians 
and St. Patrick's Benevolent Society, No. 
2. On May 23, 1883, he was married to 
Miss Elizabeth Eliza Conlogue. Mr. Car- 
berry is a successful and energetic busi- 
ness man, an expert in his trade, and a 
popular and respected citizen. 



the occupation of a sailor for a period of 
eight years, when he came to the United 
States. He settled in Perth Amboy in 
1871, and first secured employment in 
Hall's brick-yard. He afterwards learned 
the butcher trade, and then engaged in 
business on his own account, and carried 
it on successfully for fifteen years. At the 
expiration of this time he was, in May, 
1895, elected street commissioner of Perth 
Amboy, which ofiice he now holds, and 
fills with signal ability, and to the gen- 
eral satisfaction of his fellow-townsmen. 
Mr. Brogger is a republican in politics, 
and an active worker for his party. He 
is a member of the Lutheran church, of 
the Masonic order, and of the I. 0. 0. F. 
His six children are : L. C. N., Jr. ; A., 
Peter, Jennie, Annie, and Ulma. 



T C. N. BROGGER, a prominent citizen 
-^* and street commissioner of Perth 
Amboy, is a native of Denmark, where 
he was born, Oct. 21, 1847. His parents 
were N. C. N. and Anna Louise Brogger. 

His paternal grandfather, C. T. Brog- 
ger, followed the trade of a shoemaker 
all his life, and, though his occupation was 
humble, he was a man much respected for 
the sterling qualities of his character. i 

N. C. N. Brogger, after receiving the • 
benefits of a common-school education, 
engaged in agricultural pursuits, and fol- 
lowed the occupation of a farmer during 
his entire life. He was a member of the 
Lutheran church. To his married life 
were born five children, all of whom are 
deceased but the subject of this sketch. 
N. C. N. Brogger (father) died in 1863, 
and his wife in 1878. 

L. C. N. Brogger received a common- 
school education in his native country, 
and was then employed on a farm for 
two years. He subsequently followed 



TESSE T. MONAHAN, the well-known 
^ and successful real-estate and insur- 
ance agent, and a wealthy citizen of 
North Long Branch, is a son of W. C. 
and Sarah A. (Potter) Monahan, and was 
born at North Long Branch, New Jer- 
sey, May 28, 1861. 

The Monahans came of good old Irish 
stock, the paternal grandfather, Hugh R., 
having been born in New York city, 
where he received a common-school edu- 
cation, and established a wood, coal and 
lumber business, and was successful. 
He came to- Long Branch, New Jersey, 
and purchased a hotel at the corner of 
Ocean avenue and North Broadway, and 
managed that business for some time. His 
views on political subjects allied him with 
the Democratic party, and he was an ac- 
tive supporter of the ticket. Hugh R. 
Monahan was twice married, and the 
father of three children: Mrs. Soles, W. C. 
and Katherine. 

W. C. Monahan married Miss Sarah 



974 



Biographical Sketches. 



A. Ritter, and to them were born a family 
of thirteen children : W. H., Elizabeth, 
Kathrrine, Hugh A., J. T., John B., 
Fniiues L., Jane A., Ada, Amelia, Frede- 
rick T., Rachel (deceased). 

Jesse T. Monahan was a pupil in the 
fonniion schools and the high school oi' 
Long Branch, and then attended a night 
school in New York city. At the age of 
fourteen, he learned telegraphy at High- 
lands, and was for twelve j^ears operator, 
station agent and baggage-master at Mon- 
mouth Beach, when he opened the first 
telegraph office at that point. In the 
interval, he looked after and managed 
his father's business, and finally pur- 
chased the same, and is now doing a suc- 
ces.si'ul business as a dealer in real estate 
and insurance. 

Politicall}', Mr. Monahan is a republi- 
can. He is also a member of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church, ol" which his father 
was a staunch and Uberal suppoi'ter. He 
is a member in good standing of the fol- 
lowing secret orders : Chapter Mason, 
L. B. Lodge, No. 78, Arioch Odd Fel- 
lows, Encampment, and the Royal Ar- 
canum. He was twice married, his first 
wife being Miss Emma Wood, of Eng- 
land, who died; and the second. Miss 
Lill\- M. Warner. The result of this 
union has been the birth of Hazel and 
Norman. 



"DAUL F. BRAZO, senior member ol 
-L Messrs. Brazo & Sons, manufiic- 
turers of paints, iind also a partner in 
the fn-m of Messrs. Mulligan & Brazo, 
dealers in paints and paper, at Long 
Branch, New Jersey, is another example 
ol', the self-made man. As the name 
indicates, he is of French origin, and 
was born in the city of Brooklyn, N. Y., 



Oct. 5, 1847, being the son of Paul E. 
and Catherine (Murray) Brazo. 

Arthur Brazo, paternal grandfather, 
was a native of Paris, France. His 
youth was full of opportunities for edu- 
cational development, and he became 
liberally trained in the sciences and arts, 
taught in school and college, after which 
he became interested in extensive land 
operations, spending the greater part of 
his life in Texas, developing new territory. 
He was a devout member of the Roman 
Catholic church. He died in Brooklyn, 
N. Y., in 1849. He had three sons: 
Louis, Philip and Paul E. 

Paul E. Brazo (father) was born at 
Brooklj'n, N. Y., and received a broad 
education. He engaged in the gents' 
furnishing goods business, hair, jewelr}', 
etc., and built up the most extensive es- 
tablishment of that kind in Brooklyn, 
and was very successful and enterjjrising. 
In politics he was an active democrat, 
and was an energetic and substantial 
member of the Roman Catholic church. 
He was united in marriage Avith Catherine 
Murray, and their children consisted of 
one daughter, Emily, and one son, Paul F. 

Paul F. Brazo attended the common 
schools of New Brighton, Staten Island, 
N. Y., until he was fourteen j-ears of age, 
and then learned the painting trade. He 
came to Long Branch, New Jersey, in 
1882, where he established a paint and 
paper house, trading under the style of 
Messrs. Mulligan & Brazo, and doing one 
of the most extensive trades in their line 
on the coast. They have a branch house 
also at NcAv Brighton, Staten Island. 
In addition to this large interest, Mr. 
Brazo has built up an extensive paint 
works at Long Branch, and this firm, 
doing business under the caption of Brazo 
& Sons, now find a ready market for 



Biographical Sketches. 



975 



their products in all sections of the 
United States. In his political views, 
he is an active democrat, and is deeply 
interested in all public concerns of his 
city, upon whose board of health he has 
served for four years. Mr. Brazo is an 
active participant in the affairs of the 
Catholic church of Long Branch, and is 
a liberal supporter, both morally and 
financially, of the same. Fraternally 
he is a member of the following organi- 
zations : Long Branch Council, No. 83, 
K. of P., has been captain of the Uni- 
formed Lodge for two years ; Lodge No. 
79, Foresters, at Long Branch, in which 
he is at present deputy grand ranger; 
the Royal Arcanum, at Long Branch, 
and the fire company. He married 
Miss Anna Burrows, and this happy 
union has been blessed with five chil- 
.dren : Paul A., John "W., Mary (Mrs. 
Chas. White), Katie, deceased, and Ella. 



A H. MORTON, a wholesale grocer of 
-^--*-* New York city, and a retailer in 
the same line at Matawan, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, is a son of James 
and Jane (Rolland) Morton, and was born 
July 12, 1863, in Matawan. 

The paternal grandfather, Thomas 
Morton, was a native of St. Helens, Lan- 
cashire, England. After completing his 
education, received in the English com- 
mon schools, he learned the trade of a 
watchmaker, to which he devoted his 
entire life. He was a godly man, a 
member of the church of England, and ; 
a faithful and regular attendant upon 
divine worship. The maiden name of 
the lady to whom he was married was 
Hannah. Sinsocks. They had five sons, 
all deceased, and two daughters : Thomas, 
William, James, George, and Eichard ; | 
Mary and Frances. 



James Morton was born Feb. 14, 1820, 
at St. Helens. He there received his ele- 
mentary education, and subsequently he 
graduated from college. His occupation, 
for several years prior to his coming to 
this country, Sept., 1852, was that of a 
bookkeeper. Upon his arrival in America 
he located at first in New Brunswick, and 
later in Somerville, New Jersey, in both 
of which places he was engaged in the 
glass business. At a subsequent period 
he removed to Matawan, and thence to 
Marlboro, in which towns he was em- 
ployed in teaching school. He then went 
to New York city, where, for several 
years, he carried on the glass business, 
eventually returning to Matawan, where 
he died, March 27, 1869. Politically he 
was a democrat, and religiously he was 
a member of the Protestant Episcopal 
church. He was married to Jane Rol- 
land, who still survives him, and is now 
living at Matawan. They were the par- 
ents of eight children : Anna, Mary J., 
Thomas and William (both deceased), 
Fannie, Eliza, James, and A. H. 

A. H. Morton was a pupil in attend- 
ance upon the common schools of Mata- 
wan, and the Glenwood Institute in the 
same town, until he arrived at the age of 
sixteen years. He embarked in the retail 
grocery business in his native town, which 
he conducted for a period of eight years. 
For several years he has been operating 
two enterprises : one, a wholesale grocery 
in New York city ; the other, a retail 
store in the same line. In politics Mr. 
Morton is a democrat, but not an office- 
holder, and in matters of religion he is a 
member of the Baptist church. In secret 
societies he belongs to three organiza- 
tions : the Royal Arcanum, I. 0. R. M., 
and Knickerbocker Lodge, No. 52, I. 0. 
0. F. Mr. Morton formed a matrimonial 



976 



Biographical Sketches. 



alliiuico April 12, 1893, with Minnie Wal- 
ling, a claiighter of Sidney and Maiy J. 
Walling. Tliey have one child, Mildred. 



MONROE V. POOL, a promment ma- 
son and builder, and a well-known 
public-spirited citizen of Long Branch, is 
a son of George and Rebecca (Taylor) 
Pool, and was born at West Long Branch, 
July 28, 1848. 

Tiie Pools are of Holland-Dutch an- 
cestry. The paternal grandfather, James 
Pool, acquired his education in the com- 
mon schools of his day, and his life's oc- 
cupation identified him with the shoe- 
making trade at West Long Branch. Mr. 
Pool voted the democratic ticket, and 
was a member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church of West Long Branch for 
many years. He served in the war of 
1812, and married Miss Matilda Cook. 
They had a family of three children : 
Hendrick, James and Jane A., and both 
died at West Long Branch. 

George Pool was a native of West 
Long Branch, where he was born Nov. 
19, 1817. He was a pupil in the public I 
schools of his town, and subsequently 
learned the trade of shoemaking with 
his father, and followed the same during 
his active career. Politically he was a 
republican, but took no active part in the 
affairs of his party. In religious belief 
he was a methodist. He became the 
fixther of three children : Monroe V., 
Chas. A., and Eugenie, who is now the 
wife of Jacob B. Corlies. George Pool 
died at West Long Branch, Oct. 27, 
1890. 

Monroe V. Pool attended the common 
schools of his native town, and then en- 
tered upon a more advanced course of 
.study at the Ocean Institute, at Eaton- 



town, New Jersey, from which he gradu- 
ated with the class of 186-3. From this 
vantage ground he began his life's career, 
and has since risen steadily in the line of 
progressive and well-directed efforts, hav- 
ing now become one of the most promi- 
nent and successful masons and builders 
of his community. Mr. Pool is an active 
and valuable adjunct of the Republican 
party in his section, and has always 
been an unswerving champion for the 
cause of the public schools, and has 
served as clerk of his school district. He 
devotes a great deal of time and thought 
to the interests of his church, the Metho- 
dist Episcopal, in which he is secretary 
of the board of trustees, and an earnest 
and efficient worker. Fraternally he is a 
member of Arioch Lodge, No. 77, I. 0. 
0. F. ; Norwood Council, No. 127, Jr. 0. 
U. A. M. ; and Long Branch Council, 
No. 429, Royal Arcanum. 

On March 7, 1871, Monroe V. Pool 
married Miss Mary D. Williams, this 
union resulting in the birth of two chil- 
dren : George W. and Albert. 



TOSEPH EOBBINS, prominently iden- 
^ tified with the building interests of 
Long Branch, is a son . of David and 
Louise (Miller) Robbins, and was born at 
Milford, Hunterdon county. New Jersey, 
April 26, 1854. 

His paternal grandfather, Jonas Rob- 
bins, started life as a farmer, intellectu- 
ally equipped with a good common-school 
education. He followed agricultural pur- 
suits during the entire pei'iod of his life, 
and politically was a republican. In re- 
ligious opinion Mr. Robbins was a pres- 
byterian. He became the father of four 
children : Elizabeth, Jonathan, Susan, 
and David. 



Biographical Sketches. 



977 



David Robbins (father) was born at 
Milford, New Jersey, 1831, and received 
his education in the district school of his 
native township. Here he succeeded his 
father as a farmer, and has followed that 
calling to the present time. He is not an 
active political leader, but an interested 
and reliable member of the Republican 
party. The Presbyterian church finds 
him among its attendants and contribu- 
tors. David Robbins married Miss Louise 
Miller in June, 1852 ; they have a fam- 
ily of four children : Joseph, William K., 
Belle, and Jonas. 

Joseph Robbins was a pupil in the 
public schools of Milford, until he reached 
the age of seventeen years. He then 
became interested in contracting and 
building, and earnestly applied himself 
to the details of that line of work. After 
he had learned his trade and had 
gained sufficient experience, Mr. Robbins 
launched out into the world, and began 
his career as a contractor and builder, 
which business, through his own well-di- 
rected energy, he has made a marked 
success. Our subject is an active parti- 
san in the cause of the Republican party, 
but has never aspired to any office. He 
is an attendant of the Presbyterian 
church, and a member of the Masonic 
order. In 1884 Joseph Robbins became 
the husband of Miss Estelle Green, and 
their children are as follows : Grace, For- 
rest, and Harrold. 



New Jersey. They received common- 
school educations, the latter having at- 
tended, for a short time, Rutgers College. 
After leaving school James remained with 
his father on the farm, where with him he 
became engaged in the fertilizer business, 
in connection with farming. Upon Mar- 
tin's leaving college he learned the car- 
penter trade, and then became associated 
with his brother, James, in the fertilizer 
manufacturing business near Franklin 
Park, where they carry on an extensive 
business, and have become quite pi^osper- 
ous. They own fifteen acres of land, 
upon which they built their fertilizer 
plant. They established a place of busi- 
ness on Burnet street. New Brunswick, 
in 1895, where they have since built a 
store-house. They are republicans, and 
members of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, and reside with their parents at 
Franklin Park, where Benjamin Ruck- 
man owns and operates a farm, and at 
one time was engaged in the fertilizer 
business. He is a republican, and a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
and for many years was superintendent 
of the Sunday-school. He has been 
twice married. By his first wife, the 
mother of James and Martin, were born 
five children : one that died in infancy, 
James, Martin, Frank, and Louisa. 



"TAMES AND MARTIN EUCKMAN, com- 
^ prising the enterprising and success- 
ful firm of Ruckman Brothers, are ex- 
tensive fertilizer manufacturers of near 
Franklin Park, New Jersey. They are 
sons of Benjamin and Jane (Allen) Ruck- 
man, and were born at Franklin Park, 



TTON. GEORGE CRAIG LUDLOW, a 
-L- *- justice of the supreme court and 
ex-governor of New Jersey, is a son of 
Cornelius Ludlow, whose father was Gen. 
Benjamin Ludlow, of Long Hill, Morris 
count}^, this state. He was born April 
6, 1830, at Milford, Hunterdon count}-, 
but removed with his parents at the age 
of five years to New Brunswick, where 
he has since resided. He graduated 



978 



Biographical Sketches. 



froiu Rutgers College in 1850, in his 
twoiitictli year, and soon thereafter en- 
tered uijoii the .studj ol' law in the office 
of W. H. Leupp, at New Brunswick, and 
afterwards in tlie office of Robert Van 
Arsdale, of Newark. He was admitted 
as an attorney in 1853 and immediately 
took up the practice of his profession at 
New Brunswick, and in due time was ad- 
mitted as a counselor. He was counsel 
for the city of New Brunswick, as well 
as for numerous private corporations, and 
was a member of the board of chosen 
ireeholders of Middlesex county, and for 
a number of j^ears served as president of 
the board of education of New Bruns- 
wick. He was elected state senator from 
that county in 1876, and in 1878 was 
made president of that body. He was 
elected governor of New Jerse}' in 1880 
on the democratic ticket by a plurality 
of six hundred and fifty-one votes. He 
was a member of the constitutional com- 
mission in 1894, and was appointed a 
justice of the supreme court, June 13, 
1895, for a term of seven years, to suc- 
ceed Justice Alfred Reed, who had re- 
signed to become a vice-chancellor. 



Tp WRIGHT, well and favorably known i 
-*- • as the eminently successful over- 
seer of the poor at New Brunswick, was 
born in England, and is the son of Moses 
and Hannah (Brown) Wright. The father 
of the subject of this sketch was in the 
military service of England for many 
years, and "took great pride in the fact 
that he was one of England's defenders 
at the time when Napoleon was prepar- 
ini^ his much-vaunted invasion of Eng- 
land. Upon leaving the service of his 
luitive land, he came to this county and 
followed successfully the profession of 



school teaching. He was a democrat in 
politics, and an aixlent churchman, being 
an active member of Chi'ist church. New 
Brunswick, for many 3'ears. He died in 
1856, leaving as issue : the subject of this 
sketch ; Herbert, since deceased ; Ann, 
since deceased ; William, Emma (wife of 
Stephen Morgan), Esther, and Sophia, 
since deceased. 

Mr. F. Wright came with his parents 
to this county at a very early age, and, 
after graduating at the public schools, 
engaged in the business of carpentering, 
and followed that occupation for thirty 
years, when he was chosen overseer of 
the poor, which position he has held to 
the satisfaction of the taxpayers of New 
Brunswick for the past twelve years. 
Mr. Wright is a democrat, and active in 
all work which he conceives to be of bene- 
fit to his party. He married, in 1866, 
Elizabeth Hays, who died April 3, 1892. 
Of this union were born three children ; 
the eldest of whom, William B., is a very 
successful draughtsman, and located in 
Virginia. The second, John, is in the 
employ of the Middlesex Shoe Co., and 
is organist of St. John's church. The 
youngest, Charles, is learning the print- 
ing trade in the office of the Rome News. 



pTENRY GRAY, a leading merchant 
-*-■•- and representative citizen of New 
Brunswick, is a son of Aaron L. and 
Martha (Basteda) Gray, and was born 
Jan. 11, 1855, in New Brunswick town- 
ship, Middlesex county, New Jersey. 

Henry Gray, his paternal grandfather, 
was boi'n in Holland, but emigrated to 
the United States. He died in 1855. He 
was a tailor by trade, and followed that 
craft the greater part of his life. He was 
a democrat and a presbyterian, but was 



BioGRAPHicAiv Sketches. 



979 



neither active in politics nor religion. His 
second wife, Catharine Longstreet, be- 
came the mother of two children : Henry 
and Sarah. 

Henry Gray (father) was born near 
Franklin Park, Middlesex county, and 
removed to New Brunswick in about 
1852, where he has since resided. His 
education was obtained in the public 
schools. He studied civil engineering, 
but finally locating at New Brunswick he 
became a foreman in a rubber factory. 
Subsequently he engaged in boating, but 
finally settled down to the tranquil and 
peaceful pursuits of husbandry, which 
has since occupied his time and attention. 
Following in the footsteps of his father, j 
politically and religiously, he was a demo- 
crat and a presbyterian. He was twice 
married; his first wife was Mary Basteda, 
and his second, Mary Yates. His first 
matrimonial alliance resulted in the birth 
of two children : Henry and Amanda, 
who died in infancy ; the second and last 
union resulted in the birth of five chil- 
dren : Charles, Aaron, James, George 
and Bertha. 

Henry Gray left school at the early 
age of fifteen, and engaged in boating 
with his father, which he continued 
eleven years. At the expiration of this 
time he entered upon clerical work. Sub- 
sequently he formed a co-partnership 
with Charles E. Kinzie, and they pur- 
chased the business of his last-named 
partner. Their business alliance con- 
tinued for a period of six years, when Mr. 
Gray purchased and assumed control of 
the entire business. Religiously he is a 
member of the Livingston Avenue Bap- 
tist church, and fraternally is identified 
with the Knights of Pythias and the 
Junior Order United American Mechan- 
ics. He is also secretary of the Retail 



Merchants' Protective Association, and 
surveyor for the Merchants' Fire Insur- 
ance Co. of New Jersey. On Se2Dt. 6, 
1873, Mr. Gray mari-ied Miss Kate 
Schenck, who died soon thereafter. On 
May 4, 1881, Mr. Gray married Emma 
Snyder, his present consort. 



OPENCER DAYTON, an extensive con- 
^ tractor and builder of Perth Amboy, 
Middlesex County, New Jersey, is a son 
of John H. Dayton, and was born Oct. 
28, 1845, at Middletown, New Jersey. 
The family is of Welsh origin, members 
of which settled several generations ago 
in this country. 

William Dayton, the paternal grand- 
father, was born on Long Island, where 
he received a common-school education. 
He subsequently removed to New Jersey, 
where he engaged at farming during the 
rest of his life. He became the father of 
the following children : Eliza, Spencer, 
John Herbert and William. 

John H. Dayton, after acquiring such 
education as the common schools of his 
day afforded, became a boat builder, and 
he followed that occupation for a number 
of years. He then engaged at farming 
in Matison township. New Jersey, and 
continued in that avocation until his 
death. In politics he was an active 
worker in the Democratic party, for which 
he was rewarded by being elected to 
many of the township offices, and in 
religious matters he was a devoted mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
His children were : John, William, Spen- 
cer, our subject; Herbert and Amelia, who 
married John Berdine. 

Spenser Dayton, after acquiring his 
education in the schools of Middlesex 
county, learned the trade of a ship car- 



980 



Biographical Sketches. 



penter, and later commenced business 
for himself as a contractor and builder, 
at Perth Aniboy. In this occupation 
he still remains, and to-day he is the 
heaviest contractor and the most exten- 
sive builder in that cit\'. In politics Mr. 
Dayton is a broad and liberal-minded 
republican. He is a member of the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows and the 
lodge of Free and xlccepted Masons of 
Perth Ambo3\ 

Mr. Dayton was united in marriage, 
Oct. 15, 1872, to MaryE. Walters. Their 
union has been blessed with three chil- 
dren : Madeira, Aurelia and John H. 



jTTERBERT DAYTOX, a leading mason 
-*—*- and builder of Perth Amboy, Mid- 
dlesex county, New Jersey, is a son of 
John II. Dayton. He is originally of 
Welsh descent, although his grandfather, 
William Dayton, was a native of Long 
Island, N. Y. Herbert Dayton, after re- 
ceiving a common-school education in his 
native town, learned the trade of a mason 
for three years, during which time he 
acquired a thorough and detailed knowl- 
edge of building. In 1874 he commenced 
business for himself in that important 
branch of industry at Perth Amboy, and 
he at once took the foremost rank as a 
successful and popular contractor and 
builder. For twenty-two years he has 
followed his chosen trade, and in that 
time he has impressed upon the landscape 
of Perth Amboy many enduring monu- 
ments, in .stone and brick, of his skillful 
handiwork. In his political belief he is 
a democrat ; in his religious views he en- 
dorses the doctrines of the disciples of 
Wesley, and is an attendant of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church of Perth Amboy. 
Mr. Dayton is a member of the I. 0. 0. F. 



and the Perth Amboy Gun Club. He has 
been connected with thePei'th Amboy fire 
department, as an active membei', for the 
last sixteen ^^ears. Mr. Dayton was mar- 
ried to Mary E. Smith. 



/~^ L. SMOCK, the well-known and pros- 
^~^' perous liverj^iian at Asbury Park, 
Monmouth count}'. New Jersey, is a son 
of Aaron L. and Mary (Vanderveer) 
Smock, and was born Sept. 6, 1856, at 
Homesdale, Monmouth county, New Jer- 
sey. Aaron L. Smock (father) had a com- 
mon-school education, and subsequently 
became a farmer at the place of his birth ; 
he owned some good land. This he sold 
later, and removed thence to Colt's Neck, 
Monmouth county, and purchased a farm 
of three hundred and twenty acres, all of 
which he at first cultivated, but subse- 
quently sold and purchased a smaller 
farm nearer the village. He was here 
engaged in successful agriculture until 
his death. His I'eligious faith was that 
of the Dutch Reformed church, and in 
political persuasion he always voted the 
democratic ticket. His marriage resulted 
in the birth of five children : Hendrick, 
deceased ; Barnes B., residing at Asbury 
Park ; C. L., our subject ; Emma, mar- 
ried to Eastwood White, of Asbury Park; 
and Aaron L., in the employ of his 
brother-in-law. 

C. L. Smock, after attending the public 
schools at Colt's Neck until he was fifteen 
3'ears of age, began his business life as a 
clerk in a grocery store in Jerseyville, 
New Jersey. In 1876 he came to Asbury 
Park, and there permanently settled in 
various employments before engaging in 
business for himself He was occupied in 
the grocery trade on his own account 
from 1880 to 1883, and later conducted 




-^Y-^ViST' 



Biographical Sketches. 



983 



a hotel, and managed a grain and feed 
business for four and a half years. At 
the expiration of this time he formed a 
partnership under the name of Hulick & 
Smock, in a general feed business, which 
he continued during the three years next 
ensuing. Mr. Smock entered into his 
present livery and boarding-stable busi- 
ness at ^o. 609 Sewell avenue, Asbury 
Park, on Oct. 10, 1891. He is a demo- 
crat in politics, in religion he is attached 
to the Baptist faith, and in secret brother- 
hood a member of the Royal Arcanum 
of Coast city. Mr. Smock was married, 
Oct. 25, 1882, to Emily C. Brown. To 
their marriage have been born two chil- 
dren : Arthur R. and Caroline M. 



/CHARLES HENRY THOMPSON, M. D., 

^-^ a skillful physician and surgeon of 
Belmar, Monmouth county, New Jersey, 
was born near Marlboro, this state, Aug. 
23, 1843, and is a sonof Denise and Cor- 
nelia (Bergen) Thompson. 

He traces his ancestors on the paternal 
side to an English or Scotch origin. The 
name was originally spelled Tomson, and 
the original immigrant to this county 
was John Tomson, who landed on Amer- 
ican shores some time prior to 1650, and 
settled in Massachusetts or Rhode Island. 
He did not remain long on the rock- 
bound coast of New England, which he 
left to become a pioneer-settler of New 
Jersey. He was one of the eighty-six 
original purchasers in 1667 of that part 
of Monmouth county known then as 
Nawasink, Narumsunk and Pootapeck. 
From him we trace a long line of honor- 
able ancestry to William I. Thompson, 
grandfather, who was born, March 19, 
1779, near the present town of Freehold, 
New Jersey. He was reared in the vi- 
cinity of his birth, and lived there all 



his life, following the pursuits of an agri- 
culturist. In his religious faith he was a 
presbyterian, and led the life of an hon- 
orable and upright man and christian. 
He married, Oct. 23, 1799, Margaret 
Denise, and they had the following chil- 
dren : Catharine, Denise, Joseph C, Cor- 
nelia, Sydney, and William W. 

The Bergens are of Holland nativity, 
and Jacob I. Bergen, grandfather, was 
born Nov. 9, 1782, and was descended 
from Hans Hansen Bergen, who came to 
this country in 1633, and settled on Man- 
hattan Island, where he married Sara 
Rapalie, the first white child born to 
European parentage in the colony of New 
Netherlands. Jacob I. Bergen married 
Syche Bergen Feb. 4, 1806, and their 
children were : Cornelia, John W., Abram, 
Matthew E., Simon H. and Sarah M. 

Denise Thompson (father) was born in 
Tennent parsonage near Freehold, New 
Jersey, Sept. 23, 1802. He was a very 
progressive farmer, and a whig in politics, 
but later became a staunch republican. 
In religious faith he was a firm believer 
in the tenets of the Dutch Reformed 
church, and for many years was its treas- 
urer at Freehold. He married, Feb. 22, 
1826, and his children were : Jacob B., 
William I., John B., Joseph C, Cornelia 
D., Stephen E., Tunis D., and Charles 
H., all of whom are deceased except J. 
Bergen and Charles H. 

Dr. Charles Henry Thompson attended 
the private school of Professor William 
W. WoodhuU, of Freehold, until he en- 
tered Rutgers College in 1860, from which 
he graduated in 1864. He then read 
medicine in the office of Dr. John Vought 
at Freehold, and on Feb. 28, 1868, grad- 
uated from the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons, medical dej)artment of Colum- 
bia College, New York city. He first lo- 



98-4 



Biographical Sketches. 



cated at Rosemont, Hunterdon county, 
this stiito, where he remained until 1872, 
when lie located in New York, where he 
remained for two years, and thence came 
to South Amhoy, this state, where he re- 
mained for four years, Avhen he came to 
his present location at Belmar. Dr. 
Thompson keeps well abreast with the 
medical progress of his age, and is a 
member of the Medico-Legal Societ}' of 
New York city, and of the Monmouth 
County Medical Society. Politically he 
is a staunch republican, but is in no 
sense an office-seeker. He, however, in 
1890, became the nominee of his party 
for assembly, but, owing to the great mi- 
nority of his party, was defeated. He 
has served two terms as president of the 
borough commission of Ocean Beach, and 
a like number of terms of two years each 
as mayor of Belmar. In masonic circles 
lie is specially prominent, being a mem- 
ber and past master of Ocean Lodge, No. 
89, F. and A. M. ; Goodwin Chapter, No. 
36, R. A. M. ; Corson Commandery, No. 
15, Knights Templar; and of the Mecca 
Temple, Ancient Arabic Order, Nobles of 
the Mj^stic Shrine. He is a consistent 
and active member, and w.as one of the 
organizers, and the first senior warden, 
of the Holy Apostles' Protestant Episco- 
pal church at Belmar, and, upon the 
dedication of that church, was from his 
office the proper person to present the 
church in a formal way to the bishop of 
the diocese. On May 24, 1865, he mar- 
ried Rlidda A. Holmes, a daughter of 
Samuel and Maryetta (Wiley) Holmes, of 
Pleasant Valley, N. Y., and their union 
has been blessed in the birth of one child. 
Dr. Fred V., who is one of the rising 
physicians of New Jersey, practicing at 
Asbury Park, and whose sketch appears 
elsewhere in this volume. 



OEWING PATTERSON, counsel for 
• the board of freeholders and city 
solicitor of Long Branch, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, is a son of James 
and Lydia (Hopping) Patterson, and was 
born Dec. 12, 1848, at Middletown, Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey. This branch 
of the Patterson family was founded in 
this county by one of three brothers, who 
immigrated from England and settled at 
Baltimore and Philadelphia. 

James Patterson (great-grandfather) 
was a native of Middletown township, 
where he was a planter during the entire 

: period of his life. He owned a large 
number of slaves, which, together with 
his plantation, he bequeathed to his 

i son, G. 

G. Patterson (grandfather) was born 
and reared in Middletown township, 
where he acquired a common-school edu- 
cation and pursued the avocation of a 
farmer. He served as justice of the 

1 peace and subsequently as judge of the 
court of common pleas of Monmouth 
county, which office he filled for thirty 
years. He served, as a democrat, for 
three years in the New Jersey state sen- 
ate, called then the council. In religious 
matters he was one of the " pillars " of 
the church, and occupied all the lay of- 
fices of the Baptist church at Middle- 
town. He was married to Rachel Gor- 
don, b}^ whom he had six children : Dr. 
Charles, deceased ; Annie, married to 
William Applegate ; Rebecca, wife of 
James Cooper ; Mary, Rachel, Catha- 
rine and James. The grandfather died 
in 1852. 

James Patterson received a common- 
school education at Middletown, where 
he was born, and followed the occupa- 
tion of farming in that township all his 
life. He was the owner of an extensive 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



985 



tract of land, which he cultivated suc- 
cessfully and profitably. He was an ac- 
tive democratic politician, and was a mem- 
ber of the township committee and of the 
board of freeholders for a long series of 
years. He was elected a member of the 
New Jersey assembly for two years, and 
subsequently was a member and the pre- 
siding officer of the senate. Mr. Patter- 
soiL was twice married. By his first wife 
he had four children : George, deceased, 
who was graduated from Princeton ; he 
practiced law at Freehold, was elected 
clerk of Monmouth county, and died dur- 
ing his term of office ; Hannah, married 
to John Hopping ; Margaret, and Anna. 
His second wife gave him eleven chil- 
dren : John H., sheriff of Monmouth 
county from 1869 to 1870, defeated for 
Congress in 1872, doorkeeper of the 
house of representatives from 1876 to 
1877, keeper of the New Jersey state 
prison from 1886 to 1896, and owner of 
the old homestead ; Dr. James H., who 
resided in Shrewsbury twenty-five years, 
was twice elected' county clerk of Mon- 
mouth county, and deceased during his 
second term ; Samuel H., a farmer at 
Middletown and ex-member of the board 
of freeholders, after a service of several 
years ; Charles, graduated from Hamil- 
ton University and deceased shortly after 
his admission to the bar ; Allen, deceased; 
C. Ewing ; Joseph, a farmer at Middle- 
town ; Henrj', engaged at mining in New 
Mexico and Arizona ; Mary Emma ; Re- 
becca, and Lydia (Mrs. Samuel H. Frost). 
The mother of our subject survived her 
husband until 1873, the latter having 
died in 1866. 

C. Ewing Patterson attended the pub- 
lic schools at the town of his birth and 
later the Red Bank high school. He 
studied law in the office of Robert Allen, 



Jr., Esq., of Red Bank, and then entered 
Columbia College, New York city, from 
which he was graduated in 1869. In 
that year he was appointed an under- 
shei'iflf of Monmouth county, in which 
position he served during the incumbency 
of his brother as shei^iff". He then opened 
a law office at Long Branch, where he 
continued in active practice until 1876, 
when his brother, who was then door- 
keeper of the house of representatives, 
appointed him his private secretary. 
Upon his return to Long Branch he was 
elected a member of the board of com- 
missioners, which position he occupied 
until 1879. He removed to New Mex- 
ico in that year, and during the five years 
which ensued he was engaged in a law 
practice in Lincoln county. After leav- 
ing New Mexico he returned to New 
Jersey, and at Freehold he received the 
appointment of deputy county clerk 
under his brother. Dr. John H. He con- 
tinued in that position until his brother's 
death, which occurred in 1890, when he 
was appointed to fill the vacancy until 
the election thereafter ensuing. In 1891 
he resumed his law practice at Long 
Branch, where he still remains. He oc- 
cupies the offices of city solicitor and 
counsel for the board of freeholders. To 
the latter office he was first elected in 
1894, and again in 1896. In politics he 
is a democrat, and he wields considerable 
influence in party affairs in his county. 
He is a member of Olive Branch Lodge, 
No. 16, F. and A. M. of Freehold; Stand- 
ard Chapter, R. A. M. ; Levant Lodge, 
No. 69, K. of P., and A. 0. U. W., and 
he is connected with the Eastern Build- 
ing and Loan Association and is a direc- 
tor in the Long Branch Iron Pier Co. 
Personally he is a gentleman of prepos- 
sessing appearance, and in address and 



986 



Biographical Sketches. 



manner is most pleasing. Mr. Patterson 
was married, April 1, 1879, to Sarah E. 
Hendrickson. To tlieir marriage were 
born three cliildren : Marguerita, Char- 
lotta and Lydia, the latter of whom is 
deceased. 



REV. W. F. CANTWELL, a popular 
and well-known clergyman of the 
Catholic church at Long Branch, is a son 
of Peter and Juanita (Buckley) Cantwell, 
and was born in Trenton, New Jersey, 
Jan. 24, 1859. 

The Cantwell family- is of Irish origin. 
Peter Cantwell (father) was born in Ire- 
land and received an excellent education, 
and was a man of studious nature and 
scholarly attainments. Having made 
fitting preparation, he engaged in teach- 
ing. He came to this country, locating 
at Trenton, New Jersey. He was a de- 
voted member of the Koman Catholic 
church, and married Miss Juanita Buck- 
le}', and their family consisted of four 
children : Margaret, who married John 
Walsh ; Catherine, wife of A. J. Smith ; 
Frank, now a physician, residing at Tren- 
ton, and W. F. 

W. F. Cantwell attended the parochial 
schools until he reached the age of thir- 
teen yeans, when he entered St. Charles' 
College, Ellicott City, Md., where he 
remained for four years, and then ma- 
triculated at Hall's College, New Jer- 
sey, and graduated in 1879. He then 
entered the Theological Seminary at Se- 
ton Hall the same 3'ear, and remained 
three years, being ordained July 2, 1882. 
Father Cantwell's first appointment was 
that of assistant pastor of a Catholic 
church at New Brunswick, New Jersey, 
where he i-emained for three years, when 
he was sent to Long Branch. Here he 
has since remained, laboring faithfully 



for the cause to which his life is devoted 
and the upbuilding of his church. In 
connection with his pastoral duties, 
Father Cantwell finds time to engage in 
literary work, and for some time has 
edited a paper at Long Branch known as 
Good Fridays. In his political connec- 
tions and affiliations he is a democrat. 



CONRAD F. HALL, vice-president of 
the Perth Amboy Terra Cotta Co., 
is a son of Eber H. and Sarah (Golden) 
Hall, and was born at Perth Amboy, 
New Jerse}^, Nov. 29, 1865. 

Eber H. Hall was a native of Ohio, 
born near Cleveland, and spent the earlj^ 
part of his life there. He was possessed 
of a superior education. 

Conrad F. Hall attended the public 
schools of his native city until the age of 
sixteen, when he entered the employ of 
the A. Hall Terra Cotta Co. at Perth 
Amboy. Subsequently he was employed 
by the Northwestern Co., of Chicago, 
111. Returning to Perth Amboy, he re- 
entered the employ of the company with 
which he received his initiative training 
in the manufacture of terra cotta. Care- 
fully studying the business and familiar- 
izing himself with its every detail, he 
was soon taken into partnership, and the 
company was merged into the Perth 
Amboy Terra Cotta Co., Mr. Hall being 
elected vice-president, and his grandfa- 
ther president. The company did an ex- 
tensive business, turning out a superior 
qualit}' of work, and emplojnng three 
hundred men in the operation of its 
plant. In 1895 Messrs. Hall and Mon- 
deville entered into a partnership under 
the firm name of Mandeville & Hall, 
brokers in clay and building material, 
with offices at No. 70 State street, Perth 



Biographical Sketches. 



987 



Amboj, and in the Traders' and Build- 
ers' Exchange, Newark, New Jersey. 
They also, in conjunction with this, con- 
duct a real estate and insurance busi- 
ness. In political texture, Mr. Hall is a 
democrat, and takes a lively interest in 
the political affairs of his town and 
county. He was elected to the office of 
alderman-at-large in 1893, being among 
the first to fill that office in Perth Am- 
boy. For nine years he was a member 
of the volunteer fire department, and of 
the board of trade, both of Perth Amboy. 



GEORGE W. SMITH, a contractor and 
builder at Fair Haven, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is a son of Alonzo 
and Sarah (Ashley) Smith, and was born 
May 15, 1854, in Williamsburg (Brooklyn) 
New York. His grandfather, Lewis H. 
Smith, was a native of Middletown town- 
ship, Monmouth county. New Jersey. 
His occupation was that of a waterman. 
His wife, Maria Hendrickson, presented 
him with sixteen children in all, six of 
whom deceased in early life. Alonzo 
Smith, a son of Lewis, was born May 4, 
1834, at Fair Haven, where he has re- 
sided ever since, with the exception of a 
ten years' residence at Williamsburg, Long 
Island. His trade is carpentry, at which 
he has been engaged for forty-five years. 
He is a member of thirty years' standing 
in the Methodist Episcopal church at 
Fair Haven, during which three decades 
he has been in official relationship with 
the church, and bearing a lamp ever 
trimmed and burning. He suffered two 
bereavements in his marital relations, 
and is now living with his third help- 
meet. His first wife, Sarah Ashley, de- 
ceased in 1873, aged thirty-five years, 
leaving two children : George W., our 



subject, and a daughter. Laura Murlatt, 
his second wife, deceased in 1891, with- 
out issue. 

George W. Smith attended the public 
school at Fair Haven, after leaving which 
he learned the carpenter trade, and fished 
and gardened for about sixteen years. 
From 1876 to 1887 he was occupied as a 
journeyman carpenter, and in the latter 
year entered into partnership with R. D. 
Chandler, and operated as a contractor 
and builder for six years under the firm 
name of Chandler & Smith. He dissolved 
the partnership at the expiration of this 
time, and for three years was associated 
with A. E. Smith, under the style of G. W. 
& A. E. Smith, contractors and builders. 
He is a skilled mechanic, a conscientious 
workman, and a close figurer on con- 
tracts. He has erected many of the 
finest residences in Monmouth county, 
notable among which is the handsome 
building of Knapp & West, at Sea Bright, 
and the beautiful home of ex-Inspector 
Byrnes, of New York city, on the Shrews- 
'bury river. He is a republican in poli- 
tics. In fraternal union he is a member 
and the present treasurer of United Coun- 
cil, No. 141, Jr. 0. U. A. M. Mr. Smith 
lost his first wife, Caroline Murlatt, two 
years subsequent to their marriage, in 
1872, and after she had given birth to a 
daughter, named Laura. By his second 
wife, Ariadne Ayers, and who is still 
living, he had five children : Sarah and 
Ralph, both deceased ; Ettie, George and 
Joel, twin brothers, deceased. 



TpDWARD C. BURTT, a competent and 
-*-^ successful carriage-builder at Long 
Branch, Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
is a son of Selah H. and Clara (Penovia) 
Burtt, and was born Feb. 25, 1844, at 
Holmes, N. Y. 



988 



Biographical Sketches. 



Selah H. Burtt was born at Orange, 
New Jerse}'. He received a common- 
school etliicatioii, after which he learned 
the trade of carriage-painting, and is still 
pursuing that occupation. He is probably 
the oldest and most competent coach- 
painter living to-da}'. Politically he is a 
democrat, and in religious matters he 
worships at no fixed shrine, but attends 
all the churches, selecting, from time to 
time, the one to which his inclination 
directs him. He is a member of the Free 
and Accepted Masons. His children are: 
Edward C, Thomas, Selah, Caroline, 
Thomas, and B. L. 

Edward C. Burtt attended the public 
schools of Long Branch, and then learned 
the trade of carriage-making. After six 
years he became manager of one of the 
largest carriage manufacturing establish- 
ments in Monmouth county, at Long 
Branch. He at once gave a new impetus 
to the business of the concei'n, which is 
still doing a large and profitable trade 
under his able management. In politics 
he is a democrat, and has served one term 
in the common council of Long Branch. 
In religion he inclines to the Reformed 
church, which he attends, but is not a 
member. He takes a great interest in 
nia.sonic matters, and is an active mem- 
ber of Long Branch Lodge, No. 78, F. 
and A. M. Mr. Burtt was married Sept. 
18, 18G6, to Eliza M. Morris, a daughter 
of W. H. and Hannah Morris, and to 
their union was born a daughter, Jessie A. 



OTEWART COOK, JR., senior member 
*^ of the firm of Messrs. Cook & Ket- 
tle, dealers in hardware, coal, wood, etc., 
and also the head of the firm of S. Cook 
& Co., the leading wholesale and retail 
dealers in ice at North Long Branch, is 



a son of Stewart and Ann Maria (Brown) 
Cook, and was born at Long Branch 
("Fish Pond"), New Jersey, July 16, 
1846. 

Jesse Cook, paternal grandfather, was 
a native of southern New Jersey. Hav- 
ing acquired a common-school education, 
he began farming in Shrewsbury town- 
ship, Monmouth county, and continued 
until he I'emoved to Long Branch, and 
engaged in fishing, which he pursued for 
the balance of his life. Five children 
were born to his marriage : Jesse, Jr., 
Jeane (Mrs. J. McWood, of New York), 
George (drowned by the capsizing of a 
boat in the Shrewsbury river), Stewart, 
and John. Jesse Cook, Jr., died March 
21, 1896, surviving his wife twenty-six 
years. 

Stewart Cook, Sr. (father), was born at 
West Long Branch, then Hoppertown. 
He followed farming as a means of live- 
lihood all his life at West Long Branch. 
He was an adhei'ent of the Rejjublican ^lar- 
ty, always voted, but was not a politician. 
In matters of a religious nature, he was 
deeply interested, and for forty-five years 
was a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church at North Long Branch, and 
helped to erect the first church of that 
denomination in that vicinity. In the 
work of his church he has been con- 
stantly active, and has held all the offi- 
cial positions within reach of the laity. 
He married Miss Ann A. Riddle, and 
their family of children was conaposed of 
two sons and four daughters : Ellen (Mrs. 
Benjamin Laine), Stewart, Jr., Elizabeth 
(Mrs. Henry C. Maps), Alice (Mrs. James 
Crowter), George, Alraira (Mrs. H. Shew- 
man), and Amelia. 

Stewart Cook, Jr., was early in life a 
pupil in the common schools of Long 
Branch, and then assisted his father in 



Biographical Sketches. 



989 



fishing on a small scale, but now carries 
on that business on a large scale, being 
interested in the largest fishery in Mon- 
mouth county. In 1883 he formed a part- 
nership with Melan Kettle in the hard- 
ware, wood and coal business at North 
Long Branch. Long experience and 
-strict attention to the details of their 
business have been the keys to the suc- 
cess that has attended the operations of 
this firm. 

In 1879, Mr. Cook established the first 
wholesale and retail ice business on this 
part of the Jersey coast, and this firm, 
trading under the style of Stewart Cook 
& Co., has an extensive trade. 

Mr. Cook is a wide-awake business man, 
and takes a keen intei'est in the turns and 
conditions of political affairs. He is a 
member of Lodge No. 78, F. and A. M., 
Lodge No. 74, 1. 0. 0. F., Jr. 0. U. A. M., 
and the Ancient Order of United Work- 
men, all of Long Branch. In religious 
faith he is a methodist, and has been 
actively engaged in the affairs of that 
organization, having been both steward 
and trustee, and was for twenty years a 
teacher in the Sunday-school. 

Stewart Cook, Jr., was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Anna Riddle, daughter of 
James Riddle, and the children ai-e as 
follows : Lydia (deceased), Charles E., 
Thomas R., Grace M.,and Stewart, the 3d. 



TTTILLIAM HYRES, a successful young 
' ' attorney-at-law, and at present a 
deputy sheriff of Monmouth county, re- 
siding at Freehold, is a son of John B. 
and Amanda (Oakensen) Hyres, and was 
born Sept. 15, 1866, near Bennett's Mills, 
Ocean county. He is of Holland-Dutch 
descent, his ancestors having settled in 
this vicinity over one hundred and fifty 

52 



years ago. His paternal great-grand- 
father, John Hyres, and his grandfather, 
John Hyres (2d), were well-known farmers 
and land-owners for many years near 
Bennett's Mills, the latter dying April 
26, 1894, when eighty years of age. 

John B. Hyres (father) was born and 
educated near Bennett's Mills. During 
early life he worked on his father's farm, 
and subsequently purchased one of his 
own, which became known as the "Hyres 
Homestead," and where he now resides. 
His wife was Miss Amanda Oakensen, 
a daughter of James Oakensen. whose 
family were early settlers in East Jersey. 
William was the only child of this mar- 
riage. 

William Hyres was educated in the 
district schools of Ocean county, and 
when seventeen years old became both 
teacher and student, which double occu- 
pation he followed for six years. He 
then read law in the office of E. W. 
Arrowsmith, at Freehold, and was ad- 
mitted to the bar from his office. He 
immediately entered upon the practice of 
'his profession at Freehold, and at present 
has a large and growing clientele. He 
is a republican in politics, and served as 
deputy sheriff under Sheriff" Theo. Au- 
mack from 1891 to 1894. He is a mem- 
ber of Tennent Lodge, K. of P., and a 
member and ex-secretary of the Freehold 
Royal Arcanum. Mr. Hyres was mar- 
ried to Miss Mary A. Clayton, a daughter 
of George Clayton, of Freehold, and they 
have two sons : John and James. 



TOSIAH TICE, the well-known civil en- 
^ gineer of New Brunswick, is a son 
of John R. and Rebecca (Campbell) Tice, 
and was born in Willi amstown, New 
Jersey, on March 1, 1851. 



990 



Biographical Sketches. 



lie is a direct descendant from one of 
three brothers, who emigrated to this 
CDuntry from Hungary, and from them 
are descended all of that name in this 
country. His paternal great-grandfather 
was Franklin D. Tice, and his grandfa- 
ther was Maj. John Ross Tice, who was 
a 2^rosperous farmer in Williamstown, 
New Jersey, all his life. Major Tice 
was an officer in the military of his state, 
and was first a whig, and then a repub- j 
lican in politics. He was a prominent ' 
member of the Methodist faith, and was : 
an upright, conscientious and thoroughly 
patriotic citizen. He was the father of 
eight children : Mark N., John R., Sam- 
uel P., James, Miles S., Ellen, wife of 
Joseph Collins; Maiah, deceased; and 
Elizal)eth. Major Tice passed from this 
lite in March, 1886. 

John R. Tice, father of the subject of 
this sketch, received a common-school 
education, and then learned the trade of 
carpenter. He never followed this busi- 
ness, however, but took to farming, an 
occupation he found more congenial, and 
which he pursued ever since. He was* 
an active whig, and then a republican, 
and was always foremost in the politics 
of his section, filling several important 
state and county offices. Like the other 
members of this family, Mr. Tice was an 
active member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church, and Ibr many years has been 
a trustee of the congregation with which 
he is identified. He is a member of the 
Independent Order of Odd Fellows and 
the Knights of Pythias, and is also a 
prominent member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity. His marriage to Rebecca Camp- 
bell was blessed with five sons : John F., 
deceased ; Josiah ; David L., deceased ; 
Edward E. L., and George Y. Mr. and 
Mrs. Tice are still liviiio:. in the full en- 



jo3'ment of their faculties, on the pros- 
perous farm on which they reside. 

Having mastered all the branches as 
taught in the public schools of his native 
town, Josiah Tice, the subject of this 
sketch, entered the scientific class of '77 
at Rutgers College. He left that institu- 
tion of learning in the junior year, and 
went into the field as a civil engineer, a 
profession he has followed with marked 
success ever since. In this vocation, he 
has operated in nearly every state in the 
Union. In 1882 he located in New 
Brunswick, accepting the position of civil 
engineer of the New York division of the 
Pennsylvania raili'oad. In the mean- 
time, he was elected to the office of city 
engineer of New Brunswick, and held 
that position until 1891. He has main- 
tained an office in that city during all 
this time, and in April, 1895, purchased 
the patents for a new telephone, and has 
been devoting most of his time to its 
development, with the ultimate view of 
its manufacture. Mr. Tice is also inter- 
ested in a number of other enterprises. 
He commands the respect of his fellow- 
citizens, not only in the business world, 
but also in social circles. He has been a 
true son to his parents, and has always 
assisted in making them comfortable. 

On May 28, 1885, he married Frede- 
rica E., a daughter of John Vanaken, 
who was descended from the old Dutch 
.settlers who made their homes along the 
Hudson. They have five children, as 
follows : Katherine G., Bessie, Viola, 
Frederica and Rebecca P. 

He is one of the most active repub- 
licans of his district, and has been a 
member of the city committee. He lias 
always voted for the best interests of the 
community. He has always been strongly 
opposed to " rings " in politics, and he 



Biographical Sketches. 



991 



is one of the most prominent members 
of the Masonic fraternity in the state. 
He is a thirty-third degree Mason, and is 
the youngest man in the country to hold 
that degree, and the only man in his 
state to have all of the degrees in the 
Masonic order, although the order has 
been in existence more than one hundred 
years in New Brunswick. 



FERDINAND VREELAND, a prosper- 
ous market gardener at Long 
Branch, Monmouth county. New Jersey, 
is a son of George and Catharine (New- 
kirk) Vreeland, and was born in 1856, at 
Jersey City, New Jersey. 

George Vreeland, the paternal grand- 
father, was of Holland-Dutch origin, and 
resided during many years at Green- 
ville, New Jersey ; at one time, in con- 
nection with his brother, owning the 
greater part of that town. He received 
a common-school education, and, in 
course of time, developed into a success- 
ful land speculator. His death occurred 
at Greenville in 1874, after attaining the 
age of eighty-seven years; and his brother, 
to whom he was an almost inseparable 
companion, deceased aged eighty-five 
years. George Vreeland had been thrice 
married, but had offspring only from his 
first wife. There were seven children 
born to him, who were thus named : Gar- 
rett G., a millionaire of Greenville, now 
in his eighty-seventh year ; George, 
Henry, Jacob, Jane, Maria and Helen. 

George Vreeland, second son of George, 
and father of our subject, received a 
common-school education, and made him- 
self the wealthy man he is to-day. His 
first occupation was on the water, and 
he later became and remained a vege- 
table gardener, at Greenville. Amongst 



other lands he owned was a tract with 
a frontage of 1,600 feet, comprising 
three acres, which he held to with great 
tenacity, while his various neighbors were 
selling their property to the Pennsyl- 
vania railroad, and, resisting the seduc- 
tion of a pair of bank checks, filled for a 
thousand each, which looked extremely 
large in those days, and with which the 
company's agents were tempting him 
to sell, ultimately sold the tract for 
|160,000. His other property went to 
the Lehigh Valley Railroad Co., for the 
snug sum of $40,000. He is a man 
noted for honesty, independence and 
thrift, and during his four-score years of 
life never aspired to public ofiice. He 
was nevertheless made treasurer of his 
township, and has served repeatedly as 
a member of the board of education. 
In politics he is a democrat, but has 
always been broad enough to " vote for 
the best man." In religious matters he 
is an attendant of the Dutch Reformed 
church at Jersey City Heights, which the 
Van Buskirks, his wife's ancestors, founded 
"in 1706, and while he is not a mem- 
ber of said church, he has always been a 
contributor of very large sums of money 
to its maintenance. To his marriage 
were born nine children : Sojahia Jane, 
married to Andrew Cadmus ; Kath aline, 
who married Peter S. "Winkle ; George 
W., Rachel Emma, who became Mrs. J. 
N. Kershaw ; Mary Frances, deceased, 
wife of Peter Vreeland ; Frank, who was 
drowned at the age of three years in a 
cistern; Jefferson L., Olivier Perry, and 
Ferdinand, our subject. 

Ferdinand Vreeland was the only one 
of these sons who did not receive a busi- 
ness education at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 
His early training was received in the pub- 
lic schools and a business college. He sub- 



992 



Biographical Sketches. 



sequently was engaged during fifteen 
3'ears at gardening with one of his bro- 
thers in Greenville, and was in the same 
occupation for a year at Red Bank. In 
188G, he removed to Long Branch, where 
he remains, conducting a large gardening 
business. lie is a democrat on national 
issues, but in local affairs, like his father, 
he is avowedly independent in all his 
dealings; is honest, manly and straight- 
forward. Mr. Vreeland was married in 
1882, to Sadie Holmes, a daughter of 
Ashur Holmes, of Holmdel, Monmouth 
county, and to their marriage have been 
born four children : Viola, Florence M., 
Ashur and Margie. 



TAMES ENRIGHT, Jr., an enterprising 
^ and successful business man of Oce- 
anic, Monmoutli county, New Jersey, is ' 
a son of James and Jane (Murphy) En- 
right, and was born, July 18, 1852, in ! 
Kidgefield, Conn. He is descended from i 
an old and highly respectable line of j 
Celtic ancestors, his father being a lineal 
descendant of tlie Hanratt3-s (Anglicised 
" Enrights ") of Hy-Meith-Macha, the fii- 
mous " Red Branch Knights of Ulster." | 
Ilis father was born in county Kerry, 
Ireland, Dec. 20, 1820, where he grew to 
maturity, and in 1849 emigrated to the 
United States. He .settled at Ridgefield, 
Conn., and Ibllowed the avocation of a 
farmer. When the crisis of civil war 
threatened he left the farm to become a j 
soldier. He entered Company G, Twentj^- 
tliird regiment, Connecticut volunteers, ' 
on Sept. 7, 1802, served under both Gen- 
orals Banks and Butler, and was honor- 
ably di.scharged on August :H, 180-3, at 
Danbury, Conn. He died Jan. 9, 1892, 
leaving a widow and eight children : 
Mary, wife of Charles A. Barton, of Chi- 



cago, 111. ; James, subject of this sketch; 
John, a manufacturer of metal goods in 
Brooklyn, N. Y. ; Margaret, a wife of P. 
F. Breslin, of Brooklyn ; Ellen, a gradu- 
ate of Long Island College hospital, in 
the class of 1888, and now a trained 
nurse in New York city; Maurice, a 
physician in Brooklyn, N. Y. ; and Annie 
and Lizzie, of Ridgefield, Conn. 

James Enright, Jr., was reared upon 
his father's farm, until fifteen years of 
age. Desii'ing to more thoroughly pre- 
pare himself for a business career, he en- 
tered Seymour's Business College, where 
he remained two years. At the age of 
eighteen yeai's he apprenticed himself to 
learn the trade of a carpenter. In Nov., 
1876, he formed a business alliance with 
Frank R. Waring, of Tyrone, Pa., and 
for one year was with him engaged in 
contracting and building at Jacksonville, 
Federal Point, and Palatka, Fla. The 
next year he returned to his native 
heath, and engaged in farming. Shortly 
afterward he went south, and engaged in 
a general mercantile business at Federal 
Point, in partnership with Edwin Smith, 
of New Haven, Conn. In Jan., 1880, he 
formed a partnership w'ith his brother 
John, and, under the firm name of En- 
right Brothers, pursued a general mer- 
cantile business at Oceanic, New Jersey, 
until Sept., 1882, when, through a pur- 
chase of his brother's interest, James be- 
came the sole owner and proprietor of 
the establishment, and operated it alone 
until the sjjring of 1886, at which time 
he moved to his present location, on the 
corner of Lafayette street and Ocean 
avenue, and added to merchandising a 
real-estate, loan, and insurance business. 
In the line of real estate he has done 
much towards the improvement of Oce- 
anic, having persuaded many persons 



Biographical Sketches. 



995 



from New York, Philadelphia, and Wash- 
ington to purchase lots, and build desir- 
able homes within its limits ; thus con- 
tributing much to the material develop- 
ment and prosperity of that place. Active 
and successful in business, he has not al- 
lowed it to absorb all his time, but has 
taken considerable interest in the local 
matters of a public nature. He is a dem- 
ocrat politically, and has served as post- 
master from August 11, 1885, to May 20, 
1889, and from June 30, 1893, to the 
present time. In 1887 he was appointed 
commissioner of deeds by Governor Green, 
was reappointed by Governor Werts, and 
in March, 1890, was appointed a notary 
public by Governor Abbett. James En- 
right, Jr., is a living example of that 
well-known aphorism : " There is always 
room on the top." He has carried en- 
ergy, perseverance, and discretion into 
every sphere of activity into which he 
has thrust himself, and has won the well- 
merited success" he now enjoys. 



TTENRY NEWTON SPENCER is the 
-•— *- son of James L. Spencer and Caro- 
line B. Wilcox. He was born in Wash- 
ington valley, Essex (now Union) county. 
New Jersey, Sept. 18, 1848, and gradu- 
ated from Wallace's Business College at 
Plainfield, in 1857, then entering the 
grocery business in the employ of his 
brother, Lewis Craig Spencer. At the 
outbreak of the civil war, his brother 
entered the army, and their father con- 
ducted the business, with the assistance 
of Henry N., until 1866. At that time 
Henry N. opened business at Rahway, 
and, in 1869, removed to North Plain- 
field, where he took charge of the store 
he now occupies, 76 and 78 Somerset 
street, and has continued there uninter- 



ruptedly to the present time. He cast 
his first vote for Abraham Lincoln, and 
has been active in support of the Repub- 
lican party ever since. For the past ten 
years he has represented his district in 
the county executive committee, and in 
the executive committee of the Republi- 
can state league for eight years. He has 
I held many responsible positions, both 
j civil and political, having served several 
terms as township and district clerk 
prior to 1886, and since then has been 
collector and treasurer for both the town- 
ship and borough of North Plainfield. 

On Jan. 12, 1867, he married Mary J., 
Gibby, daughter of Judge Gibby, of Rah- 
1 way, and they have the following chil- 
dren : Alexander G., engaged in the in- 
surance business at Plainfield; Harry 
Lyman, and Fannie, wife of William C. 
Force, of Plainfield. He has taken an 
active part in the management of the 
Plainfield Reform Club, and has been 
president for several successive terms. 
He is a member of the Exempt Fire- 
men's Association, of the Royal Arca- 
num, and director of the American Fire 
Insurance Co. 

Henry N. Spencer is of French line- 
age, and has an ancestry not inconspicu- 
' ousinthe Revolutionary war. Hisgreat- 
i grandfather. Col. Henry Spencer, was a 
brave ofiicer, who is supposed to have 
been killed at the battle of Elizabethtown 
in 1780. His son, William Spencer, 
grandfather of Henry N., was a resident 
of Chatham, Morris county, and engaged 
in mercantile pursuits there for sixty 
years. He died July 29, 1848. On the 
maternal side, William Line, grea1>great- 
grandfather of Henry N., was a captain 
of militia in the Continental anny, and 
lived on a farm near Blue Brook, Wash- 
ington valley, Essex (now Union) county, 



996 



Biographical Sketches. 



where, at the close of the Revolutionary 
war, he spent the remnant of his days, 
enjoying the fruits of his meritorious 
services in the cause of libertj'^ and inde- 
jjendence. 



TAMES R. SCOTT, the able superintend- 
^ ent of the Ashland Emer}' Co., at 
Perth Amboy, Middlesex count}', N. J., 
is a son of George and Rachel Scott, and 
was born Jan. 4, 1852, at Boston, Mass. 

George Scott was a native of Wales, 
and acquired an ordinary education and 
learned the trade of a millwright, which 
he followed for many years subsequent 
to his immigration to this country in 
1846. His politics were not well defined 
until 1856, when he became a pronounced 
republican, and served in the war of the 
Rebellion in the cause of the Union. He 
was one of those who accompanied " Te- 
cumseh " Sherman in his never-to-be-for- 
gotten march from " Atlanta to the sea," 
and at Gettysburg was in the thick of the 
fight. In religion he was an active mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
which he served in the positions of stew- 
ard and trustee for many years. He was 
thrice married. 

James R. Scott, after obtaining an edu- 
cation in the public schools, went to work 
at the age of fourteen j'ears in terra-cotta 
works at Perth Amboy, New Jersey, but 
soon afterwards became associated with 
the Ashland Emery Co. at Perth Amboy, 
importers and manufacturers of pure 
Turkish emery, the business of which 
was established about 1878. After work- 
ing in various departments of the busi- 
ness for several years he finally succeeded 
to his present position, that of superin- 
tendent. They do one of the largest 
trades in this country in their line of im- 
porting raw material, pure Turkish 



emery, making a specialty of ruby direct 
from Smj-rna. Mr. Scott's long famili- 
ai'ity with the business well fits him for 
the responsible position which he occu- 
pies, and the prosperity which the busi- 
ness has experienced is to a great extent 
due to Mr. Scott's able management. In 
politics Mr. Scott is a republican, and is 
active in local party affairs, having served 
as a member of the common council, and 
at present is serving as a trustee of the 
Perth Amboy school board. Fraternally 
he is a memloer of the I. 0. 0. F. and the 
Royal Arcanum, both of Perth Amboy. 
To his marriage relation have been born 
two children : John and Helen. Mr. 
Scott is a man of straightforward busi- 
ness methods and of the utmost reliabil- 
itv. He is domestic in his tastes, and 
takes just pride in his famil}', to which 
he is most devoted. He is a good tj'pe of 
an American citizen and a good member 
of society. 



"DEV. JAMES A. EEYXOLDS, one of 
-L^J the most energetic and popular 
members of the Catholic clergy in the 
state of New Jersej^, is of Irish descent, 
and was born in Princeton, Sept. 18, 1860. 
He is a son of John and Bridget (Mc- 
Auden) Reynolds. His paternal grand- 
fiither, Michael Reynolds, was a native of 
Ireland. His children were : John, de- 
ceased ; Bartholomew, Michael, Peter, 
Ann, Mary, married to Thomas Golden ; 
and Margaret, deceased, married to N. 
Larkins. 

John Reynolds, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born in Ireland, and came to 
this country and located at Princeton, 
New Jersey. He was an active demo- 
crat, and a member of the Roman Catholic 
church. He died March 16, 1863. His 
children were : Michael, deceased ; Bar- 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



997 



tholomew, deceased; Mary, married to 
H. Canellet ; John, James A., Margaret, 
deceased ; and Robert. 

Rev. James A. Reynolds received his 
preliminary education in thepublic schools 
of Princeton, and then entered the St. 
Charles College, Maryland. He studied 
at this institution for one and a half 
years, and then returned to Princeton, 
where he continued his studies for six 
months under private tutors. He then 
entered Seaton Hall, and graduated in 
1883. He was ordained to the priest- 
hood in Aug., 1885. His first charge 
was at Princeton, which charge he re- 
tained for eight months, being then sent 
to Sea Bright, where he remained four 
months. The church of the Sacred Heart 
was then placed under his care, and he 
retained his connection with this church 
for four years. In 1891 he assumed the 
pastorate of the St. James Catholic church 
at Red Bank, and his administration of 
its interests has been phenomenally suc- 
cessful, for by his wise and energetic 
management, and personal popularity, he 
has accomplished more for it than an}' 
other priest who has heretofore been con- 
nected with it, having increased its mem- 
bership from six hundred to twelve hun- 
dred. In addition to his regular church 
work the Rev. Mr. Reynolds has organized 
in Red Bank the Young Men's Institute of 
Hibernians, and the Temperance Cadets, 
two organizations which are expected to 
be productive of great good. Through 
his efforts his church has been enabled to 
erect one of the finest church edifices 
in the state of New Jersey. Mr. Rey- 
nolds is a very public-spirited man, 
active in all local matters of public im- 
portance, and popular with all his fellow- 
citizens, irrespective of their political or 
church creed. 



/CHARLES MULLHOLLAND, a repre- 
^-^ sentative citizen of Long Branch, 
New Jersey, is a son of Charles and Mary 
(Short) Mullholland, and was born in 
county Kent, England. Charles Mullhol- 
land, the elder, is a native of Kent county, 
where he was engaged in fai^ming. He 
was a man possessed of considerable in- 
telligence and a wide range of informa- 
tion. He was a devout christian, a mem- 
ber of the church of England, and had a 
brother named Edward, who was a sol- 
dier in the British army, and who was 
killed during the insurrection of the 
Sepoys, in Calcutta, India. 

Charles Mullholland received a very 
limited educational ti'aining in the simple 
schools of his birth-place, but being of a 
studious nature, and possessing a recep- 
tive mind and retentive memory acquired 
a very rich fund of useful information. 
After coming to this countrj? he located, 
in 1865, at Somerville, Somerset county, 
New Jersey, whei'e he engaged in con- 
tracting in street-paving, which he car- 
ried on for fourteen years. In 1879 he 
went to New York city, continuing very 
successfully in that business there for sev- 
eral years. He finally returned to Long 
Branch and entered the employ of Mr. 
Venable, the marble-cutter, with whom 
he remained for several years, when, in 
1894, he was appointed to his present 
position of general manager of the new 
cemetery in the suburbs of that city. He 
is in full charge and management of the 
same, and acts as agent for the associa- 
tion in the sale of its lots. In this con- 
nection his management has been a suc- 
cessful one, and his work is receiving the 
cordial commendation of the company. 
Mr. Mullholland is an active republican 
in politics, but at elections involving 
local ofiices he votes for men of his own 



998 



Biographical Sketches. 



choice. He served as president of the 
Republican Club at Somerville, during 
several years of his residence in that 
town. In religion he is a member of the | 
Baptist church at Long Branch, devoting 
nuich of his leisure time to energetic 
labor in its behall', and to a careful study 
of the Scriptures. Years spent in read- 
ing the sacred tome have stored his mind 
with biblical lore to such an extent as to 
render him a damaging opponent to any 
one engaging him in theological discus- 
sion. In domestic afairs he is kindly, 
temperate, frugal and thrifty, and is the 
owner of real estate in Long Branch. 

Mr. MuUholland was married in 1861 
to Agnes Stewart, a daughter of William 
Stewart, and a cousin of the late Alex- | 
ander T. Stewart, of New York city. 
They are the parents of six children 
living and two others who deceased : 
Stewart, Charles, another Charles, a sub- 
sequent Charles, James, Isabella, and 
Alexander. 



"piCIIARD H. WOODWARD, engaged 
-*-^ in the real-estate and insurance 
business at Long Branch, Monmouth 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Eoswell 
and Catharine II. (Elliott) Woodward, 
and was born February 14, 1832, at 
Georgetown, in the District of Columbia. 
This branch of the Woodward fomily 
from which he descends originated in 
England. The paternal grandfiither was 
born at Guilford, Conn., Avhcre, after re- 
ceiving a common-school education, he at 
one time kept a hotel ; but his principal 
occupation during life was the cultivation 
of a farm he owned in New Haven. He 
was the father of eight children : Wil- 
liam, David, John, Hulda, Anna, Mary, 
Maria and Roswell. 



Roswell Woodward was also a native 
of Guilford, Conn. After receiving a com- 
mon English education from the public 
schools, he removed to Georgetown, D. C, 
where he engaged in the wholesale gro- 
cery business, and for a quarter of a cen- 
tury he remained in successful manage- 
ment and control of a large and profit- 
able business. Later he went to New 
York city and engaged in the commission 
business in flour and mill-feed until his 
death in 1866. 

Richard H. Woodward acquired a sub- 
stantial education in the public and high 
schools of Georgetown, graduating from 
the latter. He then pursued a two years' 
course in the Georgetown college. He 
subsequently learned telegraphy, and for 
thirty years continued to practice the 
same, a part of which time in the service 
of the New Jersey Central Railroad Co. 
as superintendent of telegraph and train 
despatcher. After leaving this emploj^, 
he became a real-estate dealer and under- 
writer at Long Branch, New Jerse}', in 
connection Avith which he conducts a 
general insurance business, and has there 
continued ever since. He has been suc- 
cessful in his real-estate ventures, and 
deserves to stand as one of the represent- 
ative and progressive citizens of that 
county. In politics Mr. Woodward is an 
active and influential democrat. He is a 
director in the Long Branch Building 
and Loan Association, and in municipal 
affairs served as a member of the board 
of commissioners of Long Branch, and 
one year as president of the board. Fra- 
ternally he is a member of the Royal 
Arcanum at Long Branch. His marital 
relation with Miss Julia Anna Brooks, a 
daughter of Nathan Bi'ooks, resulted in 
the birth of three children : Cathei'izie 
I Elliott, John Brooks, and Charles R. 



Biographical Sketches. 



999 



"ISTTELSON LOCKWOOD, a representa- 
-^^ tive business man at Long Branch, 
Monmouth county, is a son of Benjamin 
and Ellen (West) Lockwood, and was 
born in New York city, in 1846. He 
received a common-school education in 
the public schools of Long Branch, and 
early in life spent six years in boating 
and fishing ; he subsequently learned the 
foundry business at New York, where he 
remained employed for two years after 
completing his apprenticeship. He then 
retui'ned to Monmouth Beach, this state, 
where he became engaged in pound fish- 
ing, and subsequently served eight years 
in the life-saving service of the Fourth 
district, in which he achieved a brilliant 
record, in the extraordinary number of 
rescues he performed, and for the gallant 
rescue, on the morning of Feb. 3, 1880, : 
of the Spanish brig " Augustina," off the 
coast of New Jersey, he was duly awarded 
a gold medal by congress, which was ac- I 
companied by the following letter from 
Secretary John Sherman, from which we | 
quote the following : 

" Treasury Department, 
"Washington, D. C, Nov. 17, ]880. 

" Mr. Nelson Lockwood, 

" Surfman Life-Saving Station, 
" No. 4, Fourth District, 

" Sir : I have the honor to transmit 
herewith the gold life-saving medal au- 
thorized by act of congress, approved 
June 20, 1874, which has been awarded 
to you in recognition of your heroism at 
the wreck of the Spanish brig 'Augus- 
tina,' on Feb. 3, 1880. The evidence 
presented to the department in this case 
shows that on the date above-named, at 
about ten o'clock in the morning, the 
' Augustina ' drove ashore not far from 
your station, during the severest storm 



that has visited the coast of New Jersey 
for years. The wind, which was north- 
east, blew a hurricane, averaging eighty- 
four miles an hour. The beach was 
flooded by a furious surf, and the weather 
was freezing cold. In the same storm a 
few hours before, and at night, you and 
your comrades had effected a brilliant, 
though not so perilous rescue, at the 
wreck of the schooner ' E. C. Babcock,' 
and were still engaged in putting a life- 
apparatus in order when the Spanish 
brig came on. Ten minutes after she 
stranded the life-saving crew, with the 
exception of one man absent on patrol, 
were abreast of her with the wreck-gun. 
The effort to reach her with the short line 
at once began, during which the brig 
worked within a hundred yards of the 
beach, when Surfman White, boldly run- 
ning down behind a receding sea, cast a 
line on board with a vigorous throw of 
the heaving-stick. This feat enabled the 
sailors to haul on board the whip-line, by 
which the breeches-buoy was sent off for 
their deliverance. 

" I have the honor to be, 
"Very respectfully, 

John Sherman, Secretary." 

After one of the most perilous and 
daring undertakings in the gilded his- 
tory of the life-saving service, the pas- 
sengers on board the wrecked "Augus- 
tina " were miraculously rescued. 

The name is of English origin, the pa- 
ternal grandfather, Ebenezer Lockwood, 
having been a native of England, but 
who came to this country, locating in the 
vicinity of Darien, Conn., where he be- 
came the possessor of a farm of two hun- 
dred acres. Politically he was an old- 
line whig. One of his sons, Benjamin 
Lockwood, was born in 1818, and lived 



1000 



Biographical Sketches. 



on the homestead farm until removing to 
New Jersey, where he resided until his 
death in 1853. He was actively inter- 
ested in politics, and was at one time 
a candidate for sherifi' of Monmouth 
county. He married Ellen West, who 
was born in 1812. 



TTON. JA:MES H. van CLEEF, a lead- 
-'— *- ing member of the Middlesex 
county bar, ex-mayor of New Bruns- 
wick, and ex-assembljnian of New Jer- 
sey', is the only son of Peter A. and Eliza 
(Hutchings) Van Cleef, and was born 
July 12, 1841, at Branchville, Somerset 
county. New Jerse3^ He descends from 
old Dutch stock, from which Jans Van 
Cleef, the original immigrant to this 
country, separated by leaving Holland 
about the year 1659, settling at New 
Utrecht, L. I. Jans was born in 1628, 
married to Enjelye Lowerens prior to 
1661, and was the father of eight children, 
the 3'oungest being Cornelius. Cornelius 
married Femmeje Van Dewater, by 
whom he had several children, one of 
whom, Laurens, .settled in New Jersey. 
Isaac, son of Lauren.s, was born in 1742, 
married to Dorcas Pumyea in 1769, and 
died June 30, 1804. Dorcas was born 
April 13, 1749, and died March 28, 1812. 
They had eleven children, among whom 
was Abraham, grandfather of our subject, 
born July 3, 1785, and died March 7, 
1870. Abraham Van Cleef reared a 
family of seven children : Peter A., father 
of our subject; Isaac, Jacob, Dumont, 
Richard, Jane, and Ann. Peter A. Van 
Cleef married Eliza Hutchings, of New 
Brunswick, New Jense}', and deceased in 
1884. His wife's death occurred in the 
same year. They had but one child, 
James H. 



James Henry Van Cleef acquired his 
earlier education at the district school in 
Titusville, Mercer county. New Jersey. 
He subsequently entered Rutgers College 
grammar school, from which he was 
graduated with honors, and four years 
later graduated from Lafayette College, 
Easton, Pa., having received the degree of 
A. B., which was supplemented by the 
faculty of that college, in 1872, with the 
degree of A. M. His law studies, under 
Hon. Mercer Beasley and Hon. Edward 
T. Green, of Trenton, the former of 
whom is now chief justice of the supreme 
court of New Jersej^, and the latter judge 
of the United States district court at 
Trenton, were completed in 1867, and in 
June of the same year he was admitted 
to the bar as an attorney, and later as 
counselor. He located at New Bruns- 
wick for the practice of his profession, 
where he made rapid strides to a leading 
position at the bar. Mr. Van Cleef is an 
accomplished politician as well as an able 
lawyer. In political faith he has always 
been a disciple of Thomas Jefferson and 
the principles of old-line democrac3^ In 
the various public functions that he has 
been called upon to occupy he bears a 
conspicuous record of clean-handed ser- 
vice. He was elected counsel for the 
Middlesex county board of chosen free- 
holders, and served 1873—4 ; elected to 
the assembly of New Jersey in 1875 ; 
elected city attorney in 1877, by the 
board of aldermen, at that time a politi- 
cal tie, and re-elected to that office the 
subsequent year. In 1880 Mr. Van 
Cleef was returned to the assembly by a 
majority of six hundred and fifty-five 
votes, overcoming a majority of nine 
hundred and fifty-nine votes received the 
previous year by the republican candi- 
date. In 1881 he was re-elected without 



Biographical Sketches. 



1001 



opposition, the republicans declining to 
make a nomination. While in the as- 
sembly he effectively subserved the inter- 
ests of the people, and was the author 
and advocate of a number of important 
bills that were passed. He was chair- 
man of the committee on Revision of 
Laws and Fisheries, and a member of 
Ways and Means, Judiciary, Corpora- 
tions, Reform School for Boys, and In- 
dustrial School for Girls committee. In 
1889 he was elected mayor of New 
Brunswick, and re-elected by the unani- 
mous voice of the people after a joint 
nomination in 1891, and returned in 
1893 for a third term. While yet serv- 
ing his third term in the mayoralty he 
was nominated for state senator by his 
party. He is, and has been for several 
years, senior law-partner in the firm of 
Van Cleef, Daly & Woodbridge, composed 
of himself, George F. Daly, Esq., and 
Freeman Woodbridge, Esq. Mr. Van 
Cleef is a member of various societies : 
The Holland Society; the Historical So- 
ciety of New Jersey ; the Zeta Phi Si, 
of Lafayette College ; the I. 0. 0. F. ; 
Knights of Pythias ; F. and A. M. ; and 
he is president of the New Brunswick 
Fire Insurance Co. The following tribute, 
written during Mr. Van Cleef's campaign 
for the state senate in 1894, is herewith 
reproduced as a fitting close to this 
sketch : 

" He (James H. Van Cleef) is a man 
who can neither be bought nor sold ; a 
strict believer in temperance, being him- 
self almost a total abstainer ; he has high 
ideals of manhood and statesmanship, 
and possesses every other qualification of 
an ideal representative. Though often 
in public office, there is not charged up 
against him a single instance of a be- 
trayal of the trust reposed in him. On 



the contrary, he has been better liked at 
the end of every term, and each year of 
service has installed him in the confi- 
dence of the people he has served so 
well." 



T ERWIN HILLPOT,of the well-known 
^ • firm of Hillpot & Ay res, general 
contractors, of Bound Brook, New Jer- 
sey, has had a most active career, and 
has become prominently identified with ' 
the history of public improvements in 
many cities and states of this country. 
He is a son of Hugh F. and Mary R. 
(Freeling) Hillpot, and was born in Tini- 
cum township, Bucks county. Pa., July 
7, 1853. 

Mr. Hillpot's ancestry is of both Ger- 
man and English origin, the paternal 
name, Hillpot, being a modification of the 
well-known name of Hildebrandt. 

Jacob S. Freeling (maternal grand- 
father) was a native of Bucks county. 
Pa., where he followed the trade of shoe- 
maker. 

John G. Hilljiot (paternal grandfather) 
was also a native of Bucks county. Pa., 
and conjointly conducted a farm and also 
did blacksmithing, later engaging exten- 
sively in building and speculating in 
houses. In politics he was an active 
democrat, and in church connection a 
member of the Lutheran denomination. 
By his marriage he had the following 
children : Eli, living at Bridgeton, Pa. ; 
Samuel, residing at Point Pleasant, Pa. ; 
William, a resident of Erwinna, Pa. ; 
Hugh F. ; Mary, deceased (Mrs. Conrad 
Stryker, of Erwinna, Pa.) ; and John, of 
New York. 

Hugh F. Hillpot was born in Bucks 
county, Pa. He attended the public 
schools, and there received the mental 
preparation for his future. For the 



1002 



Biographical Sketches. 



greater part of his life Mr. Hillpot was 
engaged in the carrying trade on the 
Erie. Dehiwnre river, and Delaware and 
Raritan canals. In 186.S he enlisted in 
the One Hundred and Fourth Ringgold 
regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers, com- 
manded by Col. W. H. Davis, in the ser- 
vice of tlie northern army of the civil 
war. Mr. Hillpot served his country 
Avitli credit until the close of the war, and 
then for some years returned to the 
water, and continued successfully until 
he located permanently in Trenton, New 
Jerse}^, where he is at present engaged in 
specuhiting. He is a democrat in his 
political ideas, and a very active mem- 
lier of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
Hugh F. Hillpot married Mary R. Free- 
ling, a daughter of Jacob S. Freeling, of 
Bucks county. Pa., and the children born 
to this marriage are : J. Erwin ; Cathe- 
rine, residing at home ; John, deceased at 
Dallas, Te.\. ; Oliver, retail oil business, 
Easton, Pa.; Minnie, deceased, and Maiy, 
who resides with her parents. Both 
father and mother are still living in good 
health at Trenton. 

J. Erwin Hillpot attended the com- 
mon schools of his native district until he 
reached the age of seventeen. He then 
learned the carpenter trade, and later the 
pattern-making trade. After nioi'e than 
three years spent in the Baldwin Loco- 
motive Works of Philadelphia, he be- 
came constructing engineer for Isaac S. 
Cassin, and during the next several 
years was engaged principally in the 
erecting and constructing of water-works 
at Easton, Md. ; Merchantville, New 
Jersey ; Dover, New Jensey, and Canton, 
0. In 18SG Mr. Hillpot began his career 
as a contractor on his own account and 
turned his attention chiefly to contracts 
for the erection of water-works, sewers, 



theatres, electric railroads, grading, and 
the macadamizing of public roads. Among 
the many public improvements under- 
taken and completed by him may be 
mentioned the following : Holmesburg 
(Pa.) reservoir. Bound Brook (N. J.) 
water-works, Keyport (N. J.) water- 
works, Atlantic Highlands, water-works, 
sewers and grading for Dr. R. V. Pierce 
of Bound Brook, enlarging of Lambert- 
ville (N. J.) reservoir, Grand Opera 
House, Broad street, Philadelphia; con- 
structing architect for the Grand Avenue 
Theatre, erected the storage warehouse at 
Thirteenth and Mount Vernon streets, 
Philadelphia ; Jersey City Opera House, 
Aug. 1, 1894 ; and the Berkeley Hotel, of 
Bound Brook, New Jersey. As may be 
seen by the above brief mention of our 
subject's business enterprises, his ability 
in that line of work has been recognized 
far and near, and the firm of which Mr. 
Hillpot is the senior member is one of 
the most successful in the count}'. He is 
an active democrat, a leader in the local 
affairs, and well known in the conven- 
tions of his party. He is at present a 
councilman of Bound Brook. Mr. Hill- 
pot is a member of the German Reformed 
church, and a prominent secret society 
man, standing high in the following 
orders : Masonic at Jersey Citj", Lodge 
No. 74 ; Keystone Chapter, No. 25 ; 
Trinity Commandery, No. 17; Ancient 
Accepted Scottish Rites ; Northern Ma- 
sonic Jurisdiction, U. S. A. ; Valley of 
Jersey City, New Jersey ; Benevolent 
Protective Order of Elks, No. 211, Jersey 
City; Knights of Pythias, No. 500, Phil- 
adelphia, Pa.; Oron ova Castle, K. of the 
G. E., No. 15, Philadelphia; and Im- 
proved Order of Red Men, of Jersey 
City. Mr. Hillpot has been twice mar- 
ried : first to Miss Mary E. Johnke, 



Biographical Sketches. 



1003 



March 1, 1871. She died May 29, 1889, 
leaving five children ; Erwin, deceased ; 
Minnie, bookkeeper in Philadelphia; 
Emma ; Frank H., deceased, and Arthur. 
He remarried March 8, 1893, his second 
wife being Miss Elizabeth Swift, of Wil- 
mington, Del., and to this union has been 
born one daughter, Elizabeth Drum- 
mond. 



TTOUSTON FIELDS, attorney-at-law, 
-'— ^ and the gentlemanly sheriff-elect 
of Monmouth county. New Jersey, is 
a son of Theodore and Eachel (Harris) 
Fields, and was born near Eatontown, 
in said county, Oct. 23, 1861. 

Britton Fields, his grandfather, was 
born, lived and died near Eatontown, and 
was a well-known and greatly-esteemed 
citizen of that section. He was a staunch 
democrat, and wielded considerable in- 
fluence toward the success of his party. 

Theodore Fields, father of our subject, 
was also born near Eatontown, and was 
educated at the old Ocean Hill Institute 
near Long Branch. He was a farmer 
near Eatontown up to 1887, when he re- 
moved to Freehold, and is still interested 
in farming, having a farm several miles 
from the latter place. He is a democrat, 
and was always deeply interested in the 
success of his party. He removed from 
the farm to New Branch, now called 
Avon, where he engaged in the hotel 
business for about two years. After- 
wards he removed to Manasquan, having 
purchased the Osborne House at that 
place, and this hotel he conducted for 
the next six years. He then sold out 
and removed to the farm in Wall town- 
ship, Monmouth countj^, and while liv- 
ing on the farm, in Nov., 1887, he was 
elected sheriff of the county. He then 
moved his family to Freehold, the coun- 



ty-seat, where he resided until the close 
of his term of office in 1890. He lived 
a life of retirement until 1896, when he 
again became interested in farming on 
his present farm near Fi'eehold. He 
served as a member of the board of free- 
holders of Monmouth county from 1875 
to 1886, and was a director of the board 
for seven years. He was also interested 
in military affairs, having been lieutenant 
of a militia company organized at Tin- 
ton Falls. He is also a member of the 
board of health of Freehold. He was 
married to Miss Rachel Harris, and they 
have had born to them the following 
children : Houston, Delilah, Eva, Ida, 
Dean, Olive, Aldis and May. 

Houston Fields received his education 
in the public schools of Manasquan, the 
Freehold Institute, where he spent two 
years, and in the graded schools at Long 
Branch for two years more. After leav- 
ing school, he removed with his father to 
Manasquan, where he became a baggage- 
master on the Pennsylvania i-ailroad be- 
tween Point Pleasant and Jersey City, in 
which position he served for five years. 
In 1887, when his father becaine sherifi" 
of Monmouth county, his father selected 
him as his under-sheriff and the warden 
of the prison for the term of three years. 
He was retained in the position by Sheriff 
Woolley, his father's successor, and up to 
the present time he has served in the 
sheriff's office continuously for nine 
years, making for himself an excellent 
record for loyalty and fidelity to duty. 
He has never sought official preferment, 
but has always been actively identified 
with the interests of the party and its 
success. He was elected sheriff of Mon- 
mouth county in 1896, after one of the 
hottest campaigns ever waged in that 
county, receiving the unprecedented ma- 



100-4 



Biographical Sketches. 



jority of nearly six hundred in Freehold 
district over his opponent. He is a mem- 
ber of the Masonic fraternity, Olive 
Branch Lodge, No. 16, of Freehold, New 
Jersey. He is also a Knight of Pythias, 
alfiliating with Summit Lodge, No. 69, 
of Freehold. He is a member of the 
Royal Arcanum, and of Keith Council, 
No. 1501, Ancient Order of United 
Workmen. He is also a Royal Arch 
Mason, and a member of Goodwyn Chap- 
ter at Manasquan. He is a Knight 
Templar, and belongs to Corson Com- 
mandery of Asbuiy Park. He is a 
worshiper at the Mj-stic Shrine, and 
holds membership in Mecca Temple at 
New York city. 

Mr. Fields was married to Miss Lena 
E., a daughter of Thomas and Isabella 
Felton, of Manasquan, on June 15, 
1880, and they have two children : Ada 
E. and Ernest. In June, 1894, after 
having become proficient in the law and 
passed a satisfactory examination, he was 
duly admitted to the bar of Monmouth 
county. He was appointed a master in 
chancery in 1895, and is also a notaiy 
public, appointed for five years. 



r^ EORGE B. HERBERT, D. D. S., a 
^^ leading dental surgeon of Mon- 
mouth county, with offices at Asbury 
Park and Manasquan, at which latter 
place he resides, was born at Marlboro, 
New Jersey. He received his education 
in the public schools, and afterwards at 
Petty Institute, at Hightstown, and sub- 
sequently graduated from the New York 
Dental College with the degree of D. D. 
S., in the class of 1888. He first located 
in the practice of dentistry at Spring 
Lake in the summer of 1888, but in 
the fall of that year located at Manas- 



quan, where he has since continued the 
active practice of his profession, in the 
meantime having established branch 
offices at Asbury Park and Ocean Grove, 
all of which he conducts at the present 
time. He has been eminently successful 
in his practice, and deserves to rank 
along with the leading dental surgeons of 
the state of New Jersey. His practice 
is a large and remunerative one. He 
occupies at Asbury Park large and com- 
modious parlors, handsomelj' appointed, 
with every convenience incident to the 
successful practice of his profession. He 
is a member of the Presbj'terian church, 
the Knights of Pythias, Knights of the 
Golden Eagle, all of Asbury Park, and 
of Hook and Ladder Fire company. No. 
1, of Manasquan, of which department 
he is vice-chief. He was united in mar- 
riage April 2, 1891, to Elizabeth DuBois 
Smock, a daughter of Uriah Smock, of 
Marlboro, and they have one child, Oliver 
C. Herbert. 



TDROF. D. E. SANFORD, the popular 
-*- and efficient principal of the Kings- 
ton Schools, New Jersey, is a son of Lyle 
and Elizabeth (Van Hise) Sauford, and 
was born May 6, 1858, at Englishtown, 
New Jersey. The Sanfords are of Eng- 
lish descent. 

The paternal grandfather of D. E. Sau- 
ford, while a young man, worked for some 
time in a tailoi'ing establishment, but after- 
wards took up the study of dentistry, which 
profession he followed with success until 
old age. In religious matters he was an 
ardent methodist, and for a number of 
years a local preacher. His wife's maiden 
name was Mary Tilton, and their chil- 
dren were : l>y\e, Rebecca, Charles, who 
was in the South during the war and was 
compelled to join the Confederate army, 



Biographical Sketches. 



1005 



but has since resided in South America, 
and at present is a multi-millionaire ; 
William A., an attorney in Trenton, and 
Annie. 

Lyle Sanford taught school while a 
young man, but afterwards studied veter- 
inary surgery and followed that profes- 
sion at Asbury Park, New Jersey, until 
his death. He was a member of the 
Presbyterian church, and, in matters 
political, was a republican. He was also a 
member of the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows. In 1889 he died, his wife 
surviving him. His children are : Daniel 
E., Garrett, a music teacher in Brooklyn ; 
Olive, married to Milton Cross ; Harry, 
Frank, Sareta, who died while young ; 
Addison and Lizzie. 

Prof. D. E. Sanford received his ele- 
mentary scholastic training in various 
public schools, and at Petty Institute at 
Hightstown, JSfew Jersey, and subse- 
quently graduated from the New Jersey 
State Normal School, at Trenton, in the 
class of '91. Having pursued in this 
institution the prescribed course arranged 
specially for the preparation of teachers, 
he soon entered upon a position. After 
having taught a number of terms at dif- 
ferent places, including one term at Tren- 
ton, he accepted the position of principal 
of the Kingston public schools, which 
position he has ably filled ever since. 
Due to Prof. Sanford's superior training, 
he is truly progressive and of enterpris- 
ing spirit, which he has imparted to the 
educational sentiment of the community 
with good results. Besides Prof. San- 
ford's absorbing educational duties, he 
finds time for the conduct of one of the 
largest poultry yards in Somerset county, 
over thirty-five hundred fowls being 
shipped from his yards annually. In 
politics he is a steadfast republican, but 



has never sought office. In 1882 he 
married Miss Mary E. Haney, a daugh- 
ter of Joseph Haney, of Asbury Park, 
New Jersey. Their children are : Fletcher, 
Lilly May, Ettie, Edward and Byron. 



/CHARLES C. WEBER, an enterprising 
^-^ member of the firm of A. Weber & 
Sons, operating the extensive plant at 
Weber, Middlesex county New Jersey, is 
a son of Adam and Katharine E. (Krei- 
scher) Weber, and was born Nov. 26, 
1857, in New York city. Charles C. 
Weber acquired a rudimentary education 
in a private school in New York city. He 
subsequently attended Grammar School 
No. 35, in the same city. He then entered 
Columbia College, where he took a course 
of three years in the classics. After 
leaving there he engaged in the manufac- 
ture of gas-retorts and firebrick, and re- 
mained in this service until his mastery 
of the business in all its details was 
thorough and complete. During this 
period he attended Packard's Business 
College in his leisure hours. In 1893 his 
plans, previously conceived, for the estab- 
lishment of a plant to manufacture fire- 
brick culminated in an association be- 
tween his father, his brother and himself, 
under the firm name of A. Weber & Sons, 
the purchase of a tract of forty acres, 
about three miles from Perth Amboy, 
New Jersey, on the line of the Lehigh 
Valley railroad, and the erection, equip- 
ment, and subsequent successful opera- 
tion of the works. Our subject assumed 
the management of these interests, and 
their present flourishing condition is due 
to his vigorous and capable application 
of sound business principles. The plant 
is situated on the old Potter homestead, 
on which a town, named Weber, has since 



1006 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



sprung up. The town's name subse- 
quentl}^ received the official sanction of 
the government by the establishment of 
a post-office there, to which the name of 
Weber was given by the postmaster- 
general. 2tlr. Weber was appointed, in 
1894, postmaster of the town of his crea- 
tion, and he is still discharging the func- 
tions of that office. 



HON. WILLIAM TABER PARKER, 
ex-assemblyman from Monmouth 
county, a prominent banker and business 
man, residing at Little Silver, that county, 
this state, is one of the best-known men 
in the political affairs within the same 
limits. He is a son of William and Mary 
(Chadwick) Parker, and was born in Lit- ■ 
tie Silver (formerly known as Town Neck), 
May 6, 1844. He was educated in the j 
public schools and Ocean Institute, at 
Ocean Port, this county. Upon leaving 
school he pursued farming and oystering, 
but upon the death of his father, two 
years later, he succeeded to the conduct 
of the farm for the ensuing three or four ; 
years, when his brother Richard became 
associated with him in its operation, 
which relation has since continued. Be- 
sides Mr. Parker's farm interests, he is a 
director in the Second National Bank at 
Red Bank, and a stockholder in vari- 
ous other flmmcial institutions. He is a 
director in the Lovett Nursery Co., own- 
ing at Little Silver the largest small-fruit 
nurser\- in the state. Politicallj- he is a 
republican, and one of the leaders of his 
party in that section of the state. Among 
the numerous positions of honor and trust 
his party has honored him with are the 
following : surveyor of highways for a 
number of years ; member of board of 
township commissioners for several years, 



and for twelve years as chairman of the 
board, and down to the present time. 
He was a member of the general assem- 
bly of the state of New Jersey, during 
the sessions of 1891-2 and 1892-3, and 
as a member of which introduced the 
famous " Race Track Bill," commonly 
referred to as the " Parker Race Track 
Bill," during the session of 1891-2. He 
was reelected to the next session, during 
which, after a hard-fought battle on the 
assembly floor, he succeeded in getting 
his bill passed, the text of which is as 
follows : . 

" Assembly Bill No. 299, entitled ' An 
Act concerning the maintaining of the 
race course in the state of New Jersey, 
to provide for the licensing and regulatr 
ing the same.' No. 300, entitled, 'An 
Act to provide that betting and the prac- 
tice of betting, commonly known as book- 
making, upon horse races within the 
enclosed grounds of any incorporation, 
association or body in this state, or the 
keeping of a place or places within such 
grounds to which persons may resort for 
such betting, shall not constitute anj' 
misdemeanor or criminal offence, when 
such association or incorporated body is 
not indictable for the carrying on said 
races therein.' No. 301, Supplement to 
an act entitled, 'An Act for the pun- 
ishment of crimes.' (Revision.) Approved 
March 27, 1894." 

This was one of the most important 
measures ever passed by that body, and 
excited much discussion and interest 
throughout the state. His successful 
championship of this popular measure 
gave him a wide reputation, and brought 
him into prominence and favor through- 
out the state. He was always most 
active and aggressive in legislative dis- 
cussions, and much respected even by his 




/f<>MiJu^o^^^ ^*(/, y ^ 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



1009 



political opponents. He served during 
his first term on the committees of agri- 
culture and federal relations ; and during 
his second term on fisheries, incidental 
expenses, and lunatic asylum committees. 
Fraternally he is a member of Red Bank 
Lodge, No. 233, B. P. 0. E., and the A. 
0. U. A. M. He married on October 3, 
1866, Miss Amanda Lippincott, a daugh- 
ter of George Lippincott, of Little Silver, 
and their children are : Susan, Jessie 
(wife of Henry Crosby of New York city), 
Sadie L., and Frances M. 

Mr. Parker resides in a handsome 
home, of modern style of architecture 
and design, at Little Silver, in the enjoy- 
ment of well-earned comfort and ease. 
As a farmer he is progressive and enter- 
prising, making a study of agricultural 
pursuits on scientific and economic prin- 
ciples. Personally he is congenial and 
popular, and is one of the most influential 
men of his community. 

The Parker family is of English origin, 
and the name during the three centuries 
since its advent into the state of New 
Jersey, has become so interwoven with 
the historical fibre of the state, that the}' 
have almost a common history. 

William Parker, grandfather of Wil- 
liam Taber Parker, was a son of " Rich 
Billy " Parker, who was a wealthy cattle- 
dealer and slaughterer, and a member of 
the Society of Friends. The former was 
a farmer near Eatontown, Monmouth 
county, where he owned large tracts of 
land. He married a Miss Corlies, and 
had a family of five children. 

William Parker (father) was born at 
Eatontown, but removed to Little Silver 
in 1837, where he resided upon a farm 
up to his death in 1861. He was engaged 
in farming and butchering, and was fam- 
iliarly styled "Butcher Rillv." Politi- 

53 



cally he was a whig, and religiously a 
member of the Society of Friends. He 
married Miss Lydia L., a daughter of 
Rev. Taber Chadwick, one of the early 
local preachers of the Methodist Ejoiscopal 
church in New Jersej'. His children 
are : William Taber, Elizabeth (the wife 
of Dr. Benjamin F. King, of Little Silver), 
and Richard, a farmer of the same place. 



TTUGH RAMSAY, one of the most pros- 
-'--^ perous ship-builders of the United 
States, an extensive real-estate owner, 
and a very influential citizen of Perth 
Amboy, New Jersey, was born, Feb. 8, 
1833, at Prince Edward Island. He re- 
ceived a common-school education in tbe 
schools of the island, and at an earlj' age 
entered his father's ship-yard as an ap- 
prentice. He proved very apt, and when 
only twenty-two years old he built a ves- 
sel, under his own personal direction, 
which he took to England and sold. 
Upon his return he formed a business 
partnership with his father and brothers, 
which proved so pleasant and profit- 
able that it continued until their father 
retired on account of old age. The sons 
then assumed the entire responsibilit}^ of 
the business, which the}' conducted for 
three years. The partnership was then 
dissolved, and each of the brothers en- 
gaged in business for himself. After Mr. 
Ramsay had built ships by contract 
for a time, he associated himself with 
Yeo's Ship-Building Co., of Prince Ed- 
ward Island, and at the expiration of 
eight years went into business again 
on his own account, in which he con- 
tinued until 1878, when he sold all his 
interests at Prince Edward Island, and 
removed to Perth Amboy. Here he se- 
cured several contracts from the Bee 



1010 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



Liiu' Transportation Co. for building a 
luunber of vessels, but shortly afterward 
k-a.sed their shii>yard, and within the 
next twelve year.^s built over forty ves- 
.sels for them. In 1891 he jiurchased the 
large ship-yards which he now owns, oc- 
cupying about seven acres of land, hav- 
ing a water-front of four hundred and 
sixty leet. The plant comprises a ma- 
chine shop, plate and angle shop, black- 
smith shop, store-rooms, and numerous 
other buildings, and has a capacity and 
facilities for building and launching the 
largest ships. Since its purchase, Mr. 
Ramsay has consti-ucted one hundred and 
nineteen vessels, seven steamboats, and 
sixty barges, launching as many as thirty 
in a single year, and keeping several hun- 
dred men constantlj' employed. As an 
evidence of Mr. Ramsay's skill as a ship- 
builder and practical knowledge of the 
business, it is worthy of comment that 
he has personally launched every vessel 
he has built, without a single accident. 

Mr. Ramsay's political views are lib- 
eral. In local matters he invariably 
votes for the best man, but in national 
politics he is a republican. While in 
Prince Edward Island he joined the ma- 
scmic fraternity, but has never transferred 
his membership from Alexandria Lodge, 
No. 983, to which he belonged. He is 
also an active member of the Presb3^te- 
rian church, and has been elected an hon- 
orary member of the local fire conipau}'. 
He married Miss Mary Jane Lawson, and 
their union has been bles.sed by the birth 
of ten children : Amy E., Oliver, Dr. 
William Earnest, Lawson, Hugh Vernon, 
Fjouise, Bertha, Ella, John, deceased ; and 
Hell, deceased. 

The Ramsay family is of English ori- 
gin. The grandfather of the subject of 
this sketcii, Martin Ramsay, was born in 



Scotland, and came to this country with 
his two brothers, having joined a colony 
under Colonel Stewart, who had received 
a large grant of land for services ren- 
dered in the English army. By some 
mismanagement the colonists were landed 
on Prince Edward Island, where the 
Ramsaj' family made a permanent settle- 
ment, and the name is a common one 
there at the present time. After passing 
through manjr vicissitudes, Martin Ram- 
say secured employment on a farm, where 
he prospered. Becoming a land-owner, 
he took a prominent rank in public af- 
fairs. He was elected a member of the 
first parliament at Charlottetown, and he 
was obliged to walk forty miles on snow-- 
shoes through the woods to attend its 
sessions. He was happily married to a 
Miss Graham, and their union was 
blessed by a family of nine children : 
Donald, John, father; Charles, Archi- 
bald, James, Ellen, Margaret, Jennie, 
and Mary. 

John Ramsay, Hugh Ramsay's father, 
was borii at Prince Edward Island, where 
he received his education. He engaged 
in the business of ship-building, which 
he followed all his life. He was a strict 
business man, and markedly successful. 
His children were : Jennie, Isabel, Cath- 
arine, Mary, John, Donald, Hugh, and 
George. 



TTON. BENJAMIN T. HOWELL, repre- 
-L- L sentative in Congress from the 
Third district of New Jersey, and a prom- 
inent financier in New Brunswick, Mid- 
dlesex county, that state, is a son of 
Edmund and Hannah (Nixon) Howell. 
He was born Jan. 27, 1844, in Cumber- 
land county. New Jersey, and is of Hol- 
land-Dutch extraction. 

Benjamin T. Howell attended the Ce- 



Biographical Sketches. 



1011 



darville public schools, where he received 
a good English education, and subse- 
quently took a course of instruction at 
the Fort Edward Institute, at Fort Ed- 
ward, N. Y., and was graduated from the 
commercial department. He continued 
his studies in other branches, however, 
until the summer vacation of 1862, and 
while at home he enlisted, Aug. 4th of 
that year, in the Twelfth New Jersey 
infantry, in the war of the Rebellion. 
He was engaged in active service with 
the Army of the Potomac under General 
Hancock, and was at the battles of Chan- 
cellorsville and Gettysburg, besides par- 
ticipating in several engagements of minor 
importance. At Gettysburg he was struck 
by a piece of shell, receiving a slight 
wound. He was mustered out of the ser- 
vice July 12, 1865, at Trenton, New 
Jersejf, whence he went to South Am- 
boy and engaged in business with his 
brother, E. 0. Howell. For several 
years they conducted an extensive busi- 
ness under the name of Howell & Bro., 
dealing in coal, lumber and general mer- 
chandise. He subsequently purchased 
his brother's interest and conducted the 
business alone up to 1879, when he sold 
out. In 1882 Mr. Howell was elected 
surrogate of Middlesex county, and, 
after ably filling the position for five 
years, was re-elected for a second term of 
like duration. Prior to this he had 
served in various township offices at 
New Brunswick, as member of the board 
of chosen freeholders, member of the 
township committee, etc. He was elected 
president of the People's National Bank 
of New Brunswick at its organization, to 
which office he has since been annually 
re elected. In 1888 he assisted in the 
organization of the First National Bank 
of South Amboy, of which he has been 



a director and the vice-president, in close 
association with president Henry C. Per- 
rine, ever since. In 1891 Mr. Howell 
was elected a director and member of 
the board of managers of the New 
Brunswick Savings Bank, in which posi- 
tion he is a prominent member of the 
funding committee. In 1894 he was 
elected on the Eepublican ticket to 
represent the Third district in congress, 
and was re-elected in 1896. He is a 
valuable and efl&cient member, and rep- 
resents the commercial, industrial and 
manufacturing interests, and represents 
them faithfully and intelligently ; faith- 
fully, because he is not in sympathj^ with 
political pettifoggery, and intelligently, 
because, being a thorough man of busi- 
ness, he knows the needs of his constitu- 
ents, and of the country. Had we more 
practical men like Representative Howell 
in Congress, and fewer theorists, the na- 
tion would suffer fewer complications in 
its political economy. Mr. Howell is a 
member of Janeway Post, G. A. R., Free 
and Accepted Masons, Knights of Pyth- 
ias, and of the First Presbyterian church, 
all at New Brunswick. 

He was united in marriage Jan. 27, 
1869, to Amelia Furman, and to this 
union was born one child, Mary A., wife 
of H. V. M. Denis, Jr., Esq., a practicing 
attorney at the New York bar, residing 
in New Brunswick. 



TDROF. WILLIAM CAMPBELL, the 

-L popular and efficient superintend- 
! ent of the South River public schools, is 

a native of the Emerald Isle, born near 

Belfast, April 20, 1859. 

His father, William Campbell, died 
I in Ireland ; and his mother, Mary Camp- 
i bell {nee McLaughlin), who still survives, 
■ resides with him. 



1U12 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



Prof. Campbell attended the publig 
schools of his native country, and in 
1875 and 76 the Dublin Training College. 
Though his scholastic training was limi- 
ted to but a few years, he is a man of 
strong intellectual parts and scholarly 
attainments, the result of j-ears of close 
study and diligent research. Iramediatelj- 
after leaving college he accepted a posi- 
tion as instructor in the government 
schools at Glasgow, Scotland. So effi- 
cient and so satisfactory was his work 
here that he retained this position eleven 
years. In 1887 he resigned, to come to the 
United States, landing in New York city. 
In 1888 he was elected sujDerintendent 
of the schools of South River, New Jer- 
sey, and he has since filled that position 
with credit to himself and satisfaction 
to his patrons. During this time the 
schools have been materially improved. 
Prof Campbell is a progressive teacher, 
who keeps thoroughly abreast of the 
latest advances in public-school education. 
He possesses good executive abilitj', 
shows tact in supervision and an ample 
scholarship for the maintenance of a high 
educational standard in the schools of 
South River. He is a member of Wash- 
ington Engine Company, No. 1 ; Lodge 
No. 28, K. of P., of which he is ex- 
chancellor ; Independent Order of Red 
Men, of which he is past grand sachem ; 
New Brunswick Lodge, No. 329, B. P. 
0. of E., and other secret and fraternal 
organizations. He is also manager of 
the South River Dramatic Club, and of 
the Board of County School Examiners. 



TOXIN J. DEITCHE, one of the enter- 
^ prising and most successful mer- 
chants of Perth Amboy and Middlesex 
county, New Jersey, is a son of Michael 



and Mary A. Deitclie, late of Metuchen, 
New Jerse}', where he was born on Jan. 
22, 1850. 

His ancestry traces from the Teutonic 
source and is clearly indicated by the 
name. Michael Deitche (father) was an 
upright and straightforward man, and a 
farmer by occupation at Metuchen, New 
Jersey, all his life. He was a quiet, un- 
assuming man, ever following the even 
tenor of his way, doing that which he 
had to do in a proper and systematic 
manner, and to the full satisfaction of 
himself as well as others. He was uni- 
versally regarded and respected by his 
neighbors as an honorable and strictly 
conscientious man, and worthy of their 
esteem. He was a democrat in politics, 
and a member of the Presbyterian church 
at Metuchen. As a politician he was 
but a silent factor, and as a church worker 
his influence was of the gentler sort, that 
which is so well represented by " the 
widow's mite." He gave not only all he 
had, but the sympathies of the heai't 
went out with it in silent praj^er. He 
died at Metuchen, leaving five children : 
John J., our subject ; August, since de- 
ceased; L , also deceased; Etta, mar- 
ried to Henry Pettit ; and Mary E. 

John J. Deitche, our subject, was edu- 
cated in the public schools of New Jer- 
sey, and at an early age entered the store 
of Mr. John Clarkson as a clerk, where 
he spent five years. Here he had also 
charge of the post-office, Mr. Clarkson be- 
ing the postmaster of the village. He 
then canie to Perth Amboy and engaged 
in the grocery business as a clerk, where 
he continued for the next three years. 
At this time he decided to enter business 
on liis own account, and forming a part- 
nership with a gentleman of some means, 
began doing business at the present stand. 



Biographical Sketches. 



1013 



They continued thus associated until the 
end of two years, when his partner with- 
drew from the firm; since which time 
Mr. Deitche has conducted the business 
himself, and is enjoying the largest trade 
in his line of any house in Perth Aniboy. 
Mr. Deitche is an active and energetic busi- 
ness man, attends closely to the minutest 
details of his business, and is constantly 
alive to the interests of his patrons. He 
is a director of the Citizens' Building and 
Loan Association of Perth Amboy, and 
is also interested in three other similar 
institutions. He is an ardent republican 
in politics, and is at present an alderman 
in the Second ward of Perth Amboy. 
He is a consistent member of the Pres- 
byterian church of Perth Amboy, and is 
actively alive to the calls of Christian 
work and duty. He is also the faithful 
superintendent of the Sunday-school con- 
nected with the church, and in which he 
is very deeply intei-ested. He is also a 
member of the fraternal order of Knights 
of Pythias, as well as of the Independ- 
ent Order of Odd Fellows, in both of 
which organizations he is highly esteemed 
for his many excellent qualities of mind 
and heart. He married, on Oct. 22, 
1875, Miss Isabella Hearny, and they 
have had five children: Frank J., now 

deceased ; A , Ella, John Lester, and 

Millie Stewart. 



TTON. A.V. SCHEJNCK, the oldest mem- 
-L-L ber of the Middlesex county bar 
and ex-president of the New Jersey sen- 
ate, is a son of Henry H. and Eve (Van 
Voorhees) Schenck, and was born at 
New Brunswick in 1821. He was edu- 
cated at New Brunswick, read law with 
Henry V. Speer, and was admitted to the 
bar in 1843. He entered upon the prac- 
tice of his profession at New Brunswick, 



where he has continued for a periodof fifty- 
three years. During this time he has 
won a prominent position as a lawyer, 
and has been engaged in many of the 
most important cases tried at that bar, 
some of the more notable of which are 
the following : The case of the chosen 
freeholders of Middlesex county against 
the receiver of the state bank at New 
Brunswick, in which Mr. Schenck repre- 
sented the receiver against Attorney 

I General Stockton for the state. In this 
case the question of the prerogative right 

', of the state of New Jersey to priority of 
payment was raised, and finally decided 
against such right of the state. Another 
important case was that of the state 
against Hart Moore, who was indicted 
for embezzlement as county collector, in 
which Mr. Schenck was counsel for the 
defendant, who was convicted on one 
indictment, but acquitted on another. 
The judgment of conviction was carried 
by writ of error to the supreme court. 
Chief Justice Beasley rendered the opin- 
ion of the supreme court, affirming the 
judgment of the lower court, whereupon 

i Mr. Schenck carried this judgment to the 

! court of errors and appeals, which re- 

! versed the judgments of both of the lower 
courts. This was one of the most im- 
portant decisions ever rendered in the 
state of New Jersey, and Mr. Schenck's 

I argument before the court of errors and 
appeals is said to have been one of the 
ablest ever made before that tribunal. 
Another important case in which Mr. 
Schenck was interested, was that of the 
state against Robert G. Miller, collector 
for the city of New Brunswick, indicted 

I for embezzlement, in which Mr. Schenck 
appeared as one of the counsel for the 
defendant. After a long and tedious 
trial the defendant was acquitted. An- 



1014 



Biographical Sketches. 



other was that of the state against Fox, ' 
ii) which tlie much-vexed question was 
raised and settled by the judgment of the 
supreme court, that the fact of a juror 
having formed or expressed an opinion as 
to the guilt or innocence of the accused, 
founded upon his knowledge of the facts, 
or upon information supposed to be true, 
does not constitute good cause of chal- 
lenge. Mr. Schenck is a strong pleader, 
an able advocate and a careful counsellor. 
Politically he is a republican, and served 
in the New Jersey senate during the 
year 1883, 1884 and 1885, and as presi- 
dent of the senate during his last term. 
While in that body he served on the 
special senate committee, consisting of 
John W. Griggs, William Brinckerhoff' 
and Mr. Schenck, which committee re- 
ported the present law providing for the 
taxation of railroad and canal property 
in the state of New Jersey, which Avas 
approved April 10, 1884. Mr. Schenck 
drafted personally some of the more im- 
portant sections of that law, and was 
prominent and aggressive in securing its 
passage. The Schenck family is of Hol- 
land origin, and iNIr. Schenck, by reason 
of such descent, is a member of the Hol- 
land Societj' of New York, and has served 
as vice-president of that society for Mid- 
dlesex county. He is also a member of 
the New Jersey Society of the Sons of 
the American Revolution, the Schencks 
having been noted patriots during the 
war of the Revolution. Mr. Schenck 
was district attorney, or prosecutor of the 
pleas, for Middlesex county Irom 1872 
to 1877, and was mayor of the city of 
New Brunswick in 1851. He has been, 
througliout a long and successful career, 
intimately identified with the bar of his 
native state, of which he is one of the 
leading members. 



CHARLES HARVEY, Esq., a represen- 
tative member of the Monmouth 
county bar, New Jersey, practicing at 
Oceanic, is a son of Samuel and Lydia 
(Van Note) Harvey, and was born July 
10, 1858, at Atlantic Highlands. He re- 
ceived his educational training in the 
public schools of that place until he had 
attained the age of twenty j'ears, when 
he entered Columbia Law School in 1887, 
graduating therefrom in 1888. He then 
located at Asbury Park, associated with 
his brother, David Harvey, Jr., in his of- 
fice, with whom he remained until July, 
1892. He then opened his present office 
at Atlantic Highlands, where he has con- 
tinued in the successful practice of his 
profession ever since. His practice is of 
a general character, but he prefers civil 
practice as more congenial to his taste. 
He enjoys an extensive clientage, and has 
been quite successful. He resides with 
his mother on the old homestead at 
Oceanic, where he is secretary and was 
one of the organizers of the village im- 
provement society, organized for the de- 
velopment of real-estate propert}^ in the 
town, and in the success of which he has 
been an important factor. Politically he 
is a democrat and a strict party man, 
while religiously he is a member of the 
Presbyterian church. His fraternal rela- 
tions consist in membership of the Na- 
rurasunk Tribe, No. 142, Improved Order 
of Red Men, of which he has been past 
sachem. 

(For ancestral history see sketch of 
David Harvey, Jr., found on page 352.) 



TpBENEZER S. NESBIT, of the firm of 
-*~^ Irwin & Nesbit, a prominent hard- 
ware concern of Sea Bright, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is a son of William 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



1015 



H. and Julia (Conover) Nesbit, and was 
born at New Market, Middlesex county, 
New Jersey, Dec. 15, 1857. He received 
his education in the public schools of 
Farmingdale, Monmouth county, this 
state, and subsequently for three years 
was engaged in the bakery business at 
Ocean Grove. In 1879 he came to Sea 
Bright, where for three years he was 
assistant agent in the employ of the New 
Jersey Central railroad at that place. 
He afterwards became a clerk in the 
hardware store of P. H. Packer, at Sea 
Bright, with whom he continued until 
1883, when he formed his present part- 
nership with L. G. Irwin, under the style 
of Irwin & Nesbit, and established their 
present general hardware business there. 
They have prospered in their business, 
and are now enjoying an extensive 
trade. Politically, Mr. Nesbit is a republi- 
can, and enthusiastic in the interests of 
the success of the party, but in no sense 
an office-seeker. He has, however, served 
continuously for six years as a member 
of the town council, and is also treasurer 
at the present time, having served in 
that capacity for a like term. John Nes- 
bit (grandfather) was for the greater por- 
tion of his life a resident of near Freehold, 
Monmouth county, New Jersey, although 
a native of Ireland, where he was born; 
he came to the United States when a 
small boy. He was a miller by trade, an 
occupation which he followed through 
life. He married a lady of Scotch de- 
scent, who bore him a family of eight 
children, four sons and four daughters, 
one of whom was William H. Nesbit, the 
father of Ebenezer S. Nesbit. He was 
born at Freehold in 1827, and died at 
Farmingdale, Monmouth county, New 
Jersey, in Oct., 1876, in which vicinity 
he had resided for fifteen years prior. 



He was a miller by trade, which he fol- 
lowed most of his life, latterly, however, 
becoming engaged in bridge building. 
He was a staunch republican, and was 
the choice of his party on one occasion 
for assembly, but was defeated by a small 
majority. He held the various local 
offices in Howell township, as assessor 
and as member of various committees, 
etc. He married Miss Julia Conover, a 
daughter of Ebenezer Conover, of New 
Market, but later removed, in 1867, to 
the west, and died in Illinois. William 
H. Nesbit had a family of the following 
children : Charles R. L., William V., 
Belle v., the wife of Halstead Wainright, 
a prominent member of the Monmouth 
county bar, practicing at Manasquan, 
where he resides ; Ebenezer S., James I., 
Mar}^ E., wife of William Hewlitt, of 
Long Branch; Lincoln G., Clarence D., 
and Harry. 

Ebenezer S. Nesbit married C. Minerva, 
a daughter of Thomas G. Armstrong, of 
Sea Bright, Monmouth county, Nov. 27, 
1884. This happj- union has been blessed 
with one child : Ivah, who was born May 
30, 1887. 



"DETER A. ATKINSON, a leading gro- 
-'- cer and a prominent citizen of New 
Brunswick, Middlesex county, this state, 
is a son of M. D. and Harriett (Stryker) 
Atkinson, and was born near Raritan, 
Somerset county. New Jersey, in 1850. 
He received his elementary educational 
training in the common schools, and in 
1861, for the first time, entered upon his 
hitherto successful occupation of the 
grocery business. In this he has con- 
tinued ever since, and enjoys a large 
and profitable trade at his present loca- 
tion at New Brunswick, where he is not 
only a leading grocer, but is also one of 



lUlG 



Biographical Sketches. 



the most prominent men of ufl'airs in that 
city. In connection with his mercantile 
business he has, at dift'erent times, been 
interested in various other industrial 
enterprises, having l)een once interested 
in the ice-cream business, and in the year 
1890 established his present livery at 
New Brunswick. He is state treasurer 
of the Grocers' Association of New Jer- 
sey, and is a director in the electric light 
company of New Brunswick. Frater- 
nally he is a memljer of the Independent 
'Order of Odd Fellows, the Junior Order 
of United American Mechanics and the 
Washington Society. Politically he is a 
staunch democrat, and served as an alder- 
man of New Brunswick for four years, in 
which capacity as well as in his various 
other relations to the city he has served 
in many respects as one of its benefactors; 
and it can be truly said that to him is 
due the credit for having contributed as 
much to the progress and enterpi'ise of 
his town and community as any other 
man. His grandfather was John Atkin- 
son, who was a farmer and blacksmith by 
occupation, as was also his son M. D., a 
farmer as well as a hotel-keeper at one 
time at Somerville, New Jersey. His 
children were : John, Kate, Elizabeth, 
Martha, ^lary, Sarah, William, Sophia, 
Rachel and Laura. 



"P HALL PACKER, a well-known busi- 
-^ • ness man of Sea Bright, Mon- 
mouth county, but more particularly con- 
spicuous in the political affairs of his 
county and state, was born at Neshanic, 
Somerset county, Xew Jersey, July 13, 
1853. He is the tliird son of William 
B. and Mary A. Packer. He remained 
with his father on the farm until eigiiteen 
years of age, attending the Montgomery 



public school and assisting his father on 
the farm. In 1874 he became associated 
with his uncle in the contracting busi- 
ness at Long Branch, and in 1876 lo- 
cated at Sea Bright in the lumber busi- 
ness with Cloughly Brothers, with whona 
he remained until 1879. He then pur- 
chased the hardware and tin-roofing 
business of W. H. Cooper at Sea Bright, 
with a branch at Atlantic Highlands, 
where he became one of the first pro- 
moters in the opening of that well-known 
resort. In 1882 he sold out the business 
to Messrs. Irwin and Nesbit, who still 
conduct it. On Dec. 16, 1881, he founded 
the Sentinel at Sea Girt, and was its edi- 
tor and publisher for seven years. In 
his first-named position, he gave diligent 
application of his pen to a vigorous ad- 
vocacy of various municipal improve- 
ments, such as good roads, street lights, 
sanitary improvement, establishing of the 
Sea Bright Beach Club, the erection of 
the town hall and jail, the engine house, 
and many other substantial and material 
improvements ; and, as a citizen, has al- 
ways been interested in all the enter- 
prises of this little city-by-the-sea. The 
present elegantly-equipped fire company, 
the property of which is worth nearly 
ten thousand dollars, is justly credited to 
the efforts and energy of Mr. Packer. 
Politically, he is one of the best-known 
republicans in the state, and an untiring 
worker in the ranks of that party. He 
was the first to organize a republican club 
at Sea Girt, and has served as its presi- 
dent for sixteen years. In 1893 he was 
elected justice of the peace of Ocean 
township, and the only republican elected 
on the ticket. He was appointed by Gov. 
David B. Hill and re-appointed b}^ Gov- 
ernor Morton, as commissioner of deeds 
; of New York state, and was appointed a 




<::::c-C^ I ^c^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



1019 



notary public for New Jersey by Gover- 
nor Abbett. He was one who was chiefly 
instrumental in securing the extension 
by the New Jersey Telephone Co., of its ' 
lines to Monmouth county, thirteen years 
ago, and has ever since continued as the 
company's manager. He has also been 
manager of the Sea Bright, New York • 
and New Jersey telephone exchange 
since 1873. He has served four terms as 
a member of the council of Sea Bright, 
was unanimously chosen mayor of the 
borough in 1895, and again in 1896, and 
the same year was a candidate for state 
senator. While thus active, industrially | 
and politically, he is equally prominent 
in fraternal relations, having been the , 
founder of Ashland Council, Jr. 0. U. A. 
M., and for several years was its repre- 
sentative in the grand council in the 
state, and in 1893 was elected grand 
vice-councillor, and the following year 
grand state councillor of New Jersey. 
During his administration, he instituted 
thirty-five new councils, and received 
into the order eight thousand two hun- 
dred and forty members, making the best 
record ever made in a similar position. 
As commander-in-chief of the twenty- 
five thousand Juniors, he has become 
well known and much honored and re- 
spected by its members throughout the 
state. He is an active member of Sea- 
side Lodge, K. of P., a past-chancellor 
commander, is the present chairman of 
their present board of trustees, and a 
member of the grand lodge of New Jer- 
sey. Personally Mr. Packer is of broad 
mind and sympathetic nature, being a 
liberal subscriber to all benevolent pur- 
poses, and alwaj's ready to lend a helping 
hand to the deserving. He is one of 
Monmouth county's most able and sub- 
stantial men, and an active participant in 



all the affairs of his town and county. 
He is popular and highly respected. 

The Packer family is of English ori- 
gin, and was founded in America by two 
brothel's, Asa and Jacob J., who emi- 
grated to this country in early colonial 
days. Asa, who settled in Pennsyl- 
vania, was the progenitor of Judge Asa 
Packer, an able jurist, who at one tima 
owned the Lehigh Yalley railroad and 
large anthracite coal interests. Jacob, 
the direct lineal ancestor of P. Hall 
Packer, settled in Connecticut. One of 
his sons, Jacob, was the great-grand- 
father, and lived and died in that state. 
Ezekiel, a son, was the grandfather of our 
subject, and was also a life-long resident 
of Connecticut, where he was engaged in 
agricultural pursuits until his death. 
He was a devout christian, having offici- 
ated as a local preacher of the old Dutch 
church. His children, consisting of six 
in number, were : Adam Bellis, still liv- 
ing at the age of ninety-two; Ezekiel, 
dead ; Jacob J., mayor and postmaster of 
Glenndale, Ohio; William Bellis, Abra- 
ham, and Letitia, deceased. 

William Bellis (father) was born at 
Somerville, New Jersey, in 1816, and 
there grew to manhood. He subse- 
quently purchased a farm at Neshanic, 
Somerset county, where he continued in 
the successful pursuit of agriculture until 
1877, when he sold his farm interests and 
retired to reside at Newark, with his son. 
Judge Jacob J. He had made a specialty 
of peach-growing, in which he was suc- 
cessful, and became possessed of consid- 
erable means. He was as staunch a 
democrat as his son is a republican, and 
took an active interest in the local politi- 
cal affairs of his township, having filled 
all the various positions, as freeholder, 
etc. He was a member of the German 



1020 



Biographical Sketches. 



Reformed church and a strict temperance | 
man, and died in 1875. His children 
were : Jacob J., an extensive dealer in 
western grain, and a judge of the jus- 
tice court at Newark, New .Terse}'; 
Sophia, the wife of Isaac P. Mannon, of 
Long Branch ; P. Hall ; Ezekiel, a farmer 
residing near Neshanic, Somerset county, 
.where he owns two good farms ; and 
John J., deceased. . 



Kate Miller, on Aug. 17, 187.3, and who 
died Oct. 6, 1893, was blessed with two 
children, Anna and Eddie. 

The Kenner family is of German 
origin, as the name indicates. Leonard 
Kenner, father of John G. Kenner, was 
a farmer by occupation. His children 
were : Leonard, deceased ; John, Calvin, 
deceased ; Leonard, and Mary. 



TOHN G. KENNER, a well-known 
^ saloon keeper at Somerville, New 
Jersey, is a son of Leonard Kenner, and 
was born Sept. 1, 1850, in Wittenburg, 
Germany. He received a common-school 
education, but hy observation and wide 
experience has since become a man of 
considerable intelligence and a wide 
range of information. At the age of eighth 
een years he went to Philadelphia, where 
he became a clerk in a book store for a ' 
short time, and then learned the butcher 
trade, but subsequently' removed to 
Trenton and became foreman in a pack- 
ing house there, and afterwards in a 
similar position at New Brunswick. Li 
1874 he went to Raritan, New Jersey, j 
and engaged in sausage making, and 
afterwards in the butcher business at that 
place. He then spent two years in 
the butcher business at Raritan, Avhen 
he came to Somerville and established 
his present business. He is an active 
democrat politically, having served as 
justice of the peace for five years, and at 
one time as notary public. Fraternally 
he is a member of the Improved Order of 
Red Men, the Knights of Pythias, the 
Knights of Honor, and the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, and a past mas- 
ter in all the foregoing lodges except the 
lastruamed. His marriage relation with 



WHITNEY F. WILLIAMS, a leading 
contractor and builder, operating 
under the style of Prichard & Williams, 
at Sea Bright, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Jacob C. and Eliza J. 
Williams, and was born at Long Branch, 
the above county and state, March 7, 
1855. He received his education in the 
public schools, and subsequently learned 
the carpenter trade, and later became a 
foreman for his preceptor, Charles Jef- 
fries, in whose employ he remained two 
years. He then was in the employ 
of Emery & Zimmerman for two 3'ears, 
and subsequentl}' with various other 
firms until 1888, when he entered the 
employ of Hon. Charles L. Walters, with 
whom he continued as foreman for seven 
years, at Sea Bright. On June 28, 1894, 
he entered into a partnership with John 
G. Prichard, under the firm name and 
style of Prichard & Williams, contractors 
and builders at Sea Bright, since when 
they have built up a substantial and rap- 
idly increasing business. He is vice- 
president and a director in the State Mu- 
tual Building and Loan Association of 
New Jersey at Oceanic. Fraternally he 
is a member of Seaside Lodge, No. 47, 
K. of P. ; Narumsunk Tribe, No. 148, 
Improved Order of Red Men ; and Ash- 
land Council, No. 28, Junior Order United 
American Mechanics. He is a member 



Biographical Sketches. 



1021 



of the Hay-Makers' Association, and first 
sachem and chief hay-maker, as well as 
a member of Naramatta Council, No. 23, 
of Pocahontas, and an ex-president of 
the Oceanic fire department. He takes 
an intelligent interest in politics, but is 
not especially active. He is a democrat, 
and a member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church of Oceanic, where he has re- 
sided since 1875, but does business at Sea 
Bright. 

The Williams family is of Welsh ex- 
traction, and Peter Williams, grandfather 
of Whitney F. Williams, lived the greater 
part of his life at Long Branch, New 
Jersey, where he died in 1853, aged sixty 
years. By occupation he was a life-long 
fisherman, and to his marriage relation 
were born five children, four sons and one 
daughter. One of these was Jacob Wil- 
liams, who was born in Long Branch 
May 4, 1828, and has there resided nearly 
all his life, pursuing the occupation of 
his father, in connection with which he 
served as a member of the life-saving ser- 
vice for a number of years, at Station 
No. 1, at Sandy Hook ; also at Station 
No. 5, at Long Branch, being captain 
of a boat's crew at the former in 1872-73. 
He was drafted in the late civil war, but 
sent a substitute into the service, and 
during this period was engaged in the 
transportation of oysters from the Chesa- 
peake bay to Philadelphia. He is a dem- 
ocrat in politics, and a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. His chil- 
dren consist of five in number, three 
sons and two daughters, who grew to ma- 
turity, as follows : Whitney F., Lina, the 
wife of Daniel Coles, of Long Branch ; 
Charles E., a carpenter and builder, re- 
siding at Long Branch ; Louis R., ex- 
postmaster at Long Branch ; Susie E., 
the wife of Harry Seibel, residing at 



Long Branch, where he is the assistant 
postmaster. 

Whitney F. Williams was happily mar- 
ried to Jennie E. Seamen, a daughter of 
George A. Seamen, of Oceanic, Mon- 
mouth county, on Jan. 1, 1878, and they 
have had two children to grow up. 



A MZI McLEAN POSTEN, a leading 
-^-^ undertaker and embalmer, of Mon- 
mouth county, located at Atlantic High- 
lands, was born at Navesink, that county, 
Sept. 12, 1858. He received his educa- 
tional training in the public schools of his 
native village, and then remained with 
his father for ten years, assisting him at 
the blacksmith trade. He subsequently 
became in the employ of A. T. Taylor & 
Co., well-known undertakers of New York 
city, where he first conceived the idea of 
his future occupation. He afterward 
graduated from the Massachusetts em- 
balming school, where he became thorough 
in his knowledge of his business, and 
then located on his own account, in 1885, 
in the successful pursuit of his profession 
at Navesink. In 1891 he located at his 
present situation, at Atlantic Highlands, 
where he has enjoyed prosperity and has 
been eminently successful, due in a large 
measure to the valuable experience he 
had while in the employ of such an under- 
taking establishment as the A. T. Tay- 
lor & Co., and his subsequent pursuit at 
a leading institution of technical train- 
ing in the same. In connection with 
his undertaking parlors he conducts as a 
usual adjunct a successful upholstering 
and furniture business. Politically he is 
a democrat, and in 1890 was elected cor- 
oner of Monmouth county, serving three 
years. In the spring of 1896 he was 
elected a member from Middletown town- 



1022 



Biographical Sketches. 



ship to the Monmouth county board of 
freeholders, in whicli capacity he is serv- 
ing at the present time, and as a member 
of which he has been specially active and | 
useful in the work of the board. He is 
a member of the Central Baptist church 
of Atlantic Highlands, and in educational 
matters he takes a warm interest. He is 
a member of the Navesink fire depart- 
ment as well as the hook and ladder com- 
jjany, and is treasurer of the Exempt 
Fire Relief Association. Fraternally he 
is a member of Anchor Lodge, No. 218, 
I. 0. 0. F., a past officer of the Encamp- 
ment of Atlantic Highlands, a member of 
the Knights of Pjthias, the Royal Ai'ca- 
nura, and Monmouth Council, Sr. order 
of 0. U. A. M. 

To his marriage with Miss Kate Lewis, 
a daughter of William Lewis, a well- 
known citizen of Monmouth county, have 
been born the following children: William 
Henry, Hazel, Herbert, and Amzi H. 
Mr. Posten enjo_ys the confidence of his 
community to a high degree, and is highly 
respected as an enterprising, progressive 
.and useful citizen in the various move- 
ments of enterprise brought forward in 
his town or county contributing to the 
public good. He is popular and well | 
known throughout the county. j 



TOHN C. BRILL, a veteran of the late 
^ civil war, a well-known house and 
sign painter, and a prominent citizen of 
Fair Haven, Monmouth county, N. J., is 
a son of Philip and Anna M. (Snyder) 
Brill, and was born in Jersey Cit}^ Hud- 
son county. New Jersey, Sept. 22, 1844. 
He was educated in the public schools of 
Jersey City, and after leaving which he 
learned the trade of machinist in New 
York city. Having completely mas- 



tered that trade he engaged in the manu- 
facture of gold and silver pencils at Ex- 
change Place, that city, for one year, 
when the great civil war burst upon the 
country, and he with true patriotic spirit 
cast in his fortunes for the cause of the 
Union, and accordingly enlisted April 7, 
1861, in company I, of the Twelfth New 
Jersey volunteer infantry, and served 
throughout the entire war, being dis- 
charged July 5, 1865. Soon after enlist- 
ment he was promoted to commissary 
surgeon in the Third brigade, Second 
division, Second Army corps, under 
General Hancock, and was in all the 
engagements of his corps. Returning 
from the war he was located at Jersey City 
for a time, and then came to Fair Haven, 
where he has since resided. He soon 
engaged in house-painting and contract- 
ing, in which he has since continued, and 
is enjoying an extensive business. Poli- 
tically he is a republican, and takes a 
lively interest in the affairs of his party, 
having served as a delegate to various 
conventions. In educational affairs he 
renders valuable service, having served 
as a member for thirteen years of the 
board of education of Shrewsbury town- 
ship, and as secretary of the board during 
most of his term. He has been a mem- 
ber of the Hook and Ladder Company 
No. 1, of Oceanic, for twenty years, and 
a member of AiTowsmith Post, No. 61, 
G. A. R., at Red Bank, and served as 
sergeant-major. Fraternally, he is a 
member of the Knights of Pythias of 
Sea Bright. He was married on May 20, 
1866, to Miss Emma Harve}', a daughter 
of Samuel Harvey, of Oceanic, and they 
have been blessed with ten children : 
Grace, the wife of Dr. S. L. Ford, of 
Hensonville, Greene county, New York ; 
Arthur L., who is associated Avith his 



Biographical Sketches. 



1023 



father in business; Charles Dixon, who 
is a carpenter at Oceanic ; Jennie, Mar- 
garet, Samuel, Hettie, William, Harry, 
and Madeline, all at home. 

Philip Brill, grandfather of John C. 
Brill, was a native and life-long resident 
of Bavaria, Germany, where Philip, the 
father, was born and remained until 
early manhood, when he came to this 
country, locating first at New York 
city, then at Jersey City, New Jersey, 
but finally settled at Little Silver, Mon- 
mouth county, where he died in 1867, 
at the age of sixty-four years. He 
learned the rake-manufacturing business 
before coming to this country, which 
became his chief occupation while a resi- 
dent here. Although his manufacturing 
was carried on by the hand process, he 
became known as one of the leading rake 
manufacturers in the country at that 
day. His wife, who was a native of 
Bavaria, Germany, and whom he lost 
during his brief stay in Jersey City, was 
the mother of his six children : Christo- 
pher, Joseph, William H., Christopher, 
John C, and Mary, all deceased except 
W. H. and John C. 



r^APTAIN ABNER H. WEST, the vet- 
eran life-saver occupying the re- 
sponsible position of keeper at Sea Bright 
station, is a son of James and Jane 
(Woolley) West, and was born at North 
Long Branch (then known as Atlantic- 
ville). New Jersey, Oct. 24, 1842. He 
was there reared, and received his limited 
educational training in the subscription 
schools of that place. His father having 
died when he was but fourteen years of 
age, he was largely thrown upon his own 
weak resources, and, at the age of eleven 
years, engaged in fishing, in which he 



continued for thirty years. In 1872 he 
entered the life-saving service as a surf- 
man, and two years later was promoted 
to keeper, in which position he is serving 
at the present time at life-saving station 
formerly known as No. 3 district, extend- 
ing one and one-half miles south and two 
miles north from Sea Bright, where he 
employs eight men to assist him. Mr. 
West is one of the founders and a pioneer 
of Sea Bright, formerly known as Nauvoo, 
and he has continued actively identified 
with the industrial development and the 
general building up of the town ever 
since, all the property of which in 1872 
practically belonged to fishermen. He 
was one of the founders of the New York 
and Long Branch steamboat line in 1881, 
between New York and Long Branch, 
and is president and secretary of the fish 
association. Politically he is a republi- 
can, and a member of the Presbyterian 
church, formerly, however, having sub- 
scribed to the tenets of Wesley. Capt. 
West was married to Clementine, a daugh- 
ter of Jacob Warner, of Pleasure Bay, 
this county, and they have four children : 
Laura B., the wife of John F. Lane, of 
Long Branch ; C. Gorden, who married 
Sarah' Ferry, who resides at Sea Bright, 
where he is engaged in the fish business; 
Fannie G., the wife of William S. Jefifry, 
of Sea Bright ; and Hettie R., at home. 
As a citizen of the community in which 
he resides. Captain West enjoys the uni- 
versal esteem of all who know him, and 
is justly popular, and deserves to rank 
as one of the leading citizens of the 
thriving town of Sea Bright, and a rep- 
resentative citizen of the county. 

Benjamin West (grandfather) was born 
and became a life-long resident of Atlan- 
ticville, where he was engaged in the 
dual occupation of farmer and fisherman 



1024 



Biographical Sketches. 



until his death. Here he reared his 
family, one of whom was James West, 
who was born in 1800, and died in 1856, 
having resided his entire life at that 
place. He was also engaged in farming, 
but was essentially a fisherman bj* occu- 
pation. He was an active and influen- 
tial member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church for man}- years, having filled 
most of the official positions in the reach 
of the laity. During Capt. West's expe- 
rience in the life-saving service he was 
engaged in eflecting some of the most 
perilous rescues known to the annals of 
the civil service department, and to his 
record for bravery and fortitude exhibited 
we only think it fitting that a brief re- 
cord here be made of a few of the more j 
notable wrecks and rescues in which he ] 
took part as follows: Sept. 19, 1875, of 
schooner "Mabel Thomas;" March 16, 
1876, of schooner "P. A. Sannders;" Dec. 
24, 1876, of steamer "Philadelphia;" 
Jan. 7, 1877, of steamer "Amerique;" 
Feb. 3, 1880, of brig "Castalia;" April 
30, 1881, of bark " Melchior;" Sept. 22, 
1881, assisted the " Gypse," which was 
stranded in the Shrewsbury river ; March 
4, 1883, boarded the pilot boat "Ariel 
Patter-son," and rescued her passengers ; 
Sept. 23, 1 883, rescued a little girl in a 
dying condition and restored her to life 
by means of resuscitation ; May 20, 1885, 
schooner "Charlott;" July 7, 188-, the 
barkentine "Anna;" Nov. 19, 1885, the 
yacht " Butler;" June 4, 1886, schooner 
" Republic ;" Dec. 14, 1887, rescued John 
Applegate from perishing, found fast in 
the ice; Sept. 11, 1889, assisted schooner 
" Hiram B. Edwards," in a sinking con- 
dition ; Jan. 13, 1891, rescued Charles 
Morris and Henry Warne; Oct. 12, 1892, 
schooner "Rebecca;" Jan. 12, 1893, pilot 
boat, No. 6, "James Gordon Bennett;" 



Jan. 31, 1893, assisted steam-tug "Anna," 
in distress; March 11, 1893, steamship 
"Wells City;" March 11, 1894, schooner 
"Cape Mackee;" July 22, 1894, schooner 
" Robert Mitchell ;" Oct. 9, 1894, "Maria 
Louisa," and on Jan. 25, 1896, took part 
in the rescue of the passengers, consist- 
ing of six hundred and thirty in number, 
on board the " St. Paul," wrecked three 
and one-half miles south of the station. 



JACOB BYER, the leading general mer- 
chandise dealer at Bound Brook, 
Somerset county. New Jersey, is a son of 
Charles and Rosa Byer, and was born at 
Chimnej' Rock, Somerset county, Feb. 6, 
1869. He received his education at Wil- 
low Grove, and in the spring of 1896 first 
engaged in business on his own account 
by establishing his present merchandise 
store at Bound Brook, where he is en- 
joying a prosperous, profitable and rapid- 
ly-gTowing business. Politically he is a 
democrat, and religiously he is a member 
of the Presbyterian ch urch and takes an 
active part in the choir services of that 
church at Bound Brook. He is a mem- 
ber of Pioneer Council, No. 58, Jr. 
0. U. A. M., and the Knights of Pythias. 
He is unmarried and resides at home 
with his parents. 

His father, Charles Byer, is of German 
descent and nativity, having been born 
and educated in Germany. He came to 
this country when a young man and lo- 
cated at Greenville, where he pursued 
the wheelwi'ight trade, which he had 
learned in Germany. He successfully 
engaged in that business on his own ac- 
count until his retirement at Bound 
Brook, where he resides at present, and 
which has been his residence since 1880. 
He is a democrat, a member of the Pres- 
byterian church, and his marriage has 



Biographical Sketches. 



1025 



been blessed with the following children : 
William, Henry, deceased, Sophia, Peter 
Abgar, Lizzie, Anna, Jacob, Charles, Car- 
rie, Mamie and Bismarck. Mr. Jacob 
Byer belongs to that class of the younger 
business men of this country who are 
rapidly coming to the fore-front in the 
business world. He is enterprising, pro- 
gressive and industrious. 



nmSEK WALCOTT, a retired minister of 
-*-^ the Second Adventist faith, I'esiding 
at Eatontown, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, is a son of Henry Walcott, and 
was born July 21, 1832, near Eatontown, 
where he now resides. He attended 
the Eatontown Seminary until fourteen 
years of age, when he became a clerk in 
his father's grocery store at Ocean Point, 
and remained in his employ until he had 
arrived at the age of twenty-one years. 
He then became a member of the firm of 
Drummond, Haynes & Co., with whom 
he remained associated for seven j^ears. 
At this time he became imbued with a 
deep religious feeling and scriptural turn 
of mind, and for the ensuing few years 
applied himself industriously to the study 
of Latin, Greek, French, and to a more 
comprehensive and critical study of the 
scriptures. Li the meantime he pur- 
sued, at intervals, the occupation of 
teaching. Since that time he has become 
a disciple of the Second Adventist faith, 
which he embraced twenty-one years ago, 
and to which he has zealously held and 
its doctrine expounded in pulpits at Key- 
port, this county, and at Eatontown, 
where he resides at present, retired. He 
here lives upon a farm which he owns 
and devotes to truck farming. 

Oliver Walcott, the original emigrant 
of the Walcott family, had a son Henry, 



who was the grandfather of Esek Wal- 
cott. He was a farmer by occupation, 
and resided near Eatontown. He was of 
Quaker stock, and a strict member of the 
Society of Friends. His children were : 
John, Elizabeth, the wife of Thomas 
Howland ; Zobel, Esek, Henry and Jacob. 
Henry Walcott (father) was born near 
Eatontown, on the old homestead, where 
he was engaged in farming, and, in con- 
nection with which, for a number of 
years, he carted fish to the Philadelphia 
market. Politically he was an old-line 
whig, and served as collector of Shrews- 
bury township. He was a member of the 
board of chosen freeholders for eight years, 
and a commissioner of appeals. The reli- 
gious traditions of his family and his early 
teachings inclined him toward the So- 
ciety of Friends, and although he always 
strongly advocated that society in his re- 
ligious tendencies, he could never become 
a communicant, having been defeated in 
a birth-right membership by his father's 
marriage with his mother, who was not a 
member. His children were: Sarah Ann, 
the wife of Jeremiah Brown; Clementine, 
the wife of David H. Brown, and Esek. 
By his second wife, Deborah Claj^ton, 
they had one child: Margaret. He was 
personally a man of large stature and 
strong build, and possessed many estima- 
ble qualities of heart and head that 
warmly endeared him to all those who 
came in contact with him. 



/CHARLES McCUE, of the firm of 
^ Buckelew & McCue, one of the 
most extensive livery firms in the state 
of New Jersey, owning four stables at 
Lakewood, Ocean county, and the same 
number at Sea Bright, is a son of 
John and Mary (Martin) McCue, and 



1026 



Biographical Sketches. 



was born at Marlboro, Monmouth county, 
New Jersey, Jan. 11, 18G5. He was 
educated in the public schools of his 
native village. In 1882 he entered the 
employ of A. S. Buckelew in the livery 
business, and in June, 1893, in partner- 
ship with William Francis, purchased 
the business of his employer, and they 
continued to conduct the business, under 
the style of McCue & Francis, until Jan- 
uary, 1894. In this year C. R. Le 
Compte purchased the interest of Mr. 
Francis, and the firm became known as 
McCue & Le Compte up to January, 
1895, when Mr. Buckelew bought out 
the interest of Mr. Le Compte, and the 
present firn\ was established as Buckelew 
& McCue. Their livery interests consist in 
the proprietorship of eight stables, four at 
Sea Bright and four at Lakewood, Ocean 
county. New Jersey. Their business em- 
ploys eighty horses for livery purposes ; 
and their stables afford facilities for board- 
ing from eighty to one hundred or more. 
Mr. McCue is a member of the Roman 
Catholic church. His marital relations 
with Mary Sullivan, of New York city, 
were solemnized Nov. 27, 1890. She 
died in October, 1891. On June 12, 
1895, he married Mi.ss Nellie Ford, of 
Freehold, this county, and they have one 
child, Charles Ford. As a business man, 
Mr. McCue has won deserved success, 
and conmiand,s the utmost respect in the 
community in which he resides as an 
energetic, industrious and substantial 
business man. Personally he is possessed 
of great determination and independence 
of character, as is clearly depicted in his 
Celtic physiognomy. 

John McCue (father) was a native of 
Ireland, where he was born in 183G, but 
emigrated to the United States in 1851 
and located at Marlboro, New Jerse}', 



where he has since resided, engaged in 
agricultural pursuits. His children con- 
sisted of two sons and two daughters : 
Patrick, who resides at Marlboro ; Tim- 
othy, at home ; Mary, the wife of James 
Baggut ; and Amelia, the wife of Michael 
Commons, of Marlboro. 



TDEV. EGBERT MAcKELLAR.thepres- 
-*-*' ent popular and efficient pastor of 
the Episcopal church at Red Bank, is 
one of the most industrious and hard- 
working clergymen of his diocese. He 
is a son of Robert and Anna (Clevery) 
MacKellar, and was born Jan. 1, 1850, 
at Peekskill, N. Y. He received his 
education in the public schools of that 
city, and after attending various acade- 
mies he finally pursued his jDrofessional 
course in a theological seminary at New 
York, graduating in 1882. After officiat- 
ing in a number of charges in the west 
he served a pastorate of three years at 
Burlington, New Jersey, and subse- 
quently one and one-half years at Tren- 
ton, and in 1892 was called to his present 
pastorate at Red Bank. During his stay 
here his most zealous and industrious 
effiarts have met with much spiritual and 
temporal blessing. His church member- 
ship has been doubled, and a general re- 
vival of religious sentiment and feeling 
has made its appearance in his church, 
and his influence has extended beyond to 
the town and community. Rev. Mac- 
Kellar is a thoroughly practical man in 
his ideas, and commands the highest re- 
spect from all sects and creeds. As a 
citizen of the community he is active 
and useful in the promotion of all moral 
and christian influences for the uplifting 
of humanity. Politically he is a demo- 
crat, but liberal in his suffrage, casting 
his vote in all local issues for the man 



Biographical Sketches. 



1027 



best suited for the office. Fraternally he 
is a member of the masonic order. He 
has been greatly interested in music all 
his life, having served as organist in some 
of the leading churches of New York. 
On Oct. 22, 1885, he was happily married 
to Kosa Goldsmith, a daughter of Dr. 
William Goldsmith, of Louisville, Ky., 
and their marriage has been blessed with 
three children : Eleanor, Robert A. and 
Stewart E. 

Archibald MacKellar was of Scotch 
birth and nativity, having been born in 
Scotland, and afterwards for a number of 
years served in the English army. He 
was a cooper by trade, which he followed 
for an occupation. Religiously he was a 
member of the Presbyterian church. His 
children were : Thomas, William, Rob- 
ert, Agnes and Addie. 

Robert MacKellar (father) was born in 
New York city, March 18, 1818 j left 
school when twelve years old to learn the 
house and sign painting trade, which he 
continued to follow in New York until he 
removed to Peekskill, where he has since 
resided, but at present is engaged in the 
foundry business. Politically he is a re- 
publican and has held some of the local 
offices. He is an active member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church, in which he 
has served as trustee and class-leader for 
many years. He has been twice mar- 
ried, and to his first wife, Anna Clevery, 
were born Archibald, Susan and Rev. 
Robert. By his second wife, Mrs. Fran- 
ces Hobby, who was a widow, the follow- 
ing children were born : Anna J., Emma 
and William. 



JAMES FEANKLIN WESTCOTT, a 
^ leading grocer and a-representative 
business man at New Brunswick, Middle- 
sex county, is a son of Rev. Henry and 

51 



Mary (Matthews) Westcott, and was born 
in Cumberland county. New Jersey, Dec. 
26, 1837. He received his early educa- 
tion in the public schools of that county, 
and then spent three years in Lewis- 
burg University ; and subsequently, in 
1857, graduated from the Chicago LTni- 
versity. He then came to Philadelphia, 
and obtained charge of the wholesale 
department of a tea and spice house in 
that city, where he continued for three 
3'ears, when he located at Hightstown, 
New Jersey, and there purchased large 
milling interests, and unimpi'oved land, 
which he sold for building sites. He 
continued there in successful milling and 
real-estate operations for ten years, when 
he invested in a mill property at Raritan, 
Somerset county, which he operated for 
several years. He subsequently became 
engaged in the dry-goods business at 
Somerville, where he continued for ten 
years, and then came to New Brunswick 
to engage in his present successful grocery 
business, in connection with which, as is 
ti'ue throughout his business career, he 
has become more or less involved in real 
estate. Politically he is a democrat, but 
m no sense a politician, and is a member 
of the Baptist church. He is one of New 
Brunswick's most enterprising and useful 
citizens ; and as a business man, and as 
a member of the community in which he 
resides, he commands the highest confi- 
dence, and stands deservedlj^ well. 

Ebenezer Westcott (paternal grand- 
father) was the father of Rev. Henry 
Westcott, who was born at Biidgeton, 
Cumberland county. New Jersey, 1818. 
He received his preliminary educational 
training at Tremont Seminary, Norris- 
town, Pa., and at Brown University. He 
became installed in his first charge at 
Millville, New Jersey, and after serving 



1028 



BioGRAPHicAi. Sketches. 



ill various charges through the states of 
New Jersey and Pennsylvania, he as- 
sumed his present pastorate hi ]\Ionniouth 
county, New Jersey. PoHticallj' he is a 
democrat, and during the hite rebellion 
was one of a committee selected for the 
distribution of alms to widows of soldiers 
killed ill that war. His happy union 
with Mary Matthews, a daughter of 
James Matthews, has been blessed in the 
birth of the following children : James 
Franklin, Mary (who died at the age of 
two years), and Harriet Elizabeth. 



WILLIAM C. HULSE was born in 
Marlboro township, August 16, 
1843. He is the leading merchant of 
Marlboro, and one of the representative 
business men of the county. He is a son 
of Amos and Ellen (Brower) Hulse, and 
of Dutch ancestiy. His father, Amos 
Hulse, was born in Holland in 1815. He 
came to this country and settled at or 
near Blue Ball, Monmouth county. Al- 
though not an owner of real estate, he 
farmed on several places as a tenant. 
He had four children : Maiy Elizabeth, 
Garrett A., Elias, and W. C. His death 
occurred in 1845. 

William C. Hulse received the regular 
education given in the district schools at 
that period, but bej-ond that his educa- 
tion was confined to the results of private 
study. He worked on his father's farm 
until almost of age, when he engaged in 
business lor himself. This was interfered 
with b}' tiie civil war. When he had 
just turned twenty he enli,sted hi the 
Twenty-ninth New Jersey infantry, Col- 
onel Applegate commanding. During 
tiie Rappahannock campaign he was con- 
nected witii the First Army rorps under 
Major-General Reynolds. In 1863, his 
term ol" enlistment having expired, he 



retired from army life and returned to 
Marlboro, where he became employed in 
the hotel business. Shortly after this he 
went into the same business at Matawan. 
In the spring of 1864 he took up the car- 
penter trade, at which he continued for 
about five years, at the end of which 
time he opened a general merchandise 
store in Marlboro. Since then he has, 
by hard work, ability and perseverance, 
succeeded in building up a large and 
profitable business, and is now the lead- 
ing merchant of his locality. 

Mr. Hulse is proud of the fact that he 
is a self-made man. He started in life 
poor, and by his own unaided efforts has 
become prosperous and wealthy. He is 
a large real-estate owner — among his 
holdings being his large store property, 
his handsome residence and a farm of 
one hundred acres in Marlboro township, 
some distance from the village, which he 
uses for fruit and produce-growing. He 
has been quite prominent in political life, 
and has held several local offices. He is 
a strong democrat and has alwaj's been 
identified with county and district politics. 

He is a prominent figure in other local 
organizations, is an active member of 
Conover Post, No. 63, G. A. R., of Free- 
hold, and of the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows. He was the organizer of 
the local branch of the State Mutual 
Building and Loan Association, and is 
vice-president and a heavy stockholder. 

He married Mary E. Martin, a daugh- 
ter of the late Chas. Martin, of Holmdel, 
Monmouth county, and the}' have two 
daughters, Anna I. and Mary E. 



TTOWARD WHITEHEAD PHILIPS, a 
-*--'- successful medical practitioner of 
Perth Amboy, Middlesex county, this 
state, is a son of Henry and Elizabeth 



Biographical Sketches. 



1029 



Jane (Howard) Philips, and was born at 
Brooklyn, N. Y., July 24, 1837. He re- 
ceived his elementary education in the 
Clinton Street Academy of Brooklyn, 
and Columbia College, New York city, 
where he took a three years' course, and 
then entered the College of Physicians : 
and Surgeons, the medical department of i 
Columbia College, from which he gradu- ; 
ated in 1868. In the meantime, while ^ 
pursuing his education in college, the ' 
great civil war burst upon the country, j 
and the young medical student with true ; 
patriotism cast his fortunes for four years 
in the cause of the northern army in that : 
war. He accordingly enlisted in the 
Thirteenth regiment, organized in Brook- ; 
lyn, and was subsequently promoted to 
second lieutenant in the First regiment. 
Long Island volunteers, and soon rose to 
the commission of major of a company 
of cavalry, in which he served until the 
expiration of that term of enlistment in 
1863. The next honor to which he was 
appointed, under his second enlistment, 
was that of captain of company E, One 
Hundred and Thirty-ninth regiment. New ! 
York volunteers, in which he served 
until 1864, when, owing to disability, he 
was discharged. After a meritorious ser- 
vice, duly recognized with rapid and hon- 
orable promotion, he returned to resume 
his studies in college, which he completed 
as aforesaid, receiving the degree of M.D. 
He then served on the medical staff 
in Bellevue College, and subsequently in 
the same capacity in connection with 
Charity hospital, on Blackwell's Island, 
until 1869. He then became visitina; 
physician at City hospital, Brooklyn, N. 
Y., where he remained until 1880, when 
he removed to Orange county, N. Y., 
where he resided upon a stock-farm for 
one year in retirement from his profes- 



sion. But this proving incompatible 
with his physical health he disposed of 
the farm, and for the ensuing three years 
followed yachting, with the view of recu- 
perating his health. In 1883 he came 
to Perth Amboy, and resumed the prac- 
tice of his profession, in which he has 
continued ever since. Politically he is a 
rejjublican, but was formerly a whig. He 
is a member of the I. 0. 0. P., and has 
served as surgeon for the Catholic Benev- 
olent Legion of Perth Amboy for five 
years. He was married in 1859 to Phil- 
omen Clavel. 

William Philips (patern al grandfather) 
was a successful and prosperous farmer 
of Peekskill, N. Y. He was a devout 
church member, a consistent christian, 
and a member and deacon of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church. His children 
were : Albert, Henry, Jane, Ann, Eliza- 
beth, and Henry Miller. 

Henry Miller Philips (father) was of 
common-school education, and until twen- 
ty-five years of age was engaged in farm- 
ing and agricultural pursuits; but at this 
time he received a rich legacy, through 
a gentleman named Miller of New York 
city, who was deceased at this time, and 
after whom he had been luckily named. 
He was then enabled to engage in the 
dry-goods business, with his brother Al- 
bert, in New York city, where he con- 
tinued in this relation for fifteen years in 
the enjoyment of prosperity, until the 
financial panic of 1837. He subsequently 
engaged in the same business for ten 
years at Montreal, Canada, when he went 
to California, where he became associated 
with a firm dealing in hides. About 
this time hostilities broke out with the 
Montezumas on the Mexican border, and 
he accordingly enlisted in support of his 
country's cause as a veterinary surgeon. 



1030 



Biographical Sketches. 



At the close of this brief struggle he re- 
moved to Maryland, and, as if born to 
light, ere yet tlie reverberiitions ol" Beau- 
regard's thunder at Fort Sumter had 
ceased to echo he had enlisted in the 
ranks of the First Maryland cavalry, and 
was marching to the field of battle. He 
became a member of General Slocum's 
staff, and served gallantly until 1864. 
After the conclusion of the war he re- 
turned, to retire from the scenes of ac- 
tive life, to reside at Bath Soldiers' Home, 
New York state, where he died in 1885. 



TTOX. WILLIAM H. GRANT, ex-assem- 
-^-*- blyman from the third district of 
Monmouth county, a retired farmer of 
Middletown township, residing at Red 
Bank, is a sou of John and Ann (Hance) 
Grant, and was born in Shrewsbur}' town- 
ship, Dec. 24, 1820. He received his edu- 
cation by irregular attendance at the 
public schools during the winter, being 
employed during his summers on the 
farm. His father being a well-educated 
man, he received much of his training 
under his father's private tutelage. Upon 
leaving school he took charge of his 
father's farm in Middletown township, 
consisting of two hundred acres, loca- 
ted west of Red Bank. Upon this 
farm he has made a specialty of peach- 
growing and horticulture. He is a re- 
publican in politics, and has been active 
in the councils of his party, having served 
in various local offices of his township 
and the city of Red Bank, as follows : a 
member of the town committee, town 
treasurer, road-master, and in the sessions 
of 1884-85 represented the third district 
of Monmouth county in the assemblj'. 
Among other committees to which he 
WIS appointed as a member of that body 



was that of agriculture. Religiously he 
is a member of the Protestant Episcopal 
church, and is treasurer of the old church 
at Middletown. Since removing to Red 
Bank he has been a liberal contributor 
to and a supporter of Trinity Parish, at 
that place. He is especially active in 
religious work, and is a conscientious 
and zealous christian, as well as an up- 
right and useful citizen. Edward Butler 
Thomas Grant (grandfather) was a native 
of Lancashire, England, where he was 
an extensive cotton-goods manufacturer, 
but suffered heavy losses during the 
French revolution. He came to the 
United States in 179-3, locating at Rum- 
sen Neck, Shrewsbury township, Mon- 
mouth county, where he purchased a 
farm of two hundred and seventeen acres, 
upon which he resided in the successful 
pursuit of farming, and upon which at 
one time he employed a great number of 
slaves. He served at one time as a 
member of a committee appointed by 
parliament to examine and report on the 
quality of American cotton. Religiousl}', 
he was a member of the old Christ church 
at Shrewsbury, and married Catharine 
Butler, who bore him a family of four 
children, three sons and one daughter. 
John Grant (father) was born in Lanca^ 
shire, England, and died on the old home- 
stead farm in 1857, at the age of eighty- 
seven jears. He was a farmer and 
teacher, and at one time practiced law 
injustices' courts. He received his edu- 
cation in the schools of Lancashire, and 
became a man possessed of consider- 
able intellisjence. He was a member of 
the Shrewsbury church, and a federalist, 
and later a Avhig, and subsequently a 
free-soilcr politically. His children were 
two daughters and four sons. 

Hon. William H. Grant was united in 



BioGRAPHicAiv Sketches. 



1031 



marriage to Anna Morford, in 1854, and 
they have had two children : Laura, de- 
ceased at the age of three years; and 
Thomas H., who is an engineer on the 
New Jersey Central railroad. Mrs. Grant 
died in 1868 ; afterward Mr. Grant mar- 
ried for his second wife Mrs. Eliza J. 
Watson, «ee Hendrickson, of Long Island, 
New York. 



their marriage has been blessed with two 
children : James P. and Robert J. 



"TAMES DOUGHERTY, supervisor of 
^ the Pennsylvania Railroad canal, at 
New Brunswick, New Jersey, is of Irish 
birth, and was born in county Down, 
Ireland, in Nov., 1841. He is a son of 
Robert and Sarah (Barr) Dougherty. 

His paternal grandfather, Robei-t 
Dougherty, was born in Ireland. Robert 
Dougherty, father of our subject, was 
also born in Ireland, and emigrated to 
this country in 1852, locating at New 
Brunswick. Five childi-en were born to 
him : Sarah, Catherine, James, Eliza and 
Ellen. 

James Dougherty was eight years of 
age when his father came to New Bruns- 
wick. He was placed in the public 
schools of that city and i-eceived all the 
educational advantages which they 
afforded. After leaving school he occu- 
pied a clerical position in a grocery store 
for a few years, when, in 1862, he en- 
tered the emj)loy of the Delaware and 
Raritan Canal Co. as timekeeper. After 
some yeai's of service in that capacity, 
he was promoted to the position of fore- 
man, and finally, in 1880, to be the 
supervisor of what is now called the 
Pennsylvania Railroad canal, having in 
charge the supervision of maintenance of 
ways, and the keeping of the canal in 
repair. He is a democrat, yet gives but 
little time to political matters. He was 
married to Julia O'Brien in 1869, and 



OENATOR CHARLES A. REED, alead- 
^-^ ing lawyer of the Somerset and 
Union county bar, with otfices at Plain- 
field, New Jersey, and the recently- 
elected senator from Somerset county, is 
a son of Hugh B. and Annie E. (Thomp- 
son) Reed, and was born at Fort Wayne, 
Ind., Dec. 4, 1857. He received his edu- 
cation in the public schools of Somerset 
county, the New Brunswick grammar 
school, and Rutgers College. Upon 
leaving school he became a bookkeeper 
in his father's mill for three years, and in 
1879 entered upon the study of law in 
the office of J. D. Bartine, at Somerville, 
the present presiding judge of Somerset 
county. He was duly admitted as an 
attorney in June, 1882, after a course in 
the Columbia College law school. He 
located for one year in the practice of his 
profession at Wilkesbarre, Penn., and 
served as United States s]3ecial examiner 
for pensions for one year. In 1885 he 
returned to Somerville, wdiere he contin- 
ued in successful practice, up to 1887, in 
the firm of Clark & Reed. In that year 
he came to Plainfield, where he continued 
in practice alone up to 1894, Avhen he be- 
came a partner with Wm. A. Coddington, 
Esq., in the firm of Reed & Coddington, 
where they have built up one of the 
largest and most profitable clienteles in 
the count}'. Politically he is an active 
republican, having served as a member of 
the general assembly of the state of New 
Jersey in 1896, and served on a number 
of important committees, as follows : on 
Revision of Laws, on Incidental Ex- 
penses and on Revision of Borough Laws. 
In 1896, after a hotly-contested election. 



1032 



Biographical Sketches. 



he was elected to the New Jersej' senate. 
Religiously he is a member of the Epis- 
copal church, and fraternally he belongs 
to Anchor Lodge, No. 149, F. and A. M., 
at Plainficld. On October 4, 1887, he 
married Katharine, a daughter of A. A. 
Clark, of Sonierville, New Jersey, and 
they have two children : Arthur C. and 
Madeline. Mr. Reed, as a lawyer, is 
careful, conscientious and painstaking in 
his counsel, as well as in the preparation 
of his cases, and ever faithful to the in- 
terests of his clients, working as dihgently 
and as earnestly for a poor one as for a 
rich one. As a citizen he is progressive 
and popular, and eminently fulfills all 
the demands of good citizenship. Politi- 
cally he is prominent in the local coun- 
cils of his party, and is one of its recog- 
nized leaders. The Reed name is of 
Irish origin, and the famil}^ has long been 
distinguished in this country, the ori- 
ginal emigrant having come to this coun- 
try in 1700 and located in Georgia. 

Arthur Reed (paternal grandfather) 
lives at Zanesville, 0., where he was en- 
gaged in the manufacture of harness. 
lie was a whig and a member of the 
Presbyterian church. 

Hugh Reed (father of Charles A. Reed) 
was one of nine childroi, and was born 
at Zanesville, March 18, 1818. He at- 
tended the public schools of that city and 
graduated from the Ohio Medical College 
of Cincinnati, 0. Upon leaving college 
he became engaged in the drug business 
at Fort Wayne, Ind., until the breaking 
out of the civil war in 18G1, when he 
was commissioned colonel of the Forty- 
fourth Indiana regiment in that service. 
After two years, owing to failing health, 
he was obliged to resign, when he re- 
sumed his drug business, in which he 
continued up to 1864, when he sold out 



and came east, locating in Somerset 
county, New Jersey, where he purchased 
two farms in Hillsboro and Bridgewater 
townships, and on the latter of which he 
resided, in the pursuit of that occupation 
up to his death, in 1890. He was a mem- 
ber of the Grand Army of the Republic, 
and the Camp of Sons of Veterans at 
Somerville, named in his honor, and of 
the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
Religiously he was a zealous Christian 
and a member of the board of vestry of 
the Episcopalian church. To his mar- 
riage were born : Anna M., who is a prin- 
cipal of schools in New York city, but 
who resides at Somerville ; Louis T., 
who is a practicing physician of Somer- 
ville ; Eleanor, Margaret, Hugh B., who 
is a lawyer residing at Plainfield, New 
Jersey, and Belle. 



JACOB P. BORDEN, one of the oldest 
residents of Little Silver, Monmouth 
county. New Jersey, is the popular and 

: genial host of a summer boarding-house 
at that place. He is a son of John and 
Eliza A. (Lake) Borden, and was born 

j May 9, 1831, at Red Bank, that county, 
and received his education in the public 
schools of that place until he had anived 

1 at the age of thirteen years, when he 
went to live at Little Silver. When a 
boy he took a sea voj^age, crossing the 
ocean. He subsequently learned the ship- 
carpenter trade at Key port, which he fol- 
lowed for five years, and then established 
a summer boarding-house at Little Silver, 
which he has since conducted. Politi- 
cally he is a democrat, and fraternally a 
member of the F. and A. M. ; the Mystic 
Brotherhood Lodge, No. 21, at Red Bank; 
Hiram Chapter, No. 1, R. A. M. ; Corson 
Connnandery, No. 15, K. T., at Asbury 



BioGRAPHicAi, Sketches. 



1033 



Park, and Ancient Arabic Order Nobles 
of the Mystic Shrine, at New York city. 
John Borden (paternal grea1>grand- 
father), was one of the early pioneer set- 
tlers of that section of Monmouth county, 
and lived to the advanced age of ninety- 
two years. John Borden (grandfather) 
resided about all his life near Shrewsbury, 
in Shrewsbui'y township, the above 
county. He married a Miss Chadwick, 
and their children were as follows : John, 
Richard, Jas. Wren, Caroline and Sarah. 
John Borden (father) was born on the 
old homestead, near Shrewsbury village, 
in 1801. He moved to Red Bank after 
his marriage, and in 1844 removed to 
Little Silver, where he i^esided until his 
death. He followed a sea-faring life, and 
owned and ran a sloop between Red Bank 
and New York, carrying produce and 
passengers. This was, however, before 
the advent of steamboats. He afterwards 
became captain of a line of steamers. 
Politically he was a democrat and served 
in the general assembly of New Jersey, 
from Monmouth county, in the sessions 
of 1846-7 and 1847-8, and secured the 
passage of a bill proposed by him for the 
prohibition of sun-fishing. He was a 
member of the Episcopal church at the 
time of his death; although formerly he 
had been a quaker, as were his ancestors. 
His children were : Catherine (deceased), 
Jacob P., William, Richard, Caroline, 
Carroll, who died on the Isthmus of 
Panama, and Sarah. 



JOHN B. PRICHARD, a member of 
" the firm of Prichard & Williams, 
contractors and builders, with offices at 
Sea Bright, Monmouth county. New 
Jersey, and residing at Oceanic, same 
county, is a son of Griffith and Rebecca 



(Bowne) Prichard, and was born at 
Mauricetown, Cumberland county, New 
Jersey, Dec. 25, 1857. 

His grandfather, Aaron Prichard, was 
a native and life-long resident of Heisler- 
ville, Cumberland county, this state, 
where he followed the avocation of a 
horticulturist. He was a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church, and a whig 
in politics. His marriage resulted in the 
birth of five children, two sons and 
three daughters : Margaret, deceased, 
was the wife of Walter Warner, of Phila- 
delphia ; Jane, became the wife of 
John Applegate, both deceased ; Griffith 
is the father of our subject; Debora, of 
Harrisburg, Pa., the relict of Edgar 
Paullin, and Jesse, of Port Norris, New 
Jersey. 

Griffith Prichard (father) was born 
at Heislerville in the year 1823, and 
died at Mauricetown in the year 1894, 
having gone there in 1843 to learn con- 
tracting and building, which avocation 
he pursued successfully all his active life. 
He did an extensive business and ac- 
quired an ample competence, retiring 
five years prior to his death. Politically 
he was formerly a whig, but upon the 
organization of the Republican party in 
1856, became identified with its interests, 
but never sought political preferment. 
Religiously, he subscribed to the tenets 
and doctrines of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, in whose organization he was a 
faithful and efficient worker, having 
filled all the offices in the church. He 
married Rebecca Bowne, a daughter of 
John Bowne, who was a life-long resident 
of. Haleyville, Cumberland county. New 
Jersey, where he was engaged in agricul- 
tural pursuits all his life. He was a 
whig in politics, and a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. His mar- 



1034 



Biographical Sketches. 



riage with Nancy Hankins resulted in 
the birth of eight children : John, Lor- 
enzo, died in childhood ; Lucy, married 
Ephraini Sharp, both deceased ; Ger- 
trude, wedded John De Haven, both de- 
ceased ; Kesiah, deceased, was the wife 
of Augustus Westcott ; Henrietta, mar- 
ried Gilbert Compton, both deceased ; 
Elizabeth, the widow of John Compton, 
and Rebecca, mother of the subject of 
this sketch. She was born in 1828 and 
passed away in 1891, universally loved 
and lamented. Mr. and Mrs. Prichard 
were the parents of the following chil- 
dren : Anna, a teacher in the public 
schools of Mauricetown ; Clara, wife of 
John B. Compton, a general merchant of 
Mauricetown ; John B., subject ; Jennie 
and Jessie, both of Mauricetown. 

John B. Prichard learned the trade of 
a carpenter and )>uilder under the direc- 
tion of his father, who was a skilled 
artisan, and with whom he was employed 
nine years. In 1883 he came to Sea 
Bright, this state, under the employ of 
Olds & Walters, contractors and builders. 
Here, however, he remained but a short 
time, subsequently working at Long 
Branch and Seaville, this state, and in 
the state of Florida until 1886, when he 
returned to Sea Bright and was employed- 
by tlie late Hon. Charles L. Walters, a 
leading contractor and builder, as fore- 
man, until June, 1894. Upon that date 
he entered into partnership with Whit- 
ney F. Williams, under the firm name of 
Prichard & Williams, and they have 
since done an extensive business in Mon- 
mouth county. Mr. Prichard is a re- 
publican in politics, and is identified 
with a number of secret and fraternal 
organizations. He is a member of Sea 
Bright Lodge, No. 547, K. of P. ; Narum- 
suuk Tribe, No. 148, Imp. 0. R. M., both 



of Sea Bright, and Council No. 141, Jr. 
0. U. A. M., of Fair Haven. Mr. Prich- 
ard and Miss Emma L. Henderson, daugh- 
ter of Joseph and Ellen Henderson, of 
Cumberland county, New Jersey, were 
united in marriage on Feb. 27, 1889, and 
to this happy union were born these 
children : Howard, Milton, Rebecca and 
Clara. 



TDEDER OLSEN, a successful bu.siness 
-*- man of Perth Amboy, New Jersey, 
is a native of Denmark. His grandpa- 
I'euts had six children : Hans, James, 
Peter, Jacob, Mary and Anna Margaret, 
the third, Peter having been the father 
of the subject of this sketch. 

No nation in the world hag ever pos- 
sessed more venturesome spirits among 
its people than the Danish ; always 
ready for new fields of venture, always 
anxious for new discoveries, they are to 
be found in all quarters of the earth, and 
when found, no matter how much nor 
how far they have wandered, they never 
lose their distinctive characteristics of 
honesty, thrift and steadfastness, but still 
are always possessed of the spirit of un- 
rest. 

And so with Peder Olsen, who, after 
passing through the difierent branches of 
the public schools and a course of private 
studies, passed eight j^ears in the cloth- 
ing business, where he learned to make 
all kinds and grades of clothing, and then 
found himself attacked by the spirit of 
unrest, and leaving his then place of resi- 
dence came to Perth Ambo}' with a wish 
to better his fortunes. This was in 1869. 
Not being successful in his attempts to 
secure employment, on account- of the 
general dulness of trade, he journeyed to 
Staten Island. Remaining there for a 
brief period and still unsuccessful in his 



BioGRAPHicAi^ Sketches. 



1035 



quest for remunerative work, he trans- 
ferred himself to the beautiful city of 
Bridgeport, Conn., where he was more 
successful, and embarking in the business 
of painting remained there two years. 
Having a natural taste for gardening he 
then removed to New York and accepted 
a position as gardener, which he kept for 
five months, and then returned to Perth 
Amboy. Here he remained for several 
months as an employee in a factory, when 
he went once more to Staten Island and 
again engaged in the clothing business. 
This occupied his attention during the 
winter months only, the summer being 
devoted to gardening. Railway became 
his next objective point, and there he re- 
mained for one year as assistant in a 
paint works. 

Not being able to forget the attractions 
of Perth Amboy longer, he returned here 
at the end of that year and embarked in 
the sewing-machine business, in which he 
has been very successful, gradually add- 
ing other features to it, such as musical 
instruments. He is now so firmly estab- 
lished here, is so prosperous, and so for- 
tunate in obtaining and holding the re- 
spect of his fellow-men, that he may be 
considered as having finished his nomadic 
career and as being firmly established as 
one of the conservative substantial citi- 
zens of the town. 

Mr. Olsen married Caroline Peterson, 
and their union has been blessed with 
three children : Peter, Jr., Emma and 
John C. 



"DENJAMIN ARROWSMITH HEGE- 
-*— ' MAN, the present mayor of North 
Plainfield, Somerset county, and mana- 
ger for the Lackawanna Live Stock Co. 
at Newark, this state, is a son of Benja- 
man A. and Jane (Roome) Hegeman, and 



was born at New York city, July 14, 
1860. 

His grandfather was William Hege- 
man, who was born and resided on what 
became known in the family as the old 
Hegeman homestead farm, near Laming- 
ton, Somerset county, which has been in 
the possession of the family for one hun- 
dred and seventy-five years. 

Benjamin A. Hegeman (father) was 
born in New York city, June 26, 1820, 
and married Jane Roome, the daughter 
of Judge William J. Roome, of New 
York city, on May 8, 1844. 

Benjamin Arrowsmith Hegeman re- 
ceived his educational training in various 
public and private schools of New York 
and Brooklyn, and graduated from the 
Mt. Washington Collegiate Institute of 
the former city in 1877. Two years 
later, in 1879, he entered the employ of 
the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western 
railroad, and continued in various de- 
partments of the business of that cor- 
poration until 1886. In that year he 
became assistant- secretary of the Citi- 
zens' Mutual Life Insurance Association, 
in which position he continued until 
1888, when he succeeded to his present 
responsible one as manager of the 
Lackawanna Live Stock Express Co. at 
Newark. Mr. Hegeman has always been 
a staunch republican, entering early in 
life into the work of his party. While 
strongly partisan he is at all times broadly 
tolerant of his political opponents. He 
was elected in July, 1888, by the council 
of North Plainfield to fill an unexpired 
term in that body, and in March, 1890, 
was regularly elected for a full term of 
three years. In 1895 he was elected to 
the office of mayor of North Plainfield 
for two years, and has served as a mem- 
ber pf the executive committee of Som- 



1036 



Biographical Sketches. 



erset county since 1890. Religiously he 
is a member of the Collegiate Kefonned 
church of New York city. He married 
Miss Kate Greenough Matthews, of North 
Plainfield, and they have two children. 



HON. CHARLES IT. lYINS, the pros- 
ecuting attorney of Monmouth 
county, with law offices also at Red Bank, 
where he resides, is a son of Charles E. 
and Elizabeth H. Ivins, and was born 
May 25, 1855, at Rumson, in Shrewsbury 
township, that county. He received his 
elementar\- education in the village school 
and the Friends' New England Boarding 
Sciiool at Providence, R. I., where he spent 
two years. He then taught one year. 
In his twenty-fourth jear he began the 
study of law in the office of R. Allen, Jr., 
at R«d Bank. He was admitted as an 
attorney in February, 1884, and as a 
counsellor in Februarj^, 1891. He was 
elected a member of the general assem- 
bly as a democrat from the Third Assem- 
bly district of Monmouth county in 1890, 
and re-elected without opposition in 1891, 
the only instance in tiie historj' of that 
district of that kind. He Avas appointed 
by Chief Justice Beasley prosecutor ol 
Monmouth county, to fill a vacancy dur- 
ing the ab.sence of Emanuel Haight in 
1890, and upon Mr. Haight's death was 
re-appointed Aug. 9, 1891, by Governor 
Abljctt. On the 18tli of January, 1892, 
he was regularly appointed to a full 
term of five years, and the Senate con- 
firmed liis nomination without reference. 
Mr. Ivins was happily married in 1884 
to Miss Annie II., a daughter of Rev. F. 
R. Ilarbaugli, who has been pastor of the 
Presbyterian church at Red Bank lor 
twenty years. They have one child, a 
son, Cliiford Fullerton, nine years of age. 



WILLIAM Mcknight reckless, 
a traveling salesman for an ex- 
tensive firm of oil merchants and brokers 
in New York city, and a prominent citi- 
zen residing at Freehold, New Jersey, is 
a son of Anthony and Mary (Seaman) 
Reckless, and was born at Hightstown, 
Mercer county. New Jersey, July 28, 
1848. His early life was spent at Hights- 
town and Red Bank, New Jersey, and 
after attending the public schools of those 
places, graduated later from Egelswood 
Military Academy of Perth Amboy. At 
the age of nineteen years he became 
associated with his father in the general 
mercantile business, and afterwards as- 
sisted him in his railroad office business. 
In 1880 he became a traveling salesman 
in tlie emploj^ of Borne, Scrymoir & Co., 
oil merchants, at 80 and 81 South street. 
New Y'^ork city, having in charge all of 
their New Jersey territory. He has been 
eminently successful as au oil merchant, 
and is now a stockholder in the company 
he represents as salesman. After leaving 
Red Bank he resided for a time on the 
Perrine farm, in Manalapan township, 
until 1893, when he removed to Freehold, 
where he has since resided. Politicall}^ 
Mr. Reckless is an independent democrat, 
taking such part in politics as is expected 
of every good and true citizen, but has 
never sought nor aspired to office. He 
was formei'ly a member of the Presby- 
terian church at Red Bank, but at present 
subscribes to the doctrines of the Dutch 
Reformed church at Freehold. He luar- 
ried Catharine P. Perrine, whose father 
owned the aforesaid Perrine homestead 
farm of five hundred acres, upon which 
Mr. Reckless resided prior to coming to 
Freehold, and which he still operates. 

The Reckless family is of English 
origin. Joseph Reckless, the son of John 




C-^v-A-^u^^c^ /V^-rt7 



^V'^^^.^ 



Biographical Sketches. 



1039 



Reckless, of Nottingham, England, and 
the founder of the Reckless family of 
New Jersey and Pennsylvania, came to 
New Jersey prior to the year 1712, and 
was probably a young unmarried man . He 
purchased in that .year the mill property 
now known as the Recklesstown mill. 
He served in various township ofl&ces for 
seventeen years, and he was frequently 
charged with the drawing of deeds for 
property acquired by the Friends, and 
was clerk of the meeting. He was a good 
business man and possessed of very fair 
education. He married Margaret Satter- 
thwaite of the town and county of Bur- 
lington, on the eighth day of the ninth 
month, 1716. Of his children, McKnight 
Reckless' s ancestor by direct line of as- 
cent was Joseph Reckless, who married 
Elizabeth Fowler, who survived but a few 
years, dying in 1840, leaving no issue. 
He subsequently married Anne, a daugh- 
ter of Joseph and Hannah Woodward, 
and a granddaughter of the first Anthony 
Woodward. Of their children, six in 
number, Anthony, the fifth child, when 
but seventeen years of age, entered the 
sappers and miners. Continental army, 
as a lieutenant and served throughout 
the entire war, finally rising to the rank 
of captain. He married Ann, a daugh- 
ter of Peter Tallman, and resided at 
Recklesstown, where he died in 1817. 
An obituary, written by Edwin B. 
Woodruff, attorney-general of New Jei"- 
sey, from which we quote the following, 
shows the estimation in which he was 
held by the most prominent men of the 
state : " Early in life he embarked in the 
cause of his country, and served with 
honor in the Revolutionary war until 
its close. He then entered into the pur- 



suits of domestic life, and it was in this 
character that his virtues were more con- 
spicuous ; as a husband and parent he 
was afieetionate, tender and indulgent, 
and as a friend he was warm and faith- 
ful. The odor of his virtues is precious, 
for he has died without reproach or stain, 
universally lamented and regretted." His 
children were : Joseph, Anna Tallman, 
and Mary. 

Joseph W. Reckless, paternal grand- 
father, married Hannah Knight, a daugh- 
ter of John Knight, of Bordentown, New 
Jersey, July 25, 1809. She died Aug. 
31, 1831. He married for his second 
wife, Mrs. Mary Ann Patrick, who died 
in 1849. His children by his first mar- 
riage were : John, born Oct. 8, 1810 ; 
Joseph W., Jr., born Aug. 22, 1812, who 
removed to Quakertown, Bucks county, 
Pa., where he died in 1877 ; Rebecca Mc- 
Knight, born Sept. 8, 1815, and who mar- 
ried Dr. G. W. Canfield ; Cornelia Laura, 
who married E. M. Woodward ; George 
Ann, born Jan. 24, 1819, and died May 
4, 1820, and Anthony, father of Mc- 
Knight Reckless. He was born May 11, 
1821, and died a merchant at Red Bank, 
Monmouth county. He was president of 
the Senate of New Jersey in 1864, col- 
lector of the United States Internal 
Revenue, commissioner on building the 
State Insane Asylum at Morristown, 
president of the New York and Long 
Branch Railroad Co., besides filling many 
other positions of honor and trust. He 
married Mary E., a daughter of the late 
Gilbert Seaman, mayor of Hightstown, 
New Jersey, and they have the following 
children : William McKnight, Charles S., 
Josephine, Gilbert S., Jennie S. and 
Mary E. 



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